The highs and lows of Britain's 47 years in the EEC and EU

The European parliament sets the seal on Britain’s departure from the EU on Friday by formally voting to ratify the withdrawal agreement paving the way for the UK to leave the bloc after 47 tumultuous years.

A sad day for many, a moment for celebration for others.

Here, we look back at some of the highs and lows of the UK’s membership.

Does 31 January change anything?

Friday will mark the start of what is likely to be an uphill battle to get a trade deal done by the end of the year, not to mention all the non-trade issues that must also be resolved including security and intelligence cooperation, fisheries, data, education and research collaboration.

Although everyday life will remain the same and the UK will remain in the single market and the customs union until the end of the year as part of transition arrangements, the withdrawal agreement will be a legally binding international treaty that comes into force. It carries sanctions for any “backsliding or half measures”, as Michel Barnier’s adviser Stefaan de Rynck has pointed out.

What happens next?

We know little of the plans for the negotiations, and parliamentary scrutiny of Brexit has been restricted. The House of Lords EU committee has invited but failed to get Stephen Barclay to appear to explain the next stages, sources say.

While business has been clamouring for the government to reveal its Brexit vision beyond the joint aspiration of a tariff-free, quota-free deal, little is known about Boris Johnson’s specific goals.

When will negotiations begin?

Expect plenty of sabre-rattling on both sides, but negotiations are unlikely to begin before March. The European commission kicked off its 30-stage process in agreeing its negotiating goals before Christmas and these are expected to be signed off by member states at a meeting on 25 February.

Who will be negotiating for the UK?

David Frost, who replaced Oliver Robbins as the chief negotiator, is expected to lead a team of about 30 calling on expert knowledge from civil servants and trade experts. Some have suggested the government should hire as many as possible from the Canadian team that sealed Canada’s new deal with the EU. 

What about Northern Ireland?

This remains the single most contentious part of the Brexit deal because of the checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea. De Rynck said in January that the EU and the UK would have to be “very disciplined” if they were to get a new system for trading in Northern Ireland ready for 31 December.

Brussels and Irish political leaders are already alarmed by Johnson’s repeated declarations that there will be no checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea, even though some of these will be mandatory.

Helen McEntee, Ireland’s minister for European affairs has contradicted him directly, telling Sky News’s Sophy Ridge: “There will be no checks 

Northern Ireland businesses have urged the government to set up a working group urgently so that the detail of the checks can be determined quickly.

Lisa O'Carroll Brexit correspondent

1972 – Ted Heath signs UK in

Sir Edward Heath, the then prime minister, signs the accession treaty to the European Economic Community, which takes effect on 1 January 1973.

“What dictators have failed to do by force, democracies are undertaking by peaceful consent … and the voice of European civilisation so muted since the second world war will be able to speak in a united way,” said the British commissioner, George Thomson.

1975 – Margaret Thatcher says ‘yes’

Margaret Thatcher urges the UK to vote yes to stay in Europe in referendum … before saying “no, no, no” to the European commission president Jacques Delors in 1990 over plans to extend Europe’s powers and competence into national political matters.

The seeds of Euroscepticism had been sown years earlier when the iron lady marched into the former French royal palace at Fontainebleau to demand, as she had put it earlier, “our money back” from the European community.

1999 – Nigel Farage’s maiden speech

“Our interests are best served by not being a member of this club,” Farage says. “The level playing field is about as level as the decks of the Titanic after it hit an iceberg.”

2010 – Farage fined

The leader of Ukip was fined 10 days’ MEP allowances – about £2,700 – after refusing to apologise to the the Belgian president of the European parliament, Herman Van Rompuy. “I don’t want to be rude, but you have the appearance of a damp rag and the appearance of a low grade bank clerk,” said Farage.

2017 – Farage branded a liar in parliament

MEP Seb Dance holds up placard that reads: “He’s lying to you,” behind Nigel Farage as the then Ukip leader defends Trump’s ban on Muslims entering the US.

2019 SNP MEP – ‘Please leave a light on for Scotland’

In what he thought could have been his last speech, two days before the original Brexit day, on 27 March, Alyn Smith apologised for some of his colleagues’ behaviour over the years, and said: “I’m not asking you to solve our domestic discussions. I am asking you to leave a light on so that we can find our way home.”

June 2019 – Brexit party snubs opening of parliament

Brexit party MEPs turn their backs as the European anthem, Ode to Joy, is played after being elected in a European election they thought would never happen.

And finally …

The classic BBC TV comedy Yes Minister had it right all along.

Minister: “Surely you are committed to the European ideal?“

Sir Humphrey: “Reaaaaaally minister, ha, ha, ha. We had to break the whole thing up, so we had to get inside. We tried to break it up from the outside, but that wouldn’t work. Now that we are inside we can make a complete pig’s breakfast of the whole thing again.”