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U.K. trade with the European Union deteriorated in the first month since the Brexit split, suggesting trade relations between the two economies will suffer more than the British government anticipated during Brexit negotiations.

The UK government has announced its decision to delay deadlines for changing border controls in relation to the import of products from the EU into the UK with six months.

In an announcement yesterday the UK government said that it has reviewed time frame originally set out for its changed trading relationship with the EU.

The UK stopped following EU rules at 23:00 CET as replacement arrangements for travel, trade, immigration and security co-operation came into force.

Boris Johnson said the UK had "freedom in our hands" and the ability to do things "differently and better" now the long Brexit process was over.

But opponents of leaving the EU maintain the country will be worse off.

Britain's Parliament voted resoundingly on Dec. 30 to approve a trade deal with the European Union, paving the way for an orderly break with the bloc that will finally complete the U.K.'s long and divisive Brexit journey.

With just a day to spare, lawmakers in the House of Commons voted 521-73 in favor of the agreement sealed between the U.K. government and the EU last week.

The European Union and UK have reached a post-Brexit trade agreement after months of tense negotiations.

"Deal is done," read the statement from Downing Street on Thursday afternoon -- swiftly followed by confirmation from EU in Brussels.

EU ambassadors have today approved the Brexit trade deal with the UK, ahead of the MPs vote.

The deal, hammered out on Christmas Eve ahead of implementation on January 1, has been given another green light with the unanimous approval.

It comes as MPs in Britain are preparing to vote on the deal in a special sitting of Parliament on Wednesday.

Britain on Monday urged businesses to prepare for Brexit, just days before a transition period designed to smooth the UK's departure from the European Union comes to an end.

Britain and the EU clinched a trade deal on Thursday - one which preserves zero-tariff and zero-quota access to the bloc's single market but which will still cause disruption.

Ljubljana – Barbara Uranjek, director of the British-Slovenian Chamber of Commerce, has welcomed an agreement on future relations between the UK and EU. She urged companies to prepare in time for coming Brexit-related changes. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry sees the deal as a pleasant surprise and analyst Peter Verovšek considers it a win for the EU.

The fast-track ratification of the post-Brexit trade deal between the U.K. and the European Union got underway on Christmas Day as ambassadors from the bloc's 27 nations started assessing the accord that takes effect in a week.

Turkey on Dec. 25 welcomed the last-minute post-Brexit trade deal between the U.K. and EU.

"Turkey welcomes the deal reached in the negotiations on the future of post-Brexit relations between the United Kingdom and the European Union," said the Foreign Ministry in a statement.