EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement

Viscount Bridgeman Excerpts

Friday 8th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Bridgeman (Con) [V]]

My Lords, this debate has been a reminder, if ever one were needed, of the vast amount of work still to be done between the UK and the EU. It is essential that those further talks and negotiations start off on the right foot, and that, from the outset, both parties aim for the establishment of a genuine partnership between two sovereign bodies so that, for example, on the international stage they can on occasion speak with authority for Europe—and Europe, in this context, most definitely includes the United Kingdom.

I can foresee that, in the early stages of the post-Brexit era, this relationship could prove a shade delicate. On the EU side, there may well be a sense of frustration—or shall we say that in negotiations of this nature there has to be an acceptance that no one side is the outright winner? However, I suggest that it is for the United Kingdom side of the partnership that we hope will develop to take this initiative that extra mile beyond half way. My noble friend Lord Frost, with the Brexit achievement under his belt, and his team and their successors will be ideally placed to take the lead in furthering that partnership.

I suggest that one of the beneficiaries of this hopefully successful partnership will be NATO, which has had a rough time during the Trump presidency. This could not be a better time to acknowledge afresh NATO’s strategic importance. This country has had its differences with France, but relations between the two militaries have always been surprisingly good. Our two nations are alone in Europe in having a serious military presence, and that is but one of many reasons why this new international order presents a great opportunity for NATO to re-establish itself.