EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement

Lord Sheikh Excerpts

Friday 8th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sheikh (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I welcome the agreement. As someone who voted in favour of leaving the EU, I am pleased we have been able to do so with a good and respectable agreement. As a businessman, I realise that in any negotiations you need to give and take and compromise, with the view that you will arrive at a win-win solution. I think we have achieved this. I declare that I have been a regional chairman and a member of the board of the British Insurance Brokers Association.

I would like to make three points. First, the insurance broking industry welcomes the deal, but one of its concerns is there is no equivalence provision. It asks the UK Government that, in their current negotiations with the EU, a system should be set up to replicate passport rights as closely as possible and implement this in the proposed MoU. Secondly, as of 1 January 2021, UK drivers and motorcyclists in Europe must have a green card in their possession; they will no longer enjoy benefits of access to the free circulation zone. The EU Commission has indicated that there must be consultation on this issue. I ask the UK Government to begin this consultation as soon as possible. Thirdly, I refer to the exchange of data among financial services organisations. The EU has agreed a specified period of four months, extendible by a further two months for the exchange. We ask the UK Government to negotiate a long-term solution on this matter. The exchange of data is very important to the financial services industry. I ask my noble friend the Minister to comment on the points raised if he can.