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UK businesses are calling on the government for more help exporting to Europe, after new research found that many firms believed the EU trade deal was not helping them grow or increase sales.
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has surveyed 1,000 businesses, and found that a majority said it has created problems such as pushing up costs, increasing paperwork and delays, and putting the UK at a competitive disadvantage.
Just 8% of firms agreed that the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA) was ‘enabling their business to grow or increase sales’, while 54% disagreed.
For UK exporters 12% (or just one in eight) agreed that the TCA was helping them, while 71% disagreed.
The BCC received 59 comments on the merits of the TCA, which was agreed on Christmas Eve 2020, including:
- It had allowed some…