Speaking in Madrid today, The British Secretary for Relations with the European Union (EU), Nick Thomas-Symonds, backed up what the British Ambassador to Spain Sir Alex Ellis told the Bulletin last Autumn about the very strong relationship between the UK and Spain. The Ambassador said that the first official meeting between the Spanish and UK prime ministers in eight years last September in Downing Street was a landmark moment in relations between the two countries.
And Nick Thomas-Symonds reaffirmed on Thursday in Madrid the United Kingdom’s commitment to ‘relaunch’ its alliance with Europe under an approach of ‘ruthless pragmatism’. Speaking at the New Economy Forum, Thomas-Symonds made it clear that the British Government seeks to overcome the ideological divisions of the past and resume a regular agenda to ensure the strategic alliance between the United Kingdom and the EU.
He pointed out that ‘no Member State alone will be able to overcome the economic, security and defence challenges facing our continent’. This ‘relaunch’ seeks a deep alliance that, while respecting the terms of the referendum that led to the UK’s departure from the EU, guarantees an environment of ‘certainty and stability’ for businesses and mutual investments.
In the area of security, Thomas-Symonds was emphatic in stating that ‘there can be no British security without Europe, nor any European security without the UK’. This cooperation is considered vital for sustained support for Ukraine, a country with which London has signed a long-term agreement committing to aid of ‘£3 billion each year’, he recalled.
With regard to energy security, he pointed out that Spain and the United Kingdom are ‘very powerful allies’, citing Iberdrola’s investments in British soil and BP’s investments in Spain.
The common bilateral strategy seeks to improve e-commerce to ‘reduce the consumer bill’ and promote the development of renewable energies. On trade, the secretary highlighted the UK’s dependence on Spanish agriculture: ‘A third of the vegetables and 40% of the citrus fruits imported by the UK come from Spain,’ a figure that rises to 75% in the case of lettuce.
To protect this flow, London is negotiating an agri-food agreement that would remove the ‘bureaucratic barriers’ and controls that have arisen since Brexit, which in his view would reduce costs for Spanish industry and ease the burden on British consumers. Meanwhile, in parallel with the announced confirmation that the UK will rejoin the Erasmus programme in 2027, Thomas-Symonds expressed his willingness to complete negotiations this year on a comprehensive ‘youth experience plan’ that includes not only studies but also the ‘opportunity to travel and work’.