Sittings · Document
DRAFT OPINION (2024/2108(INI)) 2025-05-08
On the implementation of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy · Rapporteur: Borys Budka
AMENDMENTS
The Committee on Industry, Research and Energy submits the following to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on International Trade, as the committees responsible:
Amendment 1
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 20a. Finds that there are risks associated with potential regulatory divergence between the EU and the UK in relation to digital policies; reiterates the importance of ensuring high-level data protection standards for the transfer and processing of personal data between the two parties and calls for regular information sharing between the EU and the UK; welcomes enhanced regulatory cooperation on digital issues, such as the administrative arrangement of 30 April 2024 between the Commission’s Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology and the UK’s Office of Communications (Ofcom), which prioritises the exchange of information relating to the supervision of risk assessment and mitigation efforts by providers of large online platforms; |
Or. en
Amendment 2
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 b (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 20b. Calls on the UK to ensure that the proposed Data (Use and Access) Bill does not lead to lower data protection standards than those in the EU; recalls that the continued free flow of data between the EU and the UK hinges on a new data adequacy decision by the Commission; notes that the current adequacy decision expires in June 2025 and its renewal will depend to a large extent on the approach taken by UK policymakers; |
Or. en
Amendment 3
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 c (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 20c. Highlights the importance of maintaining similar approaches to market reforms in the digital sector; asks that the UK avoid policies that diverge from the fundamental principles of the EU Digital Markets Act1a and the EU Digital Services Act1b; ________________ 1a Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 September 2022 on contestable and fair markets in the digital sector and amending Directives (EU) 2019/1937 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Digital Markets Act) (OJ L 265, 12.10.2022, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/1925/oj ). 1b Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services Act) (OJ L 277, 27.10.2022, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2065/oj). |
Or. en
Amendment 4
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 d (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 20d. Repeats its calls to strengthen cooperation and joint actions in the field of cybersecurity, given its implications for both parties in a wide range of areas of mutual interest, especially in the digital and financial sectors, IT, defence, energy, and research and development; |
Or. en
Amendment 5
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 e (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 20e. Regrets that the UK did not sign the Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and the Planet at the international AI Action Summit in Paris on 11 February 2025; hopes that EU and UK approaches to regulating the risks and maximising the benefits of AI do not diverge significantly in the future; |
Or. en
Amendment 6
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 a (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29a. Welcomes the fact that both parties maintain comparable ambitions for energy efficiency and the promotion of renewable energy sources by 2030, with the ultimate shared goal of climate neutrality by 2050; stresses the importance of the non-regression clause concerning environmental protection in the TCA, which neither party can diverge from without jeopardising the overall Agreement; |
Or. en
Amendment 7
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 b (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29b. Views favourably the willingness of both parties to consider greater regulatory and technological cooperation on renewable energies, including offshore wind, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, and biomethane; notes, however, that the UK’s decision to leave the EU single market poses inevitable challenges to the format and limits the scope for bilateral cooperation in the field of energy; calls on both parties to find new ways to improve the quality and depth of their bilateral cooperation on clean energy technologies; |
Or. en
Amendment 8
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 c (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29c. Supports enhanced EU-UK cooperation on security of supply, which is particularly necessary in the context of volatile global energy markets and the continued Russian war of aggression against Ukraine; notes that both the EU and the UK are continuing to make progress towards their shared goal of ending all energy ties with Russia; welcomes the establishment of the new EU-UK Working Group on Security of Supply under the TCA, as recommended by the Partnership Council of 17 March 2024 and later implemented by the Specialised Committee on Energy; hopes that the new EU-UK Working Group on Security of Supply can meet regularly and develop concrete solutions and joint actions in this crucial area of bilateral cooperation; |
Or. en
Amendment 9
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 d (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29d. Stresses the importance of joint collaboration on the development of offshore wind, electricity infrastructure, CO2 storage and hybrid energy projects in the North Sea; believes that both parties need to work closely together to transform the North Sea into a green energy hub that can also help to guarantee security of supply, inter alia, through high levels of offshore wind energy production; welcomes the active participation of the UK in the North Seas Energy Cooperation (NSEC), building on the memorandum of understanding it signed in December 2022; maintains that UK participation in NSEC should eventually lead to viable joint projects that are consistent with the common goal of developing the North Sea as Europe’s green power plant, as set out in the Ostend Declaration, which the UK signed on 24 April 2023; |
Or. en
Amendment 10
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 e (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29e. Emphasises the importance of interconnection between EU and UK energy markets, which can improve security of supply, stimulate clean energy production and lower energy costs for both parties; believes that high levels of physical interconnection capacity need to be complemented by more integrated wholesale energy markets that can facilitate energy trading between the EU and the UK; finds that, despite closer cooperation between regulators and transmission system operators, little progress has been made in terms of developing the new electricity trading arrangements envisaged under Article 312 of the TCA; expresses concern that the operation of different carbon border adjustment mechanisms in the EU and the UK could lead to additional unwanted costs for future cross-border trade in renewable electricity; |
