hard Brexit

Etymology

hard +‎ Brexit

Proper noun

hard Brexit (uncountable)

1. (politics) The withdrawal of the United Kingdom both from the European Union and from the European single market
   • 2017, Derek Scally, Irish Times

     He said he now believed that a so-called “hard Brexit” – with no agreement on trade and no transitory arrangements – is just likely as any of the other options.

   • 2017, June 9, Steven Erlanger, Katrin Benhold & Stephen Castle, The British Election That Somehow Made Brexit Even Harder (in The New York Times)

     Without question now, Britain is not ready for the negotiations, having spent the past year largely avoiding a real debate on the topic, other than a vague argument over the merits of a “hard Brexit” (as a clean break from the European Union is known), versus a “soft Brexit,” which would require more compromise.

   • The Independent

     The great irony is that soft brexit, like hard Brexit, entails a loss in trade and living standards but also a loss in national sovereignty, with the UK resembling a colony of the EU, reliant upon its bigger neighbour to protect its economic interests.