What does the agreement between Britain and the EU contain?

Below, you can read more about the issues the parties agreed on:

Security and Protection

The sides have agreed to co-operation in the area of security and defence at a time when Europe is being re-armed in the face of threat from Russia and among the uncertainty of US President Donald Trump's policies.

The agreement will enable British representatives to participate in several EU ministerial meetings and engage in European military exercises and missions.

Also, the deal aims to bring the British defence industry closer to European efforts to build a local industrial base, follows Radio Free Europe.

It opens the way for British firms to benefit from an EU fund of 150 billion euros, which the bloc's 27 member states are currently negotiating. However, an additional deal and a financial contribution from London will be needed.

Britain is expected to benefit significantly from this agreement. Companies like BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce are expected to gain benefits.

Food and Pets

The EU and Britain have agreed to limit controls over food and plant products in the future trade. This was a key request from London.

Under the text of the deal, “this will make the vast majority of animal movements, animal products, plants and plant products between Great Britain and the European Union accomplished without certificates, or controls required under rules”.

The EU remains Britain's biggest trading partner. But British exports to the continent have declined by 21 percent since Brex, while imports have dropped by seven percent.

After a long absence, Britain will again be able to sell burgers, sea fruit, sausages and other products in the EU, Starmer said. British people will also be able to travel more easily with their pets.

In exchange, Britain has pledged dynamic approach with timely adaptation opportunities with the EU's sanitation and phytosanitary regulations, with several possible exceptions.

In case of disagreement, an independent mechanism for resolving cases would be established, but the European Court of Justice will remain the final authority.

The other economic measures agreed on include “closer co-operation” for emissions quotas, allowing British companies to avoid EU carbon border tax.

According to the British government, these measures are expected to boost the British economy “roughly 10.7 billion euros by 2040”.

Fishing

Fishing was the particularly important issue for France, which set it a precondition for any broader agreement between London and Brussels.

Britain has agreed to extend until June 2038 an existing agreement allowing European ships to fish in British waters and vice versa. The current agreement was expected to be concluded in 2026.

The extension of the deal will bring stability and security to fishing crews, without increasing the amount of fish EU ships can catch in British waters, according to the British Government.

In Scotland, criticism was immediate. The fishing sector “seems to have been abandoned” from London, Scotland's Prime Minister John Swinney said, while the Scottish Fisher Federation described the deal as “horror film”.

French Minister Agnes Pannier-Rinacher, who oversees the fishing sector, welcomed the deal, saying it “would ensure economic and political vulnerability for French fishing”.

The Young Movement

Brussels had postponed an agreement on the movement of young people, which would enable European youths to study and work temporarily in Britain, and vice versa. But London remains cautious about any free movement-like agreement that could increase immigration numbers.

No clear agreement was reached Monday, and the text of the agreement does not mention the word “movement”.

So the parties simply expressed willingness to perform “working on a balanced” programme that will enable young people to work, study, volunteer or travel to Britain and the EU for a limited period of time. Program conditions have not been determined yet.

London and Brussels also talked about the possibility of Britain reuniting the programme for student exchanges, Erasmus+.

The number of EU students in Britain has been halved since Brex, dropping from about 148,000 in 2019-2020 to 75,500 in 2023-2024.

Border crossings

To facilitate border crossings, both sides pledged “continued discussions” so British citizens can use more “eGates” automatically gates for passport control.

This should help British vacationers to avoid terrible <x0-murder” at EU airports, according to the British Government. /Periscope/