UK plans Brexit celebrations but warns businesses may suffer

LONDON (AP) — British government has anunced plans for special events on night of Jan. 31 when country officially leaves European Union but country’s treasury chief has mitted that some U.K. business sectors will suffer as a result.

Sajid Javid told Financial Times in an interview Saturday that Britain’s regulations will t be aligned with EU in future and that those changes may hurt some businesses. Currently EU is Britain’s largest tring partner.

“re will t be alignment, we will t be a rule-taker, we will t be in single market and we will t be in customs union — and we will do this by end of year,” he said, referring to a deline at end of 2020 for conclusion of what are expected to be contentious tre talks with n-27 member EU.

Britain will officially leave EU bloc on night of Jan. 31, even though it will keep following EU rules for an 11-month transition period. It will be first nation ever to leave bloc. British government plans to mark occasion with a series of upbeat events.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to make a speech to nation that night after holding a rare cabinet session in rth of England to emphasize his government’s plan to spre opportunity to that ecomically beleaguered region.

government also plans to mark Brexit by projecting a clock onto prime minister’s official residence at 10 Downing Street in London that will count down until 11 p.m., when break takes place.

entire government neighborhood of Whitehall is to be illuminated for occasion as part of a light show, with Union flags flown on all poles in Parliament Square. government will also create a commemorative coin that will enter circulation that day.

But Johnson’s Conservative government is longer actively pushing a plan to have familiar chimes of Big Ben clock tower at Parliament sound at 11 p.m. despite a private fundraising push in support of activating chimes, which are under repair.

Britain voted in a 2016 referendum to become first nation to leave 28-nation EU, but process has moved more slowly than expected. A stalemate last year kept a withdrawal bill from passing, leing to a rare December election that gave Johnson’s pro-Brexit Conservative Party a strong majority in Parliament.

Brexit divorce bill quickly passed when new Parliament convened. A transition period will last until end of 2020 as negotiators try to forge a tre arrangement between Britain and remaining EU nations.

Johnson, who is also seeking a tre deal with United States, has ruled out seeking an extension of deline for EU talks.

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