Trade experts to appear before Lords Committee inquiry on UK-EU reset

The House of Lords European Affairs Committee is to quiz trade experts as part of its ongoing inquiry into the UK-EU reset.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday 11 February 2025 at 4pm in Committee Room 3.

Those attending to give evidence are:

• Sam Lowe (Partner at Flint Global)
• Professor David Collins (Professor of International Economic Law at City, University of London)
• Aslak Berg (Research Fellow at Centre for European Reform and former trade official at EFTA [the European Free Trade Association], the European Commission and the Norwegian civil service)

Topics which may be raised include:

• The implications of the Government’s ‘red lines’ for its UK-EU trade options
• The specific negotiating priorities the Government does or should have for trade as part of the reset
• The commitments the UK might be asked to make, such as alignment with EU law, to reach a veterinary/sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement with the EU, or link the UK and EU Emissions Trading Schemes.
• The possible implications of any UK-EU SPS agreement for the UK’s trade relations beyond the EU
• Whether the UK should join the PEM Convention (the Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin)

The session, in the Houses of Parliament, is the fourth one held as part of the inquiry, and can be watched live or later on Parliament TV.

The House of Lords European Affairs Committee has issued a call for evidence for the inquiry which comes after the Government announced it was seeking a reset of the UK’s relations with the European Union, including in the areas of security and defence co-operation, to “address common threats and challenges”; and trade, to “break down barriers”.

Interested individuals and organisations are invited to submit written evidence to the inquiry by 7 March 2025, and the Committee, chaired by Lord Ricketts, aims to report to the House later in the year.