The UK will have to pay 47.5 billion euros to the EU in the post-Brexit settlement by Reuters

By Kanishka Singh

(Reuters) – The UK will have to pay 47.5 billion euros ($ 56.23 billion) to the European Union as part of its post-Brexit financial settlement, according to the EU’s 2020 joint budget.

The report adds that the money is the debt of some of the articles agreed upon by both sides as part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement. The data was reported earlier on Thursday by RTÉ News.

The total amount is significantly higher than expected. The UK Office of Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) forecast in its March 2018 economic and fiscal forecast report that the bill would be € 41.4 billion.

The initial amount of € 6.8 billion will have to be paid in 2021, the EU joint budget report added, and the rest of the amount to be paid later.

The report cited a total of € 47.5 billion as “net of UK revenue”.

A trade and cooperation agreement was reached between the UK and the EU in December, after more than four years of fierce negotiations and persistent mistrust, when Britain ended its 47-year membership in the EU.

On Tuesday, the European Union called on London to discuss a Swiss-style veterinary agreement with Brussels on agri-food to end the post-Brexit ‘sausage war’ line over certain goods moving between Britain and the province of Northern Ireland.

Tension has risen over Northern Ireland trade agreements, especially for cold meats, as the province has an open border with EU-member Ireland with the UK and its vast single market.

($ 1 = € 0.8448)