The Government wants to secure a permanent food and drink deal with the European Union within the next 18 months, setting out its position ahead of talks later this year. The current temporary agreement, implemented in June, prevents checks on some fruit and vegetables imported from the EU, meaning no border checks or fees are paid.
Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds is set to launch a fierce attack on Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, accusing him of wanting British businesses to fail. This comes as Farage has called for the UK-EU agreement to be completely scrapped.
Political battle over EU relations
Thomas-Symonds will accuse Farage of "siding with the promise of more red tape, mountains of paperwork, and a bureaucratic burden" during an event hosted by the Spectator in central London. The minister will outline the Government's priorities for UK-EU relations and progress made in recent talks with Brussels.
Farage has strongly criticised the sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) provisions agreed in May, writing in the Telegraph that it would push the UK "back into the orbit of Brussels, giving away vast amounts of our sovereignty for very little in return". He declared: "A Reform government would undo all of this with legislation."
Current agreement details
The temporary deal expires in January 2027 and covers multiple areas including fishing, defence, a youth experience scheme, and passport e-gates. The Government halted border checks on "medium-risk" fruit and vegetables, including tomatoes, grapes and peppers, while negotiating a permanent SPS deal.
Border checks were originally due to be introduced this summer. In August, ministers also cancelled border checks on live animal imports from the EU and on animal and plant goods from Ireland, with the Government saying an agreement was "forthcoming".
Government's economic argument
Thomas-Symonds will argue that Farage's manifesto would "take Britain backwards, cutting at least £9 billion from the economy, bringing with it a risk to jobs and a risk of food prices going up". He will say: "(Mr) Farage wants Britain to fail. His model of politics feeds on it, offering the easy answers, dividing communities and stoking anger."
Labour claims the current deal lowers costs for supermarkets and shoppers. The party argues that reversing the agreement would make exporting more difficult for farming and fishing industries, while Thomas-Symonds will pledge the Government will take "decisions rooted in the national interest, not party interest".
Opposition responses
A Reform UK spokesperson hit back, saying: "No-one has done more damage to British businesses than this Labour government." They cited 157,000 fewer people on payroll since Labour took office and criticised the Government's "jobs tax" as "stifling success and hitting small and medium-sized businesses".
Priti Patel (Conservative), shadow foreign secretary, accused Labour of "EU surrender", saying: "Keir Starmer is dragging us back into Brussels' arms, and looking to once again make this country a rule taker rather than a rule maker." Naomi Smith, chief executive of Best for Britain, urged the EU to "move quickly to finalise an alignment deal with this Government".
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