Or. en
Amendment 11
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 f (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29f. Notes that the Specialised Committee on Energy adopted both a recommendation and a roadmap on electricity trading towards the end of 2024, inviting both parties to step up the technical work necessary to implement new trading arrangements between the EU and the UK, including a concept validation phase for multi-region loose volume coupling (MRLVC), the proposed trading model set out in Annex 29 to the TCA; calls for an acceleration of the technical work necessary to ascertain whether MRLVC is indeed a workable solution for future EU-UK electricity trading, and, if not, then calls for technical work and preparations on developing a feasible alternative to be started urgently; |
Or. en
Amendment 12
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 g (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29g. Emphasises the unique situation of the island of Ireland in relation to electricity trade with the UK and underlines that any disruption to the Single Electricity Market would have negative implications for consumers and businesses on the island of Ireland; calls for the continued application of the EU energy acquis in Northern Ireland as it has always been necessary for ensuring continuity for the Single Electricity Market on the island of Ireland following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU; |
Or. en
Amendment 13
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 h (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 29h. Recalls that the energy chapter of the TCA expires in June 2026, although it can be extended or renegotiated with the consent of both parties; stresses that future negotiations in this area could be a useful opportunity to carefully assess and improve the functioning of the energy chapter in the TCA, which must be based as always on robust governance and a level playing field; |
Or. en
Amendment 14
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 a (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33a. Welcomes the association of the UK to Horizon Europe, as well as the Copernicus programme, as of 2024; believes this association recognises that UK science and innovation are an integral part of the European science and innovation ecosystem; |
Or. en
Amendment 15
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33b (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33b. Continues to be concerned over the 2023 amended association Protocol, particularly over the fact that the automatic rebate on the UK’s contribution to Horizon Europe in the event of ‘lower than expected’ UK participation in the programme has resulted in inconsistencies with the provisions of the TCA, to which Parliament gave its consent in December 2020; notes that this change to the TCA through the adoption of a Protocol meant that Parliament was unable to provide meaningful consent or effective scrutiny over what constitutes a core part of the overall Agreement; |
Or. en
Amendment 16
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 c (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33c. Emphasises that any international agreement on the association of the UK to EU programmes should fully respect the prerogative of Parliament to provide meaningful consent, in line with its resolution on association agreements for the participation of third countries in EU programmes; |
Or. en
Amendment 17
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 d (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33d. Calls for the full involvement of Parliament in any negotiations regarding UK association to the 10th research framework programme (FP10) and also regarding the implementation of FP10 over the course of the next multiannual financial framework (MFF); hopes that both parties can avoid the delays that characterised UK association to Horizon Europe and the Copernicus programme under the current MFF, in order to ensure continuity in funding for key EU research and innovation projects that involve UK partners; |
Or. en
Amendment 18
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 e (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33e. Regrets that the UK ultimately chose not to associate to the Euratom research and training programme or the Fusion for Energy joint undertaking, which manages the EU’s financial contribution to the ITER project; notes that UK participation in both programmes was envisaged as part of the joint declaration accompanying the TCA in December 2020 and formed part of a coherent whole alongside UK association to Horizon Europe and the Copernicus programme; hopes that the EU will not again allow the UK to retrospectively ‘cherry pick’ which parts of the EU’s research and innovation programmes it wishes to associate to; |
Or. en
Amendment 19
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 f (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33f. Expresses concern that the UK has significantly increased the healthcare surcharge and visa costs for researchers going to the UK under Horizon Europe funding, making mobility more difficult financially for EU researchers and their UK partner institutions; supports the call to revert to the previous fee and surcharge levels, as expressed by the EU in the third Partnership Council meeting on 16 May 2024; would welcome a commitment to further lower the administrative burden and related costs for EU researchers undertaking mobility to the UK as part of Horizon Europe (as well as its successor FP10 programme); |
Or. en
Amendment 20
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 g (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 33g. Notes the importance of the Erasmus+ programme for the research and innovation community; regrets that successive UK governments have not made concrete suggestions for UK association to Erasmus+ or its successor programme; |
Or. en
Amendment 21
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40 a (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 40a. Welcomes the prospect of closer industrial cooperation between the EU and the UK, while maintaining a strong level playing field that avoids unilateral distortions; highlights, in this regard, the importance of ensuring, from an early stage, frequent dialogue on supply chain initiatives in the EU and the UK; |
Or. en
Amendment 22
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40 b (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 40b. Recalls that industrial cooperation is significantly limited by the UK’s ‘red lines’ against rejoining the EU single market or customs union; |
Or. en
Amendment 23
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40 c (new)
| Motion for a resolution | Amendment |
| 40c. Regrets that the UK’s withdrawal from the EU has had a particularly disruptive impact on SMEs; stresses the need to reduce barriers to trade, especially for SMEs, in line with the recommendation of the EU-UK Parliamentary Partnership Assembly of 17 March 2025; |
Or. en
ANNEX: ENTITIES OR PERSONS FROM WHOM THE RAPPORTEUR HAS RECEIVED INPUT
The rapporteur for the opinion declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not receive input from any entity or person to be mentioned in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.