Commenting on the speech by on a transition period after we
leave the European Union, Adam Marshall, Director General of the
British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“An overwhelming majority of our businesses, large and small,
want a standstill transition agreed by the UK and the EU without
further delay.
“UK businesses and their European trading partners expect the
negotiators to deliver a clear sense of what the future trading
relationship will look like, and a sensible transition that gives
them both immediate certainty and adequate time to prepare for
future changes to the trade rulebook.
“A key transition priority is to ensure that UK exporters and
importers maintain the same terms of trade with those countries
currently covered by EU free trade agreements, for the length of
the transition. The onus will then be on the UK government to
secure the benefits of these agreements for the future.”
On the UK’s ability to negotiate new trade deals during a
transition period, Marshall added:
“While our businesses want the UK government to explore new and
upgraded trading relationships around the world, their most
important priority is to secure the significant levels of market
access British businesses may lose, rather than the unproven
potential of new agreements elsewhere. In the immediate future,
effort must not be deflected from guaranteeing the benefits of
existing trade deals for a symbolic and rushed ‘quick win’
elsewhere.”
