[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Don’t forget that IDS felt the same, and spoke passionately in the HoC about how MPs didn’t need any more time to scrutinise the WA as it had had had plenty of time to be reviewed in depth, and it should just be signed off...

(Apparently he has now discovered some "fine print" he didn’t know about before...)

Frankly, I think IDS should do one. The financial terms as I understand them seem perfectly reasonable to me.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk...al-settlement/

Broadly speaking, the financial settlement can be split into three components:

During the transition period, until the end of 2020, the UK will pay into the EU budget almost as if it were a Member State. The UK will also receive funding from EU programmes – such as structural funding.

EU annual budgets commit to some future spending without making payments to recipients at the time. The commitments will become payments in the future. The UK will contribute towards the EU’s outstanding commitments as at 31 December 2020. Recipients in the UK will also receive funding for outstanding commitments made to them.

The UK will share the cost of EU liabilities that exist at the end of 2020, and any materialising contingent liabilities (potential liabilities that may occur depending on the outcome of an uncertain event in the future) entered into before its withdrawal, and will receive back a share of some assets. The pensions of EU staff are likely to be the most significant liabilities for the UK, while the most significant item being returned to the UK is the capital it paid into the European Investment Bank.