Minister for European Union Relations speech at EU-UK Forum
Source: gov.uk (2025-02-04)

A speech delivered in Brussels at the EU-UK Forum by Nick Thomas-Symonds, Minister for European Union Relations.

Many thanks, Paul, and many thanks to the EU-UK Forum for organising this conference.

And, of course, for the invitation for me to come along to speak.

I suppose I should also say a big thank you to the Prime Minister for the warm-up act last night.

It’s a real pleasure to share a stage with my EU counterpart Maros Sefcovic.

Even though, of course, Maros joined us virtually, our mutual goal of reaching a better UK EU relationship is very real.

And today, I want to explain why that is so important…

…what it could mean for the UK and for Europe…

…and what I believe the defining structure of that relationship could look like.

It is obvious to me – as I am sure it is to all of you – that at a time of such intense global change, the UK and the EU have many mutually aligned interests and challenges.

We want increased prosperity…

… we want to strengthen our security…

…and we want our citizens to be safe.

Those joint challenges that we face were powerfully set out by our UK Chancellor, Rachel Reeves…

…and, indeed, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen just last week.

In her growth speech, my Friend the Chancellor didn’t shy away from the economic challenges that we are confronting. She said:

“Growth will not come without a fight. Without a government willing to take the right decisions now to change our country’s future for the better.

“But for too long, that potential has been held back.”

On the same day, the President von der Leyen presented the ‘Competitiveness Compass’ saying that, and I quote:

“Europe has everything it needs to succeed. But, at the same time, we must fix our weaknesses to regain competitiveness.”

The ‘Competitive Compass’ sets out the importance of “trade openness”, “not only for sustaining Europe’s prosperity, but also for enhancing its resilience”.

We know that low growth is not the destiny for our economies.

Research and innovation…

…reducing red tape…

…a new skills agenda…

…boosting productivity…

…a more resilient economy…

…all these elements found in the Compass are also crucial parts of the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change.

These are areas of mutual interest to both of our economies

It is also clear about the vital interconnection between security and prosperity…

…that is why the work we are all engaged in - that Maroš and I are driving forward - is so vital.

In the UK and indeed in Brussels - we are clear-eyed about the scale of challenges that we face - and the opportunities for growth and innovation.

The European Union is the UK’s biggest trading partner, with trade totalling – in 2023 – over £800bn.

Many of our best education and science facilities have lifelong links…

…and our collaboration on research and development has been the springboard for hugely successful innovations that have driven growth and jobs.

And in a more uncertain world, we are regularly reminded that allies are more secure together than they are apart.

This Government’s position is simple: the UK and the EU are linked through trade and international organisations like NATO…

…and even though we voted to leave the EU, our role as key allies and trade partner remains.

We know that for these relationships to flourish, trust is a vital ingredient.

This Government recognises that the UK’s signature means something.

So, we are committed to implementing the Trade and Co-operation Agreement and the Windsor Framework and building on that structure to address emerging challenges and opportunities.

Now, I want to say - straightforwardly - that we see real opportunities to improve the status quo.

As ‘Businesseurope’ set out in their report this Autumn:

“There remain many unnecessary barriers to trade and investment. Following the elections of new governments in the EU and UK, there is a clear opportunity to upgrade the relationship to deliver for businesses and citizens.”

I agree with them.

A study published last year showed that between 2021 and 2023, the goods EU businesses export to the UK were down by 32%…

…while UK goods exports to the EU were down by 27%.

That is not good for British business or European businesses…

…especially at a time when our economies need a kickstart.

Reducing trade barriers is of mutual benefit to the UK and the EU.

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It was vital that we re-joined Horizon…

…we should never have left in the first place…

…but the gap in continuity and other challenges means we haven’t together achieved as much as we could have done.

It’s especially bad when global competition for innovation has never been fiercer.

When the UK should have been working more closely with international law enforcement on security…

…we frankly wasted years undermining the role of the ECHR, in pursuit of a doomed Rwanda deportation scheme.

We cannot continue in this way with one of our largest, most important partners…

…that is why this Government will always work in the UK’s national interest…

…and for me, that means being a ruthlessly pragmatic negotiator.

That means making the case for closer working with our allies in the EU, to make people across the UK and the EU safer, more secure and more prosperous…

…that means making sure that we are working to strengthen cooperation, moving away from a zero sum, win, lose dynamic we have seen in recent years…

…and that is the spirit I take into discussions with the EU.

The UK and the EU have many mutually beneficial interests…

…I want to build on these as we work to reset our relationship…

…to help construct a more secure, a safer and a more prosperous UK and EU.

Now this British Government was elected on a mandate…

…to strengthen national security by reconnecting with our allies…

…to increase people’s safety through strong borders…

…and increase prosperity through growth.

Our European friends are a part of every single one of those priorities…

…and I believe it’s these priorities that form the three pillars of a reset in our relationship.

On security – you saw yesterday how seriously we’re taking this.

Our Prime Minister met with all 27 of the EU leaders and the Secretary General of NATO…

…discussing the common threats we face…

…and the value that closer EU-UK cooperation on defence could bring…

…whether it’s securing undersea cables or working together on research and development.

On safety - I am clear that if we want to protect our respective borders and keep our citizens safe, then we need to work together.

That is the only way we’re going to break up the vile global trade in human trafficking…

…that’s the only way to tackle organised crime and terrorism, which plagues us all.

And on prosperity – if we want to grow our economies…

…and boost our living standards…

…then we need to reduce barriers to UK and EU trade.

And I am pleased to say that – that on all three of these issues – we are making progress.

On security, the Prime Minister and the President of the European Council have made clear they wanted closer cooperation on security and defence…

…and the EU High Representative and the Foreign Secretary have already agreed to new six-monthly Foreign Policy dialogues

On safety, we have already increased the UK’s presence at Europol…

…but I want us to go further.

We need to find to find ways to better coordinate law enforcement so that we can smash the gangs behind the small boats.

To make people safer, we must do all we can to strengthen our collective ability to tackle organised crime and work together on illegal migration.

Afterall, these are shared challenges.

And on prosperity, we have said we will seek to negotiate a Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement to remove barriers to trade…

…and find ways to resolve issues like the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications.

We can go much further on energy and the green transition.

Our Government’s commitment is to Make Britain a Clean Energy superpower by 2030…

…and together, we need to deliver energy security so that we are never again left exposed as we were when Russia - illegally - invaded Ukraine.

These challenges all span borders and we must work together to seize opportunities that lie ahead.

All of this work is supported by much greater cooperation between the UK Government and the EU.

Right from the very top – with the Prime Minister meeting with President von der Leyen and Council President Costa…

…agreeing to a leader-level summit that will be held in May, where we hope we can deliver a balanced, yet ambitious outcome to benefit all of our citizens.

Just before Christmas, our Chancellor attended a meeting of the EU finance ministers…

…the first time a British Chancellor has been invited to the Eurogroup since Brexit.

These meetings form only some of the nearly 70 direct engagements…

…between UK Ministers and our EU counterparts since coming into Government…

…and I look forward to many more ahead.

And I say to you all: I look forward to working with you throughout this year and into the future.

But ladies and gentlemen - the time for ideologically-driven division is over…

…the time for ruthless pragmatism is now.

It is through a new partnership between the UK and the EU that we will deliver for the people of the United Kingdom, and for people across the continent.

The future of the EU and the UK lies beyond the status quo…

…reaching forward to deliver benefits for all our people to share.

So, let us rise to our shared challenges and grasp this opportunity.

Because together we will create a stronger UK and we will create a stronger Europe.

Thank you very much.