皇冠体育app

Today the UK and the EU have agreed on a substantial package. This new agreement is set out in the Joint Statement; Common Understanding, and Security and Defence Partnerships which cover the following areas:

SPS AGREEMENT

• 皇冠体育app EU is our largest agri-food market, but since Brexit exports are down 21% and imports down 7% (2018-2024). Many businesses have scaled back or stopped trading altogether due to increased costs, paperwork and delays at borders.
• We have therefore agreed with the EU to deliver a agri-food deal which will establish a UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary Zone, and mean:
  • removal of Export Health Certificates, saving businesses up to 拢200 per consignment each time goods are sent. This means a single lorry carrying a mixed load of animal products could see 拢1000s in reduced costs;
  • removal of plant health certificates, saving businesses around 拢25 per certificate;
  • removal of Certificates of Inspection for organic products that will save over 拢120 per consignment, as well as the removal of marketing standards certification requirements saving businesses hours of extra paperwork;
  • routine border checks on agri-food products would stop, so fresh produce can hit supermarket shelves faster, with less paperwork and fewer costs. British goods such as dairy, fish, eggs and red meat are currently subject to 100% paper work checks and up to 30% physical checks and would see these removed entirely;
  • routine checks on certain imports from the EU for products such as milk, dairy, eggs, red meat, plants for planting, potatoes, will also be removed, reducing the cost to bring these products into the UK;
  • British products that were banned, such as fresh sausages and burgers, certain shellfish from domestic waters, and seed potatoes will be able to resume trade to the EU, increasing markets for these goods;
  • taking pets on holiday into the EU will be easier and cheaper. Instead of needing an animal health certificate each time you travel, you will be able to instead get a multiuse pet passport valid for travel to the EU;
  • moving goods between GB and NI will be easier, reducing the need for paperwork and checks due to the removal of SPS and other requirements, helping make sure that the same products can be found on shelves across all parts of the UK; and
  • where in the UK鈥檚 interests, it will negotiate a limited number of exceptions to these rules.

UK EU ENERGY COOPERATION

• We have agreed to closer co-operation with the EU on energy, strengthening our energy security and our economy and helping us achieve our net zero goals. This means:
  • we will give clarity to industry to invest by putting the Trade and Cooperation Agreement鈥檚 energy chapter on a permanent footing, meaning certainty for businesses in the long term;
  • we will explore UK participation in the EU鈥檚 electricity trading platforms. Since we left the EU we have traded electricity inefficiently, adding costs and friction. Participating in EU platforms will streamline electricity trading - this is crucial to reducing the cost of electricity across the UK and EU and developing new renewables in the North Seas. It鈥檚 good for bills, jobs, and net zero; and
  • we will maximise cooperation on clean energy technologies, including hydrogen, carbon capture use and storage, and decarbonised gases. 皇冠体育appse technologies will support thousands of jobs, boost growth, and support a long term solution to a secure and sustainable energy future.

UK-EU AGREEMENT TO LINK EMISSIONS TRADING SYSTEMS (ETS)

• Emissions trading is one of our most powerful tools to decarbonise industry and achieve our net zero goals. Following Brexit the UK left the EU emissions trading scheme and had to establish a separate market.
• Our market is smaller and less liquid. This can make prices less stable and feed through to investment. Our separate system also means that UK industry stands to be hit by the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on around 拢7bn of trade.
• To avoid this we will link the UK trading scheme with the EU scheme meaning:
  • a cheaper path to net zero as part of a larger more stable market;
  • more stable prices that will support industry to invest in new technologies and jobs and decarbonise faster;
  • saving UK industry from paying EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism - this could have led to UK exporters paying up to 拢800m into the EU budget by 2030; and
  • streamlined regulatory barriers: CO2 storage is a growth industry in the UK with enormous potential for investment and jobs. Linking systems removes disincentives for EU emitters to store CO2 in the UK, making our industry more competitive.

STEEL

• 皇冠体育app Commission has confirmed that they will restore the UK鈥檚 country-specific steel quota to historic levels and that this will be reflected in a post-2026 regime.
• This agreement will support the British steel sector by protecting more tariff-free exports to the EU.

