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Sir Keir Starmer must agree a “comprehensive” deal enabling young people to study and work in the UK and EU as part of next year's “reset” talks aimed at easing trade barriers, a leading UK lobby group has said.
A call made by British Chambers of Commerce puts the opposition to the Labor government, which has repeatedly managed to sign such an agreement, although EU negotiators make it clear that it will be an important part of any agreement to improve trade relations.
The “youth mobility” deal is one of 13 recommendations from the BCC report on how to prepare the UK-EU Trade and Partnership Agreement. It was agreed by both sides in December 2020 when Britain left the EU, leading more than 16,000 small businesses to stop trading with the bloc entirely, according to the analysis. published this month is the London School of Economics.
Other requests include more flexibility for business travelers, a cooperation agreement on VAT, linking the EU and UK carbon trading schemes and joining a pan-European agreement on trade in goods, known as the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean or Convention of “PEM”.
BCC director-general Shevaun Haviland said that while ministers have talked a lot about restoring trade relations with the EU, they now need to take concrete steps to drive trade and deliver on their promise to boost economic growth.
“Our model shows that if exports had grown by 1 percent in 2024, compared to our forecast of a 2 percent decline, then the economy would have grown by 1.7 percent instead of 0.8 percent. That's a big difference,” he said.
“We need to see a smart and flexible approach to these negotiations. Our businesses are very clear on what they want to see, less paperwork and bureaucracy, greater flexibility in business travel and a youth travel scheme between the UK and the EU,” he said.
The requests from the BCC, which represents 53 chambers of commerce across the country, are more ambitious than the prime minister's current “reset” plans.
Although Labor promised in its election manifesto to “tear down trade barriers” with Europe, that goal is surrounded by a pledge not to return to the EU's single market, customs union or return to the free movement of people.
The ministers therefore cut the trade issues of the reset in three areas defined in the manifesto: the agreement to reduce visas for musicians, the improved recognition of educational qualifications and the so-called veterinary agreement to reduce the conflict of EU-UK trade borders in food. and plant products.
Negotiations, which are expected to begin in mid-2025, are already tough if difficult. The EU has ruled before He issued a contract to the singers, calling for a “dynamic adjustment” to the EU's rules on the treatment of animals and warned that no deal would be done. without prior agreement on the right to fish in UK coastal waters.
But Haviland warned that the problems caused by Brexit did not decrease four years after the TCA came into force and in many respects “became worse” due to the continued divergence between the EU and the UK rules.
The BCC report, entitled “A manifesto to reset UK-EU trade”, said that member businesses continue to state that the Brexit red tape covering customs, VAT and other regulatory burdens was hindering their growth.
“Four years since the TCA was negotiated, 40 percent of exporters 'disagree' that it helps them grow,” said the report, citing a membership survey conducted in the summer of 2024.
Research has warned of the challenges of the upcoming EU regulations, such as the carbon tax limit from January 2026, all of which will add bureaucratic burdens to the trade.
“Awareness of upcoming changes to trade laws and regulations by the UK or the EU was also surprisingly low, with more than three quarters of firms not having much legal information,” the report said.
The government said it is “restoring relations with our European friends to strengthen ties, secure a comprehensive security agreement and tackle barriers to trade.
“We have been clear that there will be no return to the tax union, the single market or freedom of movement.”
Data visualization by Amy Borrett