EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement

Baroness Verma Excerpts

Friday 8th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Verma (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I refer to my interests in the register. It is now time to ensure that, against the challenges of Covid-19, we as a country talk up our ability to go out, to engage, to get progressive and advantageous trade deals and stronger engagement with the emerging economies of the world, and to develop even closer relationships and exchanges of information and intelligence with our EU friends and those globally that we share common goals and threats with.

Can my noble friend the Minister provide comfort and confirmation to the SME sector, which throughout the transition period raised concerns about preparedness and readiness, that it will be properly supported, not penalised, if it makes errors in the early days, and that there will be some grace period to help SMEs to embed the processes and systems required? Many have told us that they are fighting the impacts of the pandemic, and that has dramatically impacted on their cash flows.

Would my noble friend also tell me what support those currently working in the EU are being provided to ensure that they do not face any untoward hardship or difficulty in continuing to work in Europe? I wish to know what they need to be done in a respectful way, just as we would be treating EU citizens in the UK.

Finally, with the growing rise of racism in some parts of Europe, will my noble friend ensure that all UK citizens are free from harm, discrimination and barriers to opportunities with this new relationship? I do not want to see certain parts of our country unable to access the benefits that we will find outside the European Union.