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Lord Frost (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 4 September 2025

Debate

Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures

Contribution

My Lords, on 27 August, the responsible Minister, Nick Thomas-Symonds, said that any disputes under the SPS agreement “go to international arbitration, not the European Court of Justice”. However, the Commission’s negotiating mandate, agreed in July, says that the SPS agreement is based on EU law and “should ensure uniform interpretation and application” of EU law, and that “the Court of Justice of the European Union is the ultimate authority for all questions of European Union law”. Can the Minister explain how those two statements can be reconciled?

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