What Is the Norway Model, and Can It Solve Brexit?

With the U.K. Parliament balking at Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, Norway’s arrangement with the European Union is getting another look. It’s a model that might just find broader support -- at least as a temporary move -- until a better answer can be found. Supporters say it’s a lifeboat option that honors the result of the 2016 referendum in which Britons voted to exit the bloc, while minimizing damage to the U.K. economy by ensuring closer ties than May’s plan would. But the route is fraught with obstacles of its own, not least of which is that the EU might not agree.

Norway, like Iceland and Liechtenstein, isn’t an EU member but is part of the European Free Trade Association and -- by extension -- the European Economic Area. This gives Norway access to the EU’s lucrative single market for goods and services, which is the destination for more than 40 percent of U.K. exports. Banks based in the EEA have "passporting" rights, which allow services to be offered across the EU with a license granted by the home country. The non-EU nations in the EEA don’t take part in the bloc’s fisheries or agricultural policies.