Pursuant to Article 2 of Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/20312, that Decision is to apply from the date following that on which the Treaties cease to apply to and in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the ‘United Kingdom’) pursuant to Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union, unless a withdrawal agreement has entered into force by that date or the two-year period referred to in Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union has been extended.

On 22 March 2019, the European Council adopted Decision (EU) 2019/4763 extending the period under Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union in agreement with the United Kingdom. Consequently, the second condition for the application of Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/2031, namely that the two-year period referred to in Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union has not been extended, will not be fulfilled.

However, the reasons underlying Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/2031 remain, regardless of any extension of the period referred to in Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union. In particular, in the event of a withdrawal without an agreement after the extended period, potential risks persist in relation to the financial stability of the Union and its Member States. Therefore, Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/2031 should apply if the United Kingdom withdraws from the Union without an agreement.

Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/2031 should therefore be amended accordingly.

This Decision should enter into force as a matter of urgency to ensure that it applies in the event that the United Kingdom withdraws from the Union without a withdrawal agreement after the expiry of the period referred to in Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union as extended by the European Council on 22 March 2019.

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the European Securities Committee,