Statement on the rejection of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement by the UK Parliament

Posted on 16.01.2019

Now, a hard Brexit looks increasingly likely. This means that in less than 80 days the UK might become a third country and no transition time will be allocated to adjust to the changes brought in by Brexit.

Brexit is not only a UK issue. The situation should be considered extremely urgent for Europe as 30-40% of medical technologies have been certified and provided via a UK notified body, consequently there is a concrete risk that such products would stop being distributed immediately putting both patients and hospitals into a very critical situation.

It is MedTech Europe’s hope that all efforts are put in place to ratify a deal that would come into force when the UK leaves the EU on March 29. Post-Brexit discussions should provide the opportunity to include more specific commitment on the importance of ensuring a long-term alignment on the medical technology regulations and to continue to protect the safety of patients and public health in the EU and the UK.