The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Sajid Javid)
I wish to inform the House that the Government have opted in to the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing an action programme for customs in the European Union for the period 2014-20 (Customs 2020).
This proposal establishes a customs co-operation programme to support the effective functioning of the internal market and operation of customs procedures within the EU by increasing co-operation between member states. The programme aims to contribute to the Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, by strengthening the functioning of the single market and EU customs union.
The UK has benefited from participation in predecessor programmes, in particular through using Customs 2013 activities to reduce administrative burdens for compliant businesses. The programme also funds the maintenance and development of EU communication and information exchange systems. This is an area where spend on research and development can represent good EU added value by providing economies of scale in the development of cross-EU networks.