The EU remains the biggest global economy and a world leader in the liberalisation of commercial services and investment. Alongside the US, the EU is the largest trade partner for almost every other country in the multilateral trading system. It is a highly diverse and competitive market, and one which is very attractive as a region to other countries.

If the UK votes to leave the EU on 23 June, what will happen to our existing trade deals? And is the WTO a real alternative?

When the World Trade Organisation (WTO) was created in 1995, the UK had been a part of the negotiations in the preceding Uruguay Round, as part of the EU. In this regard, it is difficult to assess what concessions might be agreed for individual UK membership if Brexit becomes a reality. Negotiations for new concessions and market access might need to be approved by other WTO Members, and their agreement to such a schedule of concessions might not be forthcoming.

Indeed, the WTO’s Director-General Roberto Azevedo has warned that the UK should not see the “WTO Option” as a foregone conclusion.

In this blog Dr Gammage looks at a Brexit terms of the EU's internal trade and external relations with third countries and starts to paint a picture of the countless legal processes, ratifications and re-negotiations that will be needed if the UK chooses to leave the EU.

The full blog is available on the Law School Research blog.