Key facts
- Labour minister Nick Thomas-Symonds warned that Nigel Farage's Reform UK party would harm British businesses by potentially ripping up the UK's Brexit reset agreement with the EU.
- Thomas-Symonds accused Farage of wanting British businesses to fail and predicted increased red tape and bureaucratic burdens.
- Reform UK countered that the Labour government had caused more damage to British businesses.
- Farage criticized Labour for potentially betraying Brexit by aligning with EU rules without parliamentary debate.
- The UK and EU recently agreed a deal to strengthen ties and remove border checks on food and drink.
- Thomas-Symonds aims for a final UK-EU food and drink deal by 2027 to boost growth and lower prices.
A Labour minister has issued a strong warning against Nigel Farage and his Reform UK party, accusing them of wanting British businesses to fail through a potential dismantling of the UK's current Brexit agreement with the European Union.
Minister for EU relations, Nick Thomas-Symonds, stated that if Farage were to follow through on his threat to scrap the EU deal, British businesses trading with Europe would face "more red tape, mountains of paperwork, and a bureaucratic burden." Reform UK, however, retorted that the Labour government had inflicted more damage on British businesses.
Farage, speaking in Scotland, suggested that Labour was "trying to betray Brexit" by aligning with EU rules without parliamentary debate, which he argued was a broken promise to voters. The UK and EU recently finalized a deal in May that aims to reboot relations across various sectors, including fishing, trade, defence, and energy, with a particular focus on reducing border checks for food and drink imports.
Thomas-Symonds reiterated the government's commitment to securing a permanent deal on food and drink with the EU within the next 18 months, a move he believes will stimulate growth, protect jobs, and lower food prices. He criticized Farage's pledge to tear up Brexit treaties, stating that Farage's political approach "feeds on" division and anger, which Labour emphatically rejects.
Labour has intensified its political attacks on Reform UK, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer previously warning that the party's policies could "crash the economy." Thomas-Symonds indicated that Labour currently views Reform UK as the primary opposition in British politics.