London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The British government is seeking to appoint a new EU negotiator to oversee the UK’s relationship with the European Union, with a salary of up to £200,000.
Ministers are looking to hire a new EU negotiator as part of Keir Starmer’s efforts to redefine Britain’s relationship with Europe.
The Cabinet Office is advertising a position, with a salary of at least £153,000 a year to serve as the UK’s representative in all dealings with the EU.
The role is described as “principal adviser to the prime minister and the minister for European Union relations [Nick Thomas-Symonds] on matters relating to relations with the EU and delivering the ‘EU reset’ and on international economic issues”.
The selected candidate would also act as the prime minister’s representative during negotiations.
The trade and cooperation agreement, which forms the foundation of the UK-EU relationship post-Brexit, will undergo renewal talks in the coming year, 2025.
The role would likely involve overseeing these talks, with a salary ranging from £153,000 to £200,000.
The selected applicant will act as a “sherpa” for all the UK’s affairs with the bloc.
Sir Keir Starmer already promised to reshape Britain’s relationship with the European Union. After taking office, he met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, and French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris. He also hosted 50 European leaders at the European Political Community meeting in Oxfordshire.
Last month speaking during a visit to Brussels where he had his first bilateral meeting with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, Sir Keir admitted the challenges of resetting relations with the EU but asserted he was “turning the page on the old way of doing these negotiations” in favour of a more “constructive” approach.
Keir starmer said in a statement after meeting the EC president, “Tone does matter. Resetting does matter. That has been a very important part of the message that I have carried into the meeting today. A return to pragmatism, to doing business in a respectful way and in a way which, I think, will focus on deliverables, rather than charging to the nearest camera to use a megaphone”.
In an earlier statement, an EU diplomat remarked “It is really in Starmer’s hands. We would like to normalise further, but we are not going to beg you.” The diplomat argued that the Labour government was “still very uneasy to embrace the new relationship with the EU because they are afraid” of criticism from the Reform leader, Nigel Farage, and the Conservatives.
While the Conservative Party argued that appointing a new EU negotiator showed that Prime Minister Keir Starmer was attempting to “undermine Brexit and our status as a sovereign nation with his plan to take the country back into the EU”.
Britain’s shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel, said “The Conservative party will not stand by and allow the will of the British people to be reversed while Labour arrogantly capitulates to the EU”.
One source from the Labour Party said, “This is truly desperate stuff from the Conservatives. There will be no return to the EU, customs union, single market or freedom of movement”.
“We are focused on acting in the national interest – tackling barriers to trade, improving cooperation on smashing the criminal people-smuggling gangs and working closely with our allies to stand up to Putin’s aggression”.
“We won’t take Britain back to the Tory days of chaos and division”.
The spokesperson from the Cabinet Office said in response “As we reset our relationship with the EU, building closer trade and security links and encouraging more investment from around the world, this new role will oversee that work”.
He added, “Reporting to the minister for European Union relations, they will lead official-level discussions with the EU as we drive economic growth.”