Lammy vows 'ambitious' new relationship with EU as government seeks closer ties to Europe after election win
7 July 2024, 22:22
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has vowed to develop an ambitious new pact with the EU - as Labour seeks to reset Britain's relationship with the bloc.
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Mr Lammy spoke on a trip to Poland days after Labour's landslide election victory - and promised an end to Brexit-era tensions between the UK and the European Union.
Speaking to the Guardian, Mr Lammy said: “We said in our manifesto we wanted an ambitious security pact, and that’s because we have been speaking to Europe about this for the last few years, and I think there is an appetite, particularly following the war in Ukraine and the challenges that EU faces in relation to energy and climate, to go broader than just defence.
“So you have to obviously get into discussions with Europe and find those issues of mutual interest.
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"My hope is that once, of course, the new European leadership is in place, we can progress this with a joint declaration of some kind. Obviously, underneath that would be buckets of work streams.”
Labour are reported to be keen on a legally-binding treaty which risks running into conflict with planned renegotiation of the UK-EU trade deal.
Labour also want an agreement which mirrors that of the EU-US technology council which has several subcommittees and holds an annual summit.
He added: “I’ve said that I’m very keen for us to get to a place where we’ve got structured dialogue with the EU, so I hope we can arrive at that.”
Sir Keir Starmer said work has already begun to build closer ties with the European Union following Labour's win.
The Prime Minister said he wanted better trading and security relationships with Brussels as he vowed to rip up the "botched" deal struck by Boris Johnson.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has already travelled to Europe for talks with key players, with a promise that the UK would be a "good neighbour" after the years of Brexit acrimony.
Speaking to reporters in Edinburgh, Sir Keir said: "We intend to improve our relationship with the EU and that means closer trading ties with the EU, it means closer ties in relation to research and development and closer ties in relation to defence and security."
Obviously, there are many discussions to be had and negotiations to be had.
"But I do think that we can get a much better deal than the botched deal that Boris Johnson saddled the UK with."
He added that it depends on "respectful relationships, talking to leaders across the EU and of course that work has already begun".
