Brexit is a commonly used term for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union (EU).[1] The British government led by David Cameron held a referendum on the issue in 2016; a majority voted to leave the European Union. On 29 March 2017, Theresa May's administration invoked Article 50 of the Treaty on the European Union in a letter to the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk. The UK is set to leave by April 2019.[2]

The terms of withdrawal have not yet been negotiated, and the UK remains a full member of the European Union.[3] The Prime Minister, Theresa May, confirmed that the UK government would not seek permanent single market membership, and announced 12 negotiating objectives.[4] She also promised a Great Repeal Bill, that would repeal the European Communities Act and would incorporate existing European Union law into the domestic law of the UK.[5]

The UK joined the European Communities, the predecessor of the EU, on 1 January 1973.[6][7] A referendum in 1975 approved its membership. In the 1970s and 1980s, withdrawal from the EC was advocated mainly by Labour Party and trade union figures. From the 1990s, the main advocates of withdrawal from the EU were the newly founded UK Independence Party (UKIP) and an increasing number of Conservative MPs.

The departure of the UK is expected to have a major effect on the EU: Germany and her remaining northern EU allies will lose their blocking minority of 35% in the Council of the European Union, enabling the other EU countries to enforce specific proposals such as relaxing EU budget discipline or providing EU-wide deposit guarantees within the banking union. *wikipedia