EU Reset Must Cut Shackles From Business 

The British Chambers of Commerce is calling for Monday’s EU reset summit to mark a sea change in the UK’s trade relationship with Europe so business can prosper. 

The BCC wants to see seven vital changes made to the Brexit deal which are based on its four years of in-depth analysis and research involving thousands of businesses. 

This has found that in many cases the problems created by the deal, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, have worsened since Brexit rather than improving. 

Changes in the rules and regulations on both sides have created even more paperwork and bureaucracy. These fresh stumbling blocks have forced larger firms to invest in EU satellites to stay competitive. But for smaller businesses, which do not have big reserves of cash, many have had to give up. 

Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the BCC, said:  

“Businesses have spent four years trying to make the Brexit trade deal work, but they have been left fighting with one hand tied behind their backs. 

“The additional red-tape and costs mean that, for many smaller firms especially, it has been an up-hill battle to stay competitive. 

“But this is not just about the hardship that British businesses are facing. We have Chambers in almost every EU state, and the stories they tell us are very similar. 

“Tulips from the Netherlands have been left to rot, while stocks of frozen chicken pile up in warehouses waiting for a hard-pressed vet’s signature. 

“The wider world of trade has also been upended by the introduction of US tariffs and every single country is scrambling to readjust to this new reality. 

“If ever there was a moment for the UK and the EU to put aside past differences and work together to boost our economies then this it. 

“We have spent four years researching and analysing post-Brexit trade. The seven changes we have set out are the ones business tell us matter most. It is time now for government and the EU to deliver.” 

The BCC’ s top seven asks are:  

• 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.     
• 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.      
• 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.     

The BCC’s TCA Four Years On report sets out 26 recommendations to improve UK-EU trade.