Latest news with #CatherineMcBride
The Sun
5 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Brussels will ‘punish' Britain for not following its demands as PM's deal pushes UK into clutches of EU, economist warns
BRUSSELS will dole out punishments to the UK for not adhering to its demands, a top economist warns. Eurocrats are pushing Britain into the clutches of the customs union and single market without the ability to make our own rules, Catherine McBride says. The revelation comes after the UK and the EU agreed a new framework back in May on post-Brexit trading arrangements on areas such as farming, defence and trade. The expert insists that new documents outlining the EU Commission's full demands from the reset will see the continent take "retribution" through our current trading relationships. She says this will strip the UK of any ability to foster the latest farming techniques or even import food from non-EU countries. McBride says that the EU Commission will have control all over the UK's agriculture and industrial imports - and also affecting our independent trade policy with the rest of the world. McBride, in a Briefings for Britain article, writes: "The UK government has effectively given the EU a free pass to penalise or, more likely, fine the UK for any transgression. "The EU will be the lawmaker, the policeman and the Judge – there will be no jury." She even echoes comments from former Prime Minister Boris Johnson who said that Sir Keir Starmer was ready to make us the EU's "gimp". When Britain voted to leave the EU it left the single market, customs union and also left the freedom of movement arrangements. Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel last night said: 'The stark cost of Labour's EU surrender plan is on full display. 'Keir Starmer and his cronies have bent the knee to Brussels at every turn, and no matter the price the British public will have to pay, and now the EU is coming back for more. 'The Conservatives will always defend the democratic will of this country, and won't let Labour give up anymore of our hard earned sovereignty without a fight.' A Labour source said: 'The report is riddled with nonsense claims. "If the Shadow Foreign Secretary wants to talk about surrender, let's look at how she designed a post-Brexit migration system that was supposed to be controlled, but led to record levels of net migration. "Labour is resetting our relationship with the EU - delivering a new deal that protects jobs, lowers bills, and strengthens our borders." A Government spokesperson said: "Since 2020, British traders and shoppers have faced red tape, rising prices and delivery delays. We set out to fix this with a new partnership with the EU that will add nearly £9 billion a year to the UK economy. 'We will always act in Britain's national interest and have been clear there will be no return to freedom of movement, the customs union or the single market.'
Telegraph
07-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Starmer's ‘backward-looking' EU reset risks US trade deal, report warns
Sir Keir Starmer's 'backward-looking' European Union reset will put a US trade deal at risk, a report has warned. Research co-authored by a former government adviser on trade warns the Prime Minister's bid to achieve closer ties with Brussels will come at the expense of relations with the White House. It is feared that aligning more closely with the EU on trade, carbon pricing and food and veterinary standards could endanger ongoing talks with the US. The report has been written by Catherine McBride, who sat on the UK's Trade and Agriculture Commission, and Lady Elliott, a senior figure at the Prosperity Institute think tank. 'Seizing Brexit opportunity' It says: 'There is growing concern in the UK that this global trade reset will lead to the Labour Government re-establishing closer relationships with the EU through regulatory realignment, rather than seizing the opportunity provided by Brexit and building a closer relationship with the USA, typified by lower trade barriers and regulatory mutual recognition. 'Reverting to a closer trading relationship with the EU based on realignment as a response to the 10 per cent tariffs put in place on transatlantic UK-US trade would be backward-looking and economically harmful. 'It is also increasingly clear that closer EU alignment could be to the detriment of British sovereignty and at the expense of other British industries such as fishing, which appears to be being conceded, yet again, in the emerging EU-UK security deal.' Sources have previously told The Telegraph that Donald Trump would prefer Britain to choose a closer relationship with either the US or the EU rather than align with both. But the Prime Minister has repeatedly rejected this idea, insisting he will not be drawn into a 'false choice' between strengthening ties with Mr Trump and resetting relations with the Continent. The report goes on to note that the US is the UK's largest export market, while the UK is the US's largest market for services. In the wake of the 10 per cent tariffs imposed globally by Mr Trump last month, the authors urge both countries to work towards 'eliminating all tariffs and quotas' to unleash growth. They go on to suggest mutual recognition of standards, regulators and legal systems to further boost the special relationship. A further recommendation is that both the UK and the US diversify their supply chains to include new American manufacturers, who would be provided access to the British market. Lady Elliott said: 'We should not pass up the chance to work with the Trump administration to lower trade barriers and foster mutual economic benefits, not only on digital and AI, but across all sectors.' Plans being drawn up by the UK and the EU would involve signing Britain up to 'dynamic alignment' with the EU on food and veterinary products. While this would allow both countries to trade freely without border checks on such goods, it is feared that creating such close alignment with Brussels could destroy goodwill in Washington. Mr Trump has been a long-standing critic of the EU, calling it 'a foe' on trade and accusing the bloc of having 'raped and pillaged' the US economy.
Telegraph
10-04-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Tariffs, Trade and Trump: Economist Catherine McBride makes the case
On the latest Planet Normal podcast, which you can listen to using the audio player above, columnists Liam Halligan and Tim Stanley discuss the fallout from 'reciprocal tariffs' implemented by Donald Trump's administration with economist Catherine McBride. As a former member of the UK's Trade and Agriculture Commission, Catherine McBride has backed Donald Trump's claim that the US is being treated unfairly in global trade, saying 'he definitely has a point' and that 'The EU… has no self-awareness' that they impose 'non-tariff barriers' that block American goods. Despite media panic over recession risks, Catherine believes market shifts have favoured the US, and refers to falling Treasury yields; 'It's actually making the US borrowing on its debt cheaper… a master stroke.' She also highlighted the importance in maintaining a good relationship with the US. 'We are very lucky that Donald Trump is a big fan of the UK... We desperately need a trade deal with the US. We rely on US military protection, it's a very dangerous world at the moment. China is making all sorts of threats that they will fight this to the end.'
