Theresa May has pledged to explore how the UK can continue to participate in the EU’s internal energy market in her landmark speech setting out the government’s Brexit negotiation stance.
In the speech, which was delivered at the Mansion House in London instead of Newcastle after a trip to the north east was ruled out due to adverse weather conditions, the prime minister identified energy as one of the “many” areas where the UK and EU economies are “closely linked”.
“On energy, we will want to secure broad energy co-operation with the EU. This includes protecting the single electricity market across Ireland and Northern Ireland – and exploring options for the UK’s continued participation in the EU’s internal energy market.”
She said the UK government believes that both the EU and the UK will benefit from a continued “close association” with the Euratom nuclear co-operation arrangement.
In her speech, May also pledged to maintain high standards of environmental regulation.
“As we leave the EU we will uphold environmental standards and go further to protect our shared natural heritage. And I fully expect that our standards will remain at least as high as the EU’s.
“The EU should be confident that we will not engage in a race to the bottom in the standards and protections we set. There is no serious political constituency in the UK which would support this – quite the opposite.”
Earlier this week, opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn said Labour would seek to keep the UK both in the single energy market (SEM) and Euratom.
Energy UK called for continued UK membership of the SEM in a recently published Brexit position paper.
The PM’s speech follows the publication by the European Commission of its draft version of the EU withdrawal agreement.
This includes a proposal to establish a “common regulatory area” covering the island of Ireland, which includes continued North-South co-operation on energy and the environment.
It says the common regulatory area is designed to safeguard North-South co-operation, the all-island Irish economy, and protect the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.