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A10 WORLD NEWS
Monday 2 october 2017

Leaving EU with no trade deal will hit UK industries hard

By DANICA KIRKA between the two sides re- As a member of the EU,
Associated Press verts to World Trade Orga- Britain currently enjoys tar-
LONDON (AP) — Britain nization rules, according to iff-free trade with the EU’s
would be hurt more than the study by international market of more than 500
the European Union if it law firm Baker McKenzie. million people.
leaves the EU without a While the EU accounts for Some leading members
trade deal, according to 49 percent of British exports of Prime Minister Theresa
a study released Sunday by the four industries, Britain May’s Conservative Party
amid suggestions that Brit- buys just 9 percent of the suggested last week that
ain should walk away from goods shipped abroad by Britain should end its Brexit
Brexit talks because of the the same sectors in the EU, talks with the EU if there is
inflexibility of the bloc’s ne- the study found. no concrete progress by
gotiators. “We have heard a lot Christmas.
Four of Britain’s key manu- about how much Europe The government should
facturing industries — au- exports to the U.K., for ex- British Prime Minister Theresa May, right, is greeted by Estonian also be clear that it is pre-
Prime Minister Juri Ratas during arrivals for an EU Digital Summit
tomobiles, technology, ample, in the automotive in Tallinn, Estonia on Friday, Sept. 29, 2017. The European Union pared to allow WTO rules to
health care and consumer sector,” Ross Denton, a is looking beyond its impending breakup with Britain at how to take effect on the day Brit-
goods — would lose 17 bil- Baker McKenzie partner build a common future with the 27 nations remaining in the bloc. ain leaves the EU — making
lion pounds ($23 billion) of who specializes in trade is- (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo) a so-called “hard Brexit” —
exports annually if trade sues, SAID. “That may be true in numerical terms, but broadly, to a whole host of to give clarity to businesses
when you look at this as a other markets, and conse- and investors who are plan-
percentage of their trade, quently, it is far less depen- ning for the future, accord-
you can clearly see that dent on the U.K. as a mar- ing to the Leave Means
the EU exports a lot more ket than the U.K. is on it.” Leave campaign. q

After law change:

Germany celebrates 1st same-sex weddings

By FRANK JORDANS priate for Schoeneberg to marry in Germany, not-
Associated Press to hold the first same-sex ing that he and Mende, 60,
BERLIN (AP) — Germany wedding in the country had been campaigning for
celebrated its first same-sex because it has long been gay rights for almost four
weddings Sunday, after a a center of gay life in the decades.
new law came into force German capital. After cutting the wedding
putting gay and lesbian About sixty guests and an cake — featuring a rain-
couples on an equal legal equal number of journalists bow flag and the words
footing with heterosexual packed into Schoeneberg “marriage for all” — the
couples. town hall’s “Golden Room” couple planned to hold a
Town halls in Berlin, Ham- to witness the marriage of small reception and fly to
burg and elsewhere Karl Kreile and his partner Vienna later in the week for
opened their doors to mark of 38 years, Bodo Mende. a five-day honeymoon.
the event, made possible The grooms entered the “We had a huge party 15
by a surprise vote in Parlia- room to the popular “Wed- years ago that can’t be
ment three months earlier. ding March” by 19th-centu- topped,” said Kreile, refer-
“We’re making a single ry German composer Felix ring to the celebration after
exception to fire a sym- Mendelssohn, before say- the couple registered their
bolic starter pistol because ing their vows and signing partnership in 2002.
same-sex marriages are the marriage documents Germany introduced regis-
possible from today,” said to applause and cheers tered partnerships in 2002,
Gordon Holland, a registrar from the assembled guests. but those gave same-sex
in Berlin’s Schoeneberg dis- Kreile, 59, said it was an couples fewer rights than
trict. “incredible honor” to be heterosexual couples who
Holland said it was appro- the first same-sex couple married. q