According to nearly all pundits, the UK is likely to have a new Prime Minister by the end of next week. If so, Sir Keir Starmer will face significant challenges in driving sustainable growth to fulfil all the promises made to the British electorate. From a British-German perspective, we are hopeful that the Labour Party’s cautiousness about improving the relationship with the EU will soon be overcome. There is much potential to reduce frictions at the border, simplify immigration rules for the cross-border provision of services, and enable the next generation to more readily partake in student or work experience programmes across the Channel.
However, even with a new British government’s potential willingness to intensify dialogue with the EU, there will not be a full EU Commission to talk to for quite some time, partly due to the outcome of the recent European elections. Nevertheless, we hope that once the new Commission is operational, it will quickly and constructively engage with the UK to improve linkages.
In any case, it is essential to constantly remind all parties involved to pick the relatively low-hanging fruit, enabling us to quickly reap the benefits for our societies as well as economies – something which is desperately needed on both sides. We at the Chamber, will support such a process on behalf of our members, as we believe that closer cooperation is one of the best ways to drive growth and prosperity for all.
Dr Ulrich Hoppe
Director General
German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce
