20 February 2018

David Davis' Foundations of the Future Economic Partnership Speech

[...]So it is the choice of our country and the government of which I am a part — not, as some in continental Europe seem to fear, to lead a competitive race to the bottom…

But to lead a global race to the top.

Because the future of standards and regulations – the building blocks of free trade — is increasingly global.[...]

Now, I know that for one reason or another there are some people who have sought to question that these are really our intentions.

They fear that Brexit could lead to an Anglo-Saxon race to the bottom.

With Britain plunged into a Mad Max style world borrowed from dystopian fiction.

These fears about a race to the bottom are based on nothing, not our history, not our intentions, nor our national interest.

Frankly, the competitive challenge we in the UK and the European Union will face from the rest of the world — where 90 percent of growth in markets will come from — will not be met by a reduction in standards. [...]

This race to the top has a clear read across to our exit negotiations.

The future trade talks will be a negotiation like no other.

We start from a position of total alignment, with unprecedented experience in working with one another’s regulators and institutions.

The agreement we strike will not be about how to build convergence, but what we do when one of us chooses to make changes to our rules.

Neither side should put up unnecessary barriers during this process.

Take a car produced here in Austria to be exported to the United Kingdom.

Currently, that vehicle only has to undergo one series of approvals, in one country, to show that it meets the required regulatory standards.

And those approvals are accepted across the European Union.

That’s exactly the sort of arrangement we want to see maintained even after we leave the European Union.

And while we will be seeking a bespoke agreement, reflecting our shared history and existing trade, there are already precedents outside the EU that we can look to.

The European Union itself has a number of mutual recognition agreements with a variety of countries from Switzerland to Canada to South Korea.

These cover a huge array of products — toys, automotives, electronics, medical devices — and many many more.

A crucial part of any such agreement is the ability for both sides to trust each other’s regulations and the institutions that enforce them. With a robust and independent arbitration mechanism.

Such mutual recognition will naturally require close, even-handed cooperation between these authorities and a common set of principles to guide them.

And the certainty that Britain’s plan — its blueprint for life outside of the European Union — is a race to the top in global standards.

And not a regression from the high standards we have now

It will provide the basis of trust that means that Britain’s regulators and institutions can continue to be recognised.

This will be a crucial part of ensuring our future economic partnership is an open one, and that trade remains as frictionless as possible — something particularly important in the context of Ireland. [...]

Full speech

UK Finance comment on David Davis Brexit speech: Mutual recognition must include services

© Department for Exiting the European Union