Britain says it paid $2.8 billion to EU to settle Chinese import fraud case

FILE PHOTO: British Chief Secretary to the Treasury John Glen, walks outside Number 10 Downing Street, in London, Britain February 7, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

Britain's finance ministry said on Thursday it had paid 2.6 billion euros ($2.8 billion) to the European Union, after an EU court ruled that the former EU member should pay billions of euros it failed to collect due to fraud on imports from China.

The European Commission had complained that importers into Britain evaded a large number of customs duties with false invoices and artificially low-value declarations for Chinese textiles and footwear.