UK could join Europe-wide customs deal in post-Brexit reset, Brussels trade chief says
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Maros Sefcovic said the European Union would consider letting Britain join the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention (PEM) as the PM chases closer ties with Brussels. The UK could join a Europe-wide trading agreement as part of Sir Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset with the EU, one of the bloc’s top trade chiefs has said.
![[Keir Starmer has been seeking a reset in post-Brexit relations with the EU]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/10/18/11/SEI224173584.jpg)
Maros Sefcovic, who led post-Brexit negotiations for the European Union, said it would consider letting Britain join the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention (PEM) as the PM chases closer ties with Brussels. The PEM allows for tariff-free trade of goods across Europe, as well as some North African and Levantine nations.
Some business groups have backed the UK joining PEM as it would help to maintain complex supply chains, but the previous Conservative Government chose not to pursue it as part of a post-Brexit trade agreement. Speaking to the BBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Mr Sefcovic said the idea had not yet been "precisely formulated" and that the "ball is in the UK’s court".
The UK government has reportedly begun consulting with businesses on the benefits of the PEM plan and how it could help cut red tape and improve trade. Mr Sefcovic also told the broadcaster he would like to see the possibility of a full-scale veterinary agreement between the EU and UK reviewed.
