The British Chambers of Commerce Business Council has met with the EU Ambassador and the UK’s EU Relations Minister to push the case for a trade reset.
Director General, Shevaun Haviland, and President, Martha Lane Fox, hosted Pedro Serrano and the Rt Hon Nick Thomas-Symonds MP at the HQ of council member, DP World, in London, this morning.
They were presented with a joint statement from the BCC and the British Chamber in the EU, setting out the top seven changes businesses on both sides want to see.
The meeting was also an opportunity to catch up on other major trade issues including the UK’s new free trade agreement with India and the on-going response to US tariffs.
The top seven asks discussed ahead of the EU Leaders’ Summit on May 19 were to negotiate a UK-EU deal which either eliminates or greatly reduces the complexity of exporting food and plant products for SMEs.
Produce a balanced Youth Mobility scheme between the UK and EU, covering school visits and exchanges, and a time-limited ability to work for young people also for the UK to rejoin the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean (PEM) convention to align rules on raw materials and components that can be used in exports without incurring tariffs.
Establish a supplementary deal, like Norway’s with the EU, that exempts smaller UK firms from the requirement to have a fiscal representative for VAT in the EU and to make a deal to allow UK firms to travel and work for longer in Europe and vice versa, and provide mutual recognition of professional qualifications.
Link the Emissions Trading Schemes of the UK and EU to avoid charges on carbon embedded in exports in both directions.
Negotiate a formal Defence and Security Pact providing clear lines of co-operation and secondary agreements. Allowing UK companies to bid for defence procurement contracts in the EU, in consortia with EU partner companies on a ‘pay to play’ basis.
Research by the BCC has shown that two fifths (41%) of UK exporters disagree the Brexit deal is helping them grow sales. Conversely, only 14% of UK exporters think the deal is helping them.
Companies say the biggest barriers to exporting to the EU are customs procedures and documentation (45%), export documentation (39%), regulations and standards (35%) and tariffs (33%).
Awareness of upcoming changes in trade rules and regulations being made by either the UK or the EU are also alarmingly low, with more than three quarters of firms knowing no details of much of the legislation.
After a productive meeting with the politicians, BCC Director General, Shevaun Haviland, said, “The shockwaves from US tariffs are still reverberating through the global trade system as countries scramble to respond. This added cost and uncertainty is very bad for business and the UK and EU must send a clear signal that open and fair trade is in our best interests.
“Defence has rocketed up the list of priorities as US foreign policy has also shifted markedly and the signing of a UK/EU security pact must be the bare minimum.
“But both sides have to seize this moment to truly make a difference to our trading relationship. The summit must go beyond warm words and clearly signal their intention to make it work better.
“If we reduce red-tape and simplify other processes that have added to costs for business then we all benefit.
“It is important to see some quick wins, but next week’s summit will be just the start and not the end of this process. The BCC plans to set up a European Trade and Business Group to hold politicians’ feet to the fire and ensure that they deliver.”
