EU: Future Trade Agreement

Baroness Ludford Excerpts

Wednesday 29th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook]

I thank the noble Baroness for her question. No, we are not going to forget the importance of the level playing field. The political declaration sets out our commitment to discuss open and fair competition as part of negotiations on an ambitious future relationship. We already start from a place of exceptionally high standards. We have said that we have absolutely no intention of lowering these standards, including on social and employment law, such as maternity leave and shared parental leave, and environmental regulation, such as greenhouse gas targets. We do not agree that an open trading relationship based on an FTA requires extensive level playing field commitments. We are looking for commitments in these areas, like those of a normal FTA.

[Baroness Ludford (LD) [V]]

My Lords, the Government’s damaging and reckless version of Brexit has already imposed a red-tape burden on those trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, through their insistence on quitting the EU single market and customs union. Now the Government admit, in their internal market White Paper, that

“the absence of EU rules could make it easier for new barriers to arise”—

that is, within the UK as a whole. They are struggling to substitute the glue of what they call

“the wider EU ecosystem of institutions and treaty rights”

in holding the UK internal market together. Therefore, why are the Government threatening to make this challenge even harder, and the prospect of an EU deal less secure, by refusing to agree with the EU a level playing field on standards, including an independent regulator on state aid and subsidies?

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook]

International trade partners will be seeking full access to the UK market. The UK internal market system will provide a stable and consistent regulatory framework that will support UK exporting and inward investment ambitions.