Yahoo Finance UK unveils Swiss trade deal — the same as the current one
Less than two years ago, a top UK minister said that reaching a free trade agreement with the whole European Union should be “one of the easiest in human history.”
International trade secretary Liam Fox reassured voters in July 2017 that the government would also have 40 more free trade deals with non-EU countries signed and in force by the time of Brexit.
But with only months to go until Britain’s departure date, deals appear thin on the ground and the government is boasting about smaller achievements instead.
The Treasury just announced a Swiss-UK insurance deal after Brexit — which amounts to one deal, for one sector, for one country, for things to carry on as they are.
READ MORE: Ministers deny they are in Davos to rub shoulders with the elite over champagne
It may be a small gain when the vast majority of British businesses, consumers, and investors still face huge uncertainty over Brexit, but it will likely be welcomed by the industry.
Chancellor Philip Hammond signed the agreement with Swiss finance department head Ueli Maurer, confirming that the current EU agreement will be replicated to maintain trade links.
The Treasury said Britain’s insurance sector employs several hundred thousand people and contributes about £35bn to the UK economy, and noted that Switzerland is a major investor in the British financial sector.
The deal allows UK and Swiss firms to continue working in each other’s countries, as the countries will continue to “mutually recognise” each other’s rules.
Several British ministers have been at the summit in the hope of cementing further agreements and investment in the UK after Brexit.
International trade secretary Liam Fox, speaking at Davos, repeated his commitment to ensuring that the UK’s 40 worldwide trade deals, signed via the EU, will continue to apply after Brexit.
He and Hammond are meeting their global counterparts in the hope of reaching further agreements, while other ministers are lobbying to show there is “more to the UK than Brexit.”
