Sir Keir Starmer is in Germany to discuss a new bilateral agreement with Germany. He wants to “rebuild our relationship with the EU beyond Brexit”.
The Prime Minister will meet Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday to discuss the agreement, which aims to “stimulate the economy and trade, deepen defence and security cooperation and strengthen joint action against illegal immigration”.
Downing Street has described the treaty as “a central pillar of the UK’s wider realignment with Europe”, but expects the negotiations to take six months. Both sides hope it can be signed in early 2025.
Ahead of his visit, Sir Keir said Britain needed to “turn around Brexit and repair the broken relationships left by the previous administration”.
Specific areas to be addressed in the new treaty with Germany include market access between the countries, science and technology cooperation, clean energy and energy security, and trade across the North Sea, the so-called “supply chain”.
The two leaders are also due to discuss greater intelligence sharing to combat people-smuggling rings, which are responsible for much of Europe’s illegal migration.
As well as his meetings with Mr Scholz and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Sir Keir is due to meet the CEOs of technology group Siemens and arms group Rheinmetall.
He will then travel to Paris for the opening ceremony of the Paralympics on Wednesday evening, before holding a breakfast meeting with French business leaders before meeting French President Emmanuel Macron.
Sir Keir said: “We have a unique opportunity to rebuild our relationship with Europe and pursue a truly ambitious partnership that delivers for the British people.
Strengthening our relationships with these countries is vital not only to tackle the global issue of illegal immigration but also to drive economic growth across the continent and particularly in the UK, and this is one of the most important tasks of my Government.”
The visit comes after the Chancellor warned of “painful” decisions to be made in the government’s first Budget in October because of what Labour described as a £22 billion “black hole” in the finances left by the previous Conservative government.
Speaking in the gardens of 10 Downing Street on Tuesday, he hinted at tax rises in the autumn, saying “those with the broadest shoulders should bear the greater burden” and “those who created the mess should play their part” to put it right.
But Sir Keir also said we needed to “reach out to the country and ask more of you too – to accept short-term pain for long-term gain”.
Conservative shadow chancellor Laura Trott said the Government was “about to break further promises” after campaigning to not raise taxes during the last election, adding: “This is a betrayal of the people and we will hold them to account for their actions.