UK exporters still struggling with post-Brexit rules, says trade body
Share:
British Chambers of Commerce asks for policy ‘reset’ after poll finds companies want greater flexibility. Many exporters are still struggling with post-Brexit trading rules, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has said, as it urges the government to press ahead with an EU “reset” in the new year.
In a survey of more than 1,000 of its member companies, the BCC found just 15% said the trade and cooperation agreement (TCA) with the EU, signed by Boris Johnson on Christmas Eve 2020, had helped them to grow sales with the EU. That compared with 40% of companies that said the deal had not helped them to increase sales with the bloc.
Asked what they would like to see change, the most popular answer was for it to be made easier for British businesses to send UK staff to work in the EU – an option favoured by 46% of respondents. Shevaun Haviland, the BCC’s director general, suggested a closer EU relationship that tackled some trade barriers could help to offset the impact of the higher taxes imposed at Rachel Reeves’s budget in October.
“The government has talked a lot about a new era of trade relations with the EU. But firms are grappling with increasing costs off the back of the autumn budget and this change cannot come soon enough,” she said. Haviland also urged ministers to negotiate a youth mobility deal that could allow EU workers to come to the UK and vice versa – a key demand of EU countries, but something the government has so far rejected outright.
