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01:00Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE, διαχειριστώ.
01:32Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
02:01Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
02:36Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
03:00Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
03:03in this world of trading blocks
03:05is a fundamental part of our foreign
03:07policy as well.
03:08I must ask you, Minister, because your government
03:10is on fragile ground, there is
03:13an imminent leadership contest, some would
03:15say, and one of the challenges
03:17of former Health Secretary West Streeting
03:18has described Brexit as a catastrophic
03:21mistake, saying that the future of Britain
03:23is in the European Union.
03:25Do you, to an extent, agree with him?
03:28I don't think this is the moment to rerun
03:30the arguments of 2016.
03:32I think this is a point to look
03:34forward, not back.
03:37And I think
03:38in looking forward, what
03:40we are doing is building, and I
03:42am building week by week
03:44that closer UK
03:46EU relationship, and doing so
03:48in the international context
03:50that we find ourselves in. So, it
03:52has a number of dimensions.
03:54Working more closely on security
03:56and defence, absolutely fundamental
03:58with our European partners.
04:00Working on energy
04:02security, and that's why I've been
04:03in recent weeks, I've formally,
04:06together with Mara Stevkovic,
04:07opened negotiations on UK
04:09participation in the internal
04:11electricity market. And I'm doing
04:12that so that we are able to
04:14deliver that energy security
04:16going forward, but also to try
04:17to bear down on bills
04:19as well, but also on trade
04:22and food security. These are
04:23fundamentals of our policy
04:26going forward, delivering for people
04:27in the UK, but also it's in the EU's
04:29interest as well.
04:30There is polling, Minister,
04:31that suggests that the public
04:34perception, opinion on Brexit
04:35has shifted, that a majority
04:37of people now would support
04:39rejoining the EU, and this is
04:41coming up in the public debate.
04:44Do you think there is a case
04:46to be made for that, especially
04:47given the situation you've just
04:48described of trading blocks,
04:51of geopolitical friction, and so on?
04:53Well, I think that public
04:55opinion is not far from where the
04:57government is, actually. I think the
04:58government's position is broadly
04:59supported by public opinion.
05:01I don't detect, and I've been
05:03up and down the country
05:04campaigning over many years,
05:06a desire to rerun arguments
05:09that took place between 2016 and
05:112019-20 in the UK.
05:13I want to ask you about your talks
05:15with Maros Shevkovic, the EU's
05:16trade chief. I know you've been
05:18in very close touch with him over
05:20the past years.
05:21and you are seeking closer
05:23alignment with the single markets,
05:25but you're keeping those red lines,
05:27no entry into the single markets
05:28or the customs union or freedom of
05:30movement.
05:31How faithful are you this approach
05:33will work?
05:35Well, it has been working.
05:37It delivered the common
05:39understanding last year.
05:40It's already delivering benefits,
05:42and I'm very confident it will
05:43continue to deliver benefits for the
05:46British people across this
05:47parliament.
05:47Let me just give some specific
05:49examples, because let's talk about
05:50the food and drink agreement.
05:52Now, those who oppose the work I'm
05:55doing are saying to businesses in
05:57the agricultural and agri-food
05:59sectors that the situation we have
06:01at the moment, where we've had to
06:02have over a million export health
06:04certificates, up to £200 a time,
06:07issued to UK businesses, UK
06:10exporters since 2023.
06:11I've held one of these.
06:13I've been presented with one of these
06:14by a business.
06:16pages and pages, dozens of wet
06:19stamps all over it.
06:20I want to take away that red tape.
06:22I want to take away that cost from
06:24businesses.
06:25Those who oppose what I'm doing will
06:26have to explain to those businesses
06:28why they want to reimpose them.
06:30You mentioned you're negotiating a
06:32series of new deals.
06:33You sound very positive on the SPS,
06:35on the agri-food exports, as well as
06:37the carbon emissions trading system.
06:38I want to ask you about the third
06:41aspect of this, which is youth
06:42experience or youth mobility.
06:44and how is this going?
06:47Because you officials have been
06:48telling me that it is tough to
06:51close this deal by the summer.
06:53What are the bones of contention
06:54here?
06:55I think with the youth experience
06:57scheme, it's very important that we
06:58do have both the limit, the cap, but
07:02also particular time limits as well.
07:05And I've always seen the youth
07:07experience scheme in the context of
07:09the UK's 13 existing youth mobility
07:13schemes.
07:14But listen, of course we will have, over
07:16the period left before we have this
07:19annual summit, we are going to have, of
07:22course, pressures to close final bits of
07:25the negotiation.
