The Government is grateful to the Foreign Affairs Committee for their report on the UK-EU Strategic Partnership – a partnership underpinned by the significant package agreed at the first ever UK-EU Summit last year, which will make people across the UK safer, more secure and more prosperous. Since coming into office, the Government has reset relations with European partners in order to improve our economic and security cooperation following Brexit. The EU is our closest neighbour, sharing common challenges, and by far our biggest trade partner, with total trade in goods and services between us of £841.7 billion in 2025 – and that is why the Government has acted quickly to build a valuable relationship with the EU that genuinely benefits Britain. At the UK-EU Summit in May 2025, the Prime Minister set out a new Strategic Partnership with the EU, grounded in the Common Understanding and the Security and Defence Partnership. This Common Understanding outlines a programme for enhanced collaboration with the EU on safety, security and economic prosperity, with further technical negotiations underway to put these commitments into effect now and throughout this Parliament, including through legislation. These commitments deliver on what the British public voted for and are good for bills, jobs and our borders. Since the Summit, the Government has struck a deal with the EU to rejoin Erasmus+ in 2027 – fulfilling a key commitment made at the UK-EU Summit and opening up world-class opportunities for young people across the country. The UK and EU have also concluded exploratory talks on the UK’s participation in the EU’s internal electricity market. Towards the end of last year, we started technical negotiations on a food and drink agreement that will cut costs and red tape, and on linking our Emissions Trading Schemes – which could help UK companies avoid paying taxes on up to £7bn of exports. Our focus this year is all about driving forward – including finalising the food & drink and Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) deals, securing a balanced agreement on Youth Experience, and starting negotiations on joining the single electricity market. We will also continue our cooperation through the UK-EU Security and Defence Partnership to support our shared goal of strengthening European defence. The strengthening of the UK-EU strategic partnership is an ongoing process. The Summit last year was the first in a series of annual summits and there will be opportunities to continue to strengthen our relationship and secure new agreements over the years to come. The Government welcomes the Committee’s contributions as part of this process.