The UK and the European Union have settled the text of a deal removing Brexit-era checks on trade in food, animal and plant products, ahead of a UK-EU summit on November 20.
The 200-page sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement has been circulated to EU governments, and sources said it had “been settled and there will no further negotiation,” the Guardian reported. It is not expected to take effect until the first quarter of 2028.
The deal would let exports of fresh sausages, burgers, shellfish and seed potatoes to the EU resume, and remove the need for costly export health certificates. In return, the UK would follow EU food and plant rules through what is called dynamic alignment. The government says it will eventually bring £5.1 billion a year in economic benefits.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said “public opinion has changed nationally” since the 2016 referendum but that he would “not run ahead of public opinion.” Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said dynamic alignment would be a red line, and Reform UK’s Richard Tice said it would “crush Britain’s competitiveness.”
The National Farmers’ Union said last month that British food exports to the EU had fallen by a third since Brexit.
Sources: The Guardian, BBC News
—
