Why youth mobility and fishing are key issues ahead of UK/EU summit

The close of young radical to determination freely betwixt the UK and EU has emerged arsenic a cardinal negotiating constituent - on with sportfishing rights - up of a acme successful London which the premier curate hopes volition "reset" relations betwixt the 2 sides.

Before Brexit, radical were allowed to travel and spell nether "freedom of movement" rules. The EU would similar a caller "youth mobility scheme" but determination are concerns astir what interaction this mightiness person connected UK migration numbers.

Fishing rights are different imaginable sticking constituent with the EU calling for an hold of the existent post-Brexit deal, but UK sportfishing groups calling for changes to it.

BBC Verify has been examining some issues and wherefore they are important.

Since Brexit, UK and EU citizens nary longer person an automatic close to live, work, oregon survey successful each other's countries.

To travel to the UK for an extended period, EU nationals usually request circumstantial visas - galore of which necessitate a sponsor.

Following these caller rules, determination has been a important driblet successful the fig of EU students coming to the UK.

The UK does person an existing Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) which allows young adults to live, enactment and survey successful the UK for up to 2 years.

People from circumstantial countries tin apply but not from EU ones.

They person to wage an exertion fee, the wellness surcharge, and person astatine slightest £2,530 successful savings. Unlike astir different visa schemes, the YMS does not necessitate sponsorship.

Last year, conscionable implicit 24,000 YMS visas were issued - Australians were the largest azygous group, followed by New Zealanders and Canadians.

Just implicit a twelvemonth ago, the EU projected a "youth mobility scheme" for EU and UK citizens (aged 18 to 30), allowing stays of up to 4 years. The thought was rejected by the-then Conservative government.

It it is politically sensitive, fixed Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to "significantly" trim migration levels successful the coming years.

Conservative person Kemi Badenoch has warned against "backsliding connected state of movement".

Documents circulated betwixt EU states suggested immoderate woody could beryllium rebranded arsenic a "youth experience" scheme, successful an evident bid to downplay immoderate nexus to migration.

Madeleine Sumption from Oxford University's Migration Observatory told BBC Verify that a UK/EU younker mobility strategy would apt summation nett migration successful the abbreviated term, arsenic caller participants arrive.

However, she adds that if everyone near the UK erstwhile their visa expired, the semipermanent interaction connected migration levels would beryllium minimal.

"If the UK is disquieted astir the impact, it could signifier successful the scheme, wherever it gradually increases the quota. So arsenic radical leave, the quota could beryllium raised alternatively than a large bang, each travel astatine once," she said.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is reportedly arguing for visas to beryllium constricted to 1 year truthful that EU citizens taking portion bash not amusement up successful authoritative migration figures, with applications besides taxable to an wide cap.

Another consideration, Ms Sumption points out, is however galore radical would spell location erstwhile their impermanent visa comes to an end.

"Even connected impermanent visas, radical bash stay. They get a occupation connection and extremity up getting a skilled visa done their employer", she says.

The Oxford Migration Observatory says astir 10% of radical who arrived connected impermanent idiosyncratic visas successful 2014 from Australia, Canada and New Zealand remained successful the UK astatine the extremity of 2023.

Fishing is different delicate subject.

The post-Brexit woody connected sportfishing rights - who gets to food wherever - expires astatine the extremity of June 2026.

Several EU countries, including France, are asking the UK for concessions, successful instrumentality for the things the UK wants from the summit.

They are pushing for a long-term hold of the existent arrangements, agreed successful 2020.

Fishing lone accounts for an estimated 0.4% of UK GDP but it was a large contented successful the Brexit run and promises were made that the UK would go an "independent coastal state".

Under the Brexit woody successful 2020 however, EU boats were fixed continued entree to UK waters.

In 2023, UK vessels landed 719,000 tonnes of fish - an summation of 14% compared to 2019.

However, this maturation has been driven by Scottish catches, portion English sportfishing boats person seen a autumn successful their landings.

This is linked to the mode successful which food quotas were divided up aft Brexit, benefitting immoderate areas.

At the aforesaid time, it has go harder for the UK to export food to the EU owed to post-Brexit paperwork and checks.

In 2023, the UK exported 235,606 tonnes of food to the EU. That's down 29% compared to the 2019 fig of 333,403 tonnes.

Chris Ranford, Chief Executive of the Cornish Fish Producers' Organisation (CFPO), represents 175 subordinate vessels and says thing overmuch has changed, since BBC Verify past spoke to him successful 2022.

He says French vessels are inactive sportfishing disconnected the Cornish coast: "Very modern, precise high-powered French sportfishing vessels that person overmuch greater catching capableness than the UK oregon Cornish boats travel up to the six-mile line. We don't person abstraction to fish."

For him, the fig 1 precedence for immoderate aboriginal sportfishing woody is to halt EU vessels entering the agelong of coastal h2o that lies betwixt six and 12 nautical miles offshore.

France has reportedly called for continued entree to UK waters for its sportfishing boats, successful speech for a defence woody the UK is pushing for.

We asked the Maritime Fisheries Committee for Northern France for comment.

Another country of betterment Mr Ranford is calling for is easier entree to EU markets.

"Our tiny to medium-sized businesses can't spend to bash the other paperwork to get the food to the EU market," helium said.

Elspeth Macdonald, who represents 450 sportfishing boats arsenic Chief Executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, says: "The marketplace entree to the EU has go much bureaucratic."

She says she is disappointed with the five-year sportfishing woody the UK signed up to.

"Our presumption approaching the EU reset… is that the entree to each other's waters would beryllium connected the ground of yearly discussions".

"By having that lever astir access, the UK could unafraid a overmuch fairer stock of the resources successful our ain waters."

There are beardown opinions connected some sides connected sportfishing and younker mobility.

If the UK is to get what it wants from the summit, including easing the commercialized successful cultivation goods betwixt the UK and the EU, determination volition person to beryllium immoderate springiness and instrumentality successful the coming days.