07:25I'm very, very used to that.
07:26But we shouldn't lose sight of the bigger
07:28picture here because the youth experience
07:30scheme will have real opportunities in it,
07:34of course for young Europeans, but for
07:37young Brits as well, who are going to be
07:39able, as we've always seen it, to have a very
07:42broad scheme around study, around work and
07:45around travel.
07:46But when I reflect on the last 10 years,
07:49you know, post-Brexit, consequences of what the
07:52previous Conservative governments did, it was
07:55opportunities for young people that was one of
07:57the things that really bothered me, that
07:59opportunities that previously existed no
08:01longer did.
08:02And I am very proud of what we are now going to be
08:04put forward to young people.
08:05And I think the youth experience scheme is going
08:07to be a really positive part of that.
08:08Can I ask you what type of caps are you looking
08:10at?
08:10What type of limits for young youth citizens coming
08:14to stay, work in the UK?
08:16What are the numbers?
08:16Well, listen, I have to give you the government
08:18minister answer here, which is, of course, that
08:20these are ongoing negotiations at the moment.
08:23But in terms of the parameters of the youth
08:25experience scheme, they're written down in the
08:27common understanding we signed last year.
08:28And are you confident that the Brussels attaches
08:31as much importance to this as you do as a
08:35government?
08:35Because some would say the time is on their
08:37side, they're not in a rush.
08:39I really do.
08:40And I say that because, not just because of my
08:42relationship with Mara Sefcovic, but
08:44as you can imagine, I've got to know the lead
08:47officials in the commission very, very well over
08:49the past two years or more.
08:51And I could never fault the amount of time and
08:55urgency that they have given to this and certainly to
08:58me over the past couple of years.
08:59That's never been an issue.
09:00And Minister, how confident are you that this
09:03will be wrapped up?
09:04I am very confident of closing this deal.
09:08Of course, we will get moments, as you always do,
09:12moments of difficulty in the final parts of the negotiation.
09:14But I am very confident of closing this deal and
09:16delivering a very successful 2026 summit.
09:19We know that Reform UK, the party of Nigel Farage,
09:22is topping the polls.
09:23That is the reality.
09:25Does that mean that you're looking to Farage-proof,
09:29let's say, these deals, to make sure that a prospective,
09:32future anti-European government here in London does not undo
09:37the important work, as you say, that you've been doing?
09:40Well, first of all, if a party at the next general election
09:44wants to put the costs back on businesses that I propose
09:48take off or take away the opportunities to young people
09:50that this government has delivered, I would relish that debate.
09:53But the point is this.
09:54When you talk about durability of arrangements,
09:57in any international context, durable arrangements that last
10:02for many years are because they deliver for both sides.
10:05and the best thing to make any deal durable is to ensure
10:09that it's delivering for young people, it's delivering for businesses,
10:12it's delivering for, in this case, obviously, the British public,
10:15but also Europeans as well.
10:16I am very confident that we are going to do that.
10:19Finally, Minister, final question.
10:21I want to come back to the situation of the Prime Minister,
10:24Keir Starmer.
10:26Brexit has emerged as one of the issues that could define
10:30a potential leadership contest.
10:33I know that you work very closely with him
10:37in your role in restoring EU ties.
10:40Do you think at this point there should be a slight shift
10:45in his strategy?
10:47Does he need to be a little bit more ambitious,
10:50more bold in calling for even more collaboration
10:54with the European Union?
10:56Is that the way to go?
10:57Has he been too hesitant, too careful,
10:59not to alienate those red-wall traditional Labour voters
11:03that support Brexit?
11:04He has been ambitious.
11:06And indeed, throughout this calendar year,
11:09we've been talking not just about delivering the summit,
11:11but how we want to deliver beyond the summit as well.
11:15And I think the Prime Minister has been both ambitious on UK, EU.
11:19And just look, you're interviewing me here as we speak
11:23in the Cabinet Office.
11:24I'm right next door to the Prime Minister.
11:27This agenda is so important to this Prime Minister.
11:30I've always had his personal authority to do this job
11:34right at the centre of the government.
11:35And that's been the case since July 2024.
11:39So this has always been a top priority for the Prime Minister.
11:42Second, he's always shown not just ambition,
11:45but also shown that he and this government can deliver.
11:49and it's that delivery that's the most important thing.
11:52OK. Minister Nick Thomas-Simmons, thank you for speaking to us.
11:55Thank you.
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