London and Brussels have agreed a historic post-Brexit reset of relations that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said would be worth £9bn to the UK but which drew instant criticism for keeping British fishing grounds open to EU boats for 12 more years.
The concession on fishing opened the way for a wide-ranging deal including a security and defence pact and the promised removal of much red tape for British farm exports to the EU.
The agreement was unveiled at a London summit on Monday, the first between the two sides since the UK left the bloc in 2020.
The two sides are seeking to deepen their ties five years after Brexit, as Donald Trump’s presidency strains transatlantic relations over issues including tariffs and the Ukraine war.
Britain had previously proposed an extension of EU access to its fishing grounds of only four to five years. But Starmer’s Labour government agreed to a longer-term deal in return for open-ended provisions to ease UK food products’ entry into the EU.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the agreement marked a “new chapter” in the bloc’s relationship with the UK, while Starmer hailed it as a “common sense, practical” solution that moved on from the “stale old debates” about Brexit.
He added that the deal gave the UK “unprecedented access to the EU market” — including for products such as burgers and shellfish — and heralded “a new partnership between an independent Britain and our allies in Europe”.
UK food and drink exports to the EU, a far bigger sector than the politically charged fisheries industry, were £14bn in 2024, according to the Food and Drink Federation, the industry lobby.
Starmer said that, together with a plan to link the UK and EU’s carbon emissions trading systems, the streamlined food exports rules — delivered through a proposed veterinary agreement — would bring £9bn of economic benefit to Britain.
The new rules would also help Northern Ireland — which is treated differently to the rest of the UK under the terms of Britain’s departure from the EU — by reducing checks on food and animals crossing the Irish Sea.
The two sides said they would “proceed swiftly” to reach more detailed agreements.
However, the concession on fishing prompted fierce criticism from Conservatives and the industry.
Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said the deal was “very concerning”, while Elspeth Macdonald, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, described it as “a horror show” and “far worse” than the previous post-Brexit agreement by former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, the pro-Brexit party that won local elections this month, described the deal as a “betrayal”.
However, Jonathan Reynolds, UK business secretary, said the fishing sector would benefit from the promised veterinary deal, arguing that it would help it sell to the EU.
The UK government also announced it was providing £360mn for fishing and tourism in coastal areas.
Economists at Aston University have estimated that UK agrifood exports to the EU could be boosted by more than 20 per cent as a result of a vet deal.
By contrast, the UK fishing industry accounts for only about 0.04 per cent of Britain’s national output.
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The two also signed a defence and partnership that could give the UK defence sector access to a €150bn fund of cheap loans backed by the EU budget, subject to a second more detailed agreement.
Starmer added that the deal would allow British holidaymakers to enter the EU more quickly through the use of passport e-gates, but called on EU governments to “help make this a reality without delay”.
Both sides were locked in intense haggling through the night over details of their revamped relationship, including wording about a proposed youth mobility scheme.
Tensions remain over the youth scheme, with the document containing only a loose commitment to “work towards” such an arrangement and Britain’s return to the Erasmus student exchange programme.
Starmer said the scheme would be time-limited, subject to number caps, and would not lower fees for EU students to UK levels, which had been a key demand of the EU.
The overall deal was unlocked when the UK agreed to open fishing waters for 12 year and the EU granted London’s late request to exempt more British steel from emergency tariffs.
The commission agreed to ask member states to grant a guaranteed tariff-free quota, which the UK said was worth £15mn a year.
Ambassadors from the 27 member states met early on Monday to sign off on the package, even as leaders of the EU institutions headed for London to formally agree it.
The two sides also signed a communiqué promising deeper economic co-operation during a two-hour meeting at Lancaster House with Von der Leyen and European Council president António Costa.
The EU-UK summit emphasised a spirit of reconciliation, but the tense talks on Sunday were a reminder that the relationship is now highly transactional.
Details of the EU-UK deal are very politically sensitive. Badenoch has said Starmer is about to “surrender” British interests, including agreeing to become a “rule-taker” from Brussels.
Britain has conceded that removing barriers to trade in foodstuffs will require the UK to “dynamically align”, or stay in step, with EU regulations as they change — and also make payments to the bloc to fund work on food and animal standards.
