The European Commission would be open-minded to discussing closer trade ties with the UK, including a customs union, a senior EU official has said. The EU economy commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis, told the BBC that the European bloc was ready to engage with an open mind when asked about a customs union.
If it's in our national interest then we should consider that, we should go that far, he told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg. In a riposte to some cabinet colleagues who have suggested the UK should seek to form a customs union with the EU, Starmer said he did not think that was the answer. We are better looking to the single market rather than the customs union for our further alignment, he said.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground.
Nick Thomas Symonds, the minister in charge of EU negotiations, was promoted to full cabinet rank. The Welshman, a close ally of Starmer, will be an advocate of a closer relationship with the EU when ministers meet. But, a source close to the prime minister said, he isn't going to bang the cabinet table and say it's customs union or bust. If that happens, it has to come from Keir himself.
