European Parliament overwhelmingly votes to ratify Brexit trade deal

The European Parliament has overwhelmingly voted to ratify the UK-EU trade deal in an early morning vote in Brussels, as it branded Brexit a “historic mistake”.

MEPs backed the agreement by 660 votes in favour to five against, with 32 abstentions – representing the last political hurdle of the agreement.

The accord, which has been in provisional effect since 1 January, legally had to be approved before the end of April.

Had the agreement not passed, the UK and EU’s terms of trade would have degraded even further – with tariffs and quotas applicable on goods.