Twenty ways to fix Brexit’s growth hit

Today the House of Common’s Business and Trade Committee published an important report on ways the Government can improve trade with the EU to achieve growth.

Titled, ‘Twenty ways to fix Brexit’s growth hit’ the report was informed by evidence provided by the UK Trade and Business Commission (UKTBC) including in a live appearance in front of the Committee in February.

Their recommendations include key policies published by the UKTBC in 2023 such as advancing regulatory alignment between the UK and EU including the mutual recognition of conformity assessments on product safety which would cut costs for consumers.

Independent research shows deeper regulatory alignment as part of a common sense deal with the EU would also boost the UK economy by as much as 2.2% meaning more money for public services and more jobs across the country.

The report also recommends a EU-UK Youth Mobility Scheme, something which Best for Britain polling shows is consistently popular among British voters.

Other recommendations include a new EU-UK security pact, greater energy co-operation, a  data adequacy agreement,  and the UK rejoining the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention on rules of origin. 

Andrew Lewin MP, Chair of the cross-party UK Trade and Business Commission said,

"We have agency in how we respond to President Trump's tariffs and the greatest opportunity for our economy lies with the UK/EU reset.

“Now is the moment to pursue an ambitious new trade deal, with deep alignment on goods and services.

“If we tear down barriers to UK/EU trade, we can gain significantly more from our largest trading partner than we stand to lose as a result of the decision made in Washington."

Naomi Smith, Chief Executive of Best for Britain, Secretariat of UKTBC said, 

“Despite having a trade surplus with the USA, Donald Trump has levied the same 10% tariffs on the UK that he has for many countries with a trade deficit, proving he puts little stock in the special relationship. The recommendations in the Business & Trade Committee Green Paper take us closer to the common sense deal with our largest trading partner, that we now need more than ever, to shield us from a trade war.

“Our evidence to the Committee showed deep UK-EU alignment in goods and services, would more than offset the effect of Trump’s tariffs on the UK, and would reduce their harm on the EU by a third. Keir Starmer and Ursula Von Der Leyen must take this opportunity to restore stability in the midst of an increasingly volatile economic environment.”

Rt Hon Liam Byrne MP, Chair of the Business and Trade Committee, said, 

“Times have changed and so must our relationship with Europe. Russia’s bloodthirsty aggression is undiminished and requires a heftier deterrent. China’s race to arms accelerates, while America looks like a weary titan in retreat from the system it authored at the end of World War II. The consequences are obvious. In the UK and Europe we must both step up and on the world stage, step forward. To do so effectively demands we raise the rate of economic growth.

“These challenges, that will define this Parliament, will be easier to wrangle if we draw closer to Europe. But our relationship with the EU today is stuck in yesterday’s logic. Mere tinkering will not do, but making the leap to re-join the Customs Union or Single Market risks re-opening old wounds and imperiling the unity and political stability secured at the last election. We must find a bold but pragmatic new way forward.

“And so today the Business and Trade Committee is publishing a draft of the Green Paper on the UK-EU reset that we think ministers should have published. At its heart are twenty big ways in which we can draw closer to our neighbour, strengthen our joint security, grow our economy faster and raise the standard of living for the people we serve.   

“We’ll be asking the business, trade unions and consumer groups for their views on our ideas before finalising our Report to Parliament ahead of the Prime Minister's summit with President von der Leyen. There is so much at stake, we must all help ensure the reset is as bold and effective as it can be.”