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND JUDICIAL COOPERATION

• 皇冠体育app Trade and Cooperation Agreement provides for a good level of cooperation on law enforcement and criminal justice between the UK and the EU. But the criminal landscape has changed over the past five years. Our relationship with the EU needs to evolve to tackle the challenge posed by people smuggling gangs, the growing use of technology for criminal purposes, and the rising threat we鈥檙e seeing from synthetic drugs and drug-related violence.
• 皇冠体育appre is also scope to improve the UK and the EU鈥檚 criminal judicial cooperation to make it easier to bring criminals to justice.
• To address this we will:
  • agree arrangements to enable information exchange between the UK and the EU Drugs Agency on drug related threats in order to better protect our citizens;
  • increase our operational cooperation with Europol (the EU鈥檚 law enforcement agency) to tackle serious organised crime;
  • look to enhance our biometric data exchange mechanisms, including facial image data, to help identify individuals who pose a risk to people鈥檚 safety;
  • work on greater exchange of criminal records, in particular of third country nationals in the UK and EU, to maintain public safety;
  • explore solutions to help law enforcement in one jurisdiction to make requests for electronic data direct to service providers in the other jurisdiction, to aid investigations by providing operationally valuable information more efficiently and reliably; and
  • explore opportunities to improve the effectiveness of our judicial cooperation, including extradition and Mutual Legal Assistance, to speed up investigations and help bring criminals to justice.
• We have also jointly recognised the importance of positive civil judicial cooperation, which supports access to justice for our families and underpins confidence in trade for our businesses.

IRREGULAR MIGRATION

皇冠体育app Trade and Cooperation Agreement left a gap in our ability to tackle irregular migration, one of the most complex challenges we face, and today鈥檚 agreement marks a significant step forward in establishing wide-ranging cooperation on this issue. Our efforts will cover key areas of cooperation, as part of a whole of route approach, including:

• Working together on practical and innovative approaches to deter irregular migration and to manage its effects. This includes work on returns, working together to prevent Channel crossings and securing our borders.
• Cooperating on migration in source and transit countries; sharing expertise, coordinating in relevant international fora, and deepening cooperation across key geographies.
• Working together to crack down on visa abuse and other abuses of the legal migration system.
• Enhancing our relationship with key agencies and networks, including:
  • Europol and its European Migrant Smuggling Centre, building on our already-strong operational cooperation to tackle migrant smuggling;
  • 皇冠体育app European Union Agency for Asylum, to share expertise and strengthen our respective asylum systems;
  • Frontex, the EU鈥檚 Border and Coast Guard Agency, building on our working arrangement to deepen our sharing of analysis and wider operational cooperation to better secure our respective borders; and
  • 皇冠体育app European Migration Network, enabling the sharing of information and best practice on issues relating to asylum and irregular migration in Europe.

DEFENCE, SECURITY AND DEVELOPMENT

• We have agreed a UK-EU Security & Defence Partnership, creating a strong basis to strengthen our cooperation.
• This Partnership reflects our shared geography, history, and values. It will complement our bilateral partnerships with European countries and support this Government鈥檚 unshakeable commitment to NATO, as the cornerstone of Euro-Atlantic security.
• Through the new Partnership, we will:
  • ensure the interests of the British people continue to be represented at the highest level across our continent, through increased regular engagement with EU leaders;
  • boost our cooperation with the EU on a broad range of areas such as supporting Ukraine, tackling hybrid threats, mobility of military material and personnel, space security, and resilience of our critical infrastructure;
  • enable closer institutional cooperation, including working together in multilateral organisations and on crisis response; and
  • set the framework for closer cooperation and joint investment in our defence industrial base - the UK and the EU have set out an ambition to explore possibilities for mutually beneficial cooperation created by the EU鈥檚 鈧�150bn Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument which, once adopted, could lead to a more resilient and competitive UK and EU industrial base.
• We will also establish a regular UK-EU dialogue on development issues and seek to enhance our cooperation on international disaster and humanitarian response.
• Additionally, we have agreed to explore increasing our cooperation on health security, including to prevent and better mitigate against future pandemics and health crises.

