The European Commission has indicated it would be 'open-minded' to discussing closer trade ties with the UK, including a potential customs union, as Labour MPs intensify calls for a closer economic relationship. Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU economy commissioner, told the BBC that the bloc was 'ready to engage with an open mind' on the matter.
The comments come as Prime Minister Keir Starmer faces growing pressure from within his party to enter a customs union, despite his previous insistence that such an arrangement 'doesn't now serve our purpose very well'. Starmer has suggested exploring other areas of the single market for deeper alignment, but Dombrovskis implied the UK cannot pick and choose, noting that single market membership requires the 'four freedoms', including freedom of movement.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola echoed a warmer tone, stating on Tuesday that Europe and the UK 'need a new way of working together' on trade, customs, research, mobility, security and defence. She urged both sides to 'exorcise the ghosts of the past' and 'reset our partnership'. Meanwhile, the European Commission’s chief spokesperson, Paula Pinho, described the single market as 'really the jewel of the crown', adding that an EU-UK summit would be an opportunity to discuss what the UK has in mind.
Ongoing negotiations between the EU and UK cover a veterinary agreement, a youth exchange programme, joining the EU’s electricity market and linking emissions trading systems. Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds wrote in the Financial Times that a 'ruthlessly pragmatic approach' is needed, estimating that current talks on food, drink and carbon trading could be worth £9 billion a year to the UK economy by 2040. He reiterated Labour’s manifesto pledge not to rejoin the single market or customs union, nor reintroduce freedom of movement.
The discussion unfolds as the EU focuses on revitalising its single market, following a report by former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi warning that 'Europe risks becoming subordinated, divided and deindustrialised at once'. EU leaders are set to gather next week for a special summit to strengthen the single market, which European Council President António Costa called 'a strategic imperative'.
