Re-opening Brexit agreements 'off the table' in EU-UK trade talks, says UK trade minister

UK prime minister Keir Starmer is seeking to reset relations with EU

UK trade minister Douglas Alexander said: 'The red lines that we set out in the manifesto was essentially the basis of which we were elected with a large majority, which is not re-opening the question of EU membership, no return to the customs union, no return to the single market and free movement of labour being off the table.' File picture: David Creedon/Anzenberger

Trade negotiations between the UK and EU look set to begin early next year but discussion around the four EU freedoms will be “off the table”, UK trade minister Douglas Alexander has said.

Earlier this month, UK prime minister Keir Starmer travelled to Brussels in a bid to reset relations with the EU following a contentious few years with the Conservative Party at the helm. Mr Starmer has been reportedly seeking a security pact but talks on other matters could prove tougher.

Speaking in Dublin as he attended a conference organised by the British-Irish Chamber of Commerce, Mr Alexander said negotiations with the EU are due to take place early next year but the UK Government remains committed to not re-opening various Brexit agreements such as the Windsor Framework.

He said:

The red lines that we set out in the manifesto was essentially the basis of which we were elected with a large majority, which is not re-opening the question of EU membership, no return to the customs union, no return to the single market and free movement of labour being off the table.

These encapsulate the four freedoms ensured by the EU which underpin the single market and will be a starting point for EU negotiators should a trade deal come up for discussion.

Despite this, Mr Alexander said that in trade policy “geography still matters” with four of the UK’s five largest trading partners — which includes Ireland — being EU members.

Mr Alexander said there is a determination within the new British Government to “reset our relationships with the European Union and trade is a central part of that”.

"We're developing an ambitious work program in terms of what those negotiations will include. At the same time, I'm developing a trade strategy that we will publish in the spring of 2025,” he said.

"One of the curiosities of the previous government in the years after Brexit was that they didn't trouble themselves to publish a trade strategy. So this will be the first trade strategy published since Brexit. Looking at exactly how we can support small- and medium-sized businesses and address some of the frictions at the border, will be a central feature of that trade strategy,” he said.

Last week, the Lord Mayor of the City of London, Michael Mainelli, said Brexit had cost London’s financial centre about 40,000 jobs with Dublin being the main beneficiary attracting 10,000 of those jobs. Milan, Paris and Amsterdam also benefited from jobs migrating from London. 

When asked about this issue and whether he might be looking to attract those jobs back to London, Mr Alexander said there are “huge opportunities” for both the UK and Ireland in the financial services and advanced business services sector.

"If you look at the story of post-Brexit British trade, we have underperformed relative to expectations in goods and overperformed on services against expectations. In that sense, particularly in advanced business services, financial services, and in technology, there's huge scope for both of our countries.” 

“In a spirit of partnership, respect and understanding, there's hope for us to be mutually beneficial in the challenges we face of winning jobs and prosperity in financial services and in other sectors in the years ahead,” he said.