YOUTH AND EDUCATIONAL MOBILITY

• We have agreed that we will work towards a youth experience scheme with the EU, creating new opportunities for cultural exchange between the UK and the EU. Any scheme would give young Brits the opportunity to travel, experience other cultures, as well as work and study abroad.
• We have agreed that any scheme will be time limited, on terms to be mutually agreed, and that the overall number of participants must be acceptable to both sides.
• 皇冠体育app exact parameters will be subject to negotiation, but the UK has been clear that any scheme should be in line with the UK鈥檚 existing schemes including participants having no access to benefits and no right to bring dependents.
• We have also agreed to work towards association to Erasmus+, on mutually agreed financial terms.
• Erasmus+ association would offer a broad range of opportunities for UK learners and staff across our education, training, youth and sport sectors, from school exchanges, work placements, language courses, and semesters abroad, to international youth work projects and training for grassroots sport staff.
• We are taking forward the next stage of negotiations on the clear mutual understanding that the UK will only associate to Erasmus+ on significantly improved financial terms.

FISHERIES

• Under the current Trade and Cooperation Agreement, the UK and EU are in an 鈥榓djustment period鈥� until June 2026, during which reciprocal access to each other鈥檚 waters is guaranteed.
• After this, access would have been negotiated annually with a presumption that EU vessels would largely continue to access UK waters and vice versa.
• We have agreed a new twelve-year access arrangement with the EU that means:
  • continued access to waters: reciprocal access to each other鈥檚 waters, meaning UK fishers can invest, plan and grow their businesses knowing they鈥檒l have secure access to EU waters, worth around 拢80m per year to our fleet;
  • the UK retains control over its waters to pursue its own sustainable fishing policies. We remain outside the EU鈥檚 fisheries rules 鈥� reaffirming our sovereignty; and
  • the UK retains the quota uplift agreed in the Brexit deal, which transferred 25% of EU quota shares to the UK鈥檚 fleet. That boost - worth 拢175m in fishing opportunities in 2025 - remains fully in place, and there is no change to EU quota levels under this agreement.
• UK fisheries will also benefit from the SPS agreement we have also agreed to deliver meaning:
  • the removal of Export Health Certificates, saving businesses up to 拢200 per consignment. This means a single lorry carrying a mixed load of fish products could see 拢1000s in reduced costs. British fish products will also not be subject to 100% paperwork checks, and up to 30% physical checks; and
  • reopening shellfish trade: shellfish from certain types of GB domestic waters currently banned in the EU will be able to be exported again.

TOURING ARTISTS

• We are proud of the international reputation of our arts and creative industries. Along with the EU, we have jointly recognised the value of travel and cultural and artistic exchanges, including the activities of touring artists, and we will continue our efforts to support travel and cultural exchange.
• 皇冠体育app UK will explore how best to improve arrangements for touring across the European continent with the EU and EU Member States.

BUSINESS MOBILITY AND RECOGNITION OF QUALIFICATIONS

• We recognise how important business travel is for UK firms operating in the EU, and we鈥檙e continuing to take practical steps to support them.
• 皇冠体育app UK and EU have agreed to set up dedicated dialogues on short term business mobility and the recognition of professional qualifications. This will create a forum for us to address mobility barriers faced by UK services providers in the EU.
• In addition, we continue to provide tailored advice to businesses, helping them to understand and navigate EU Member State requirements, including visas and work permits. This is supported by clear, accessible guidance on GOV.UK, with country-specific information on short-term business visits.
• Our aim is to make it easier for UK businesses to operate confidently and competitively in the EU.

E-GATES

• Since the UK left the EU, UK nationals have not been able to use eGates in the Schengen Zone.
• 皇冠体育app Commission has confirmed that there will be no legal barriers to eGates use for UK nationals travelling to and from EU Member States, after the introduction of the EU鈥檚 Entry/Exit System.
• This means that, where enabled, UK passport holders will be able to use eGates across Europe.
• We will now work with EU Member States to expand access, improving our citizens鈥� travel experience and reducing queues at entry points across the EU.