Afternoon summary
Downing Street has said that joining a Europe-wide customs agreement as suggested by the European Union would not cross the government’s “red lines” for closer relations with the EU. After the BBC revealed this morning that the EU has suggested the UK could join the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention (PEM), a customs scheme, two ministers said that this was not something the government was proposing now. (See 9.28am and 10.10am.) But they did not rule out the idea for good, and at the Downing Street lobby briefing the PM’s spokesperson adopted a more positive tone when asked about the proposal. (See 1.36pm.)
International business leaders are “unbelievably glum” about the prospects for the UK, according to George Osborne, the former Tory chancellor. Osborne has been at Davos and, speaking on his Political Currency podcast about what he learned there, he said both main parties were to blame for the way Britain is perceived. He said:
The mood is unbelievably glum about Britain at the moment from business leaders. It didn’t start with this government – there’s a feeling that the rot has set in for a number of years. But there is definitely a feeling that Britain is no longer friendly to businesses, it’s no longer friendly to external investment, and particularly, it’s no longer friendly to wealthy foreigners …
There are endless questions about why Rishi Sunak abolished the non-dom regime, why Keir Starmer went beyond that – and why as a result, all these wealthy individuals are leaving London.
