UK and France agree cross-border industrial partnership

Mark Ferguson, a public policy expert at Pinsent Masons, was commenting after the two countries formalised a new industrial strategy partnership following the 37th UK-France Summit held at Downing Street in London.

The partnership – a first of its kind between the UK and an EU country – is designed to deepen bilateral cooperation in “frontier sectors” such as clean energy, advanced manufacturing, retail and AI. During the summit major French companies announced they would invest over £1 billion in the UK, creating thousands of highly skilled jobs across the country. It builds on a previous cross-Channel trade relationship worth £104bn in 2024.

The two countries said they would develop a joint roadmap for carbon capture, use and storage; strengthen cooperation on critical minerals supply; share methodologies for analysing supply chain dependencies and make joint efforts to support AI adoption in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and upskilling of workers.

They said the countries’ industrial strategy councils – the UK’s Industrial Strategy Advisory Council and France’s Conseil National de l’Industrie – would also continue to engage with each other to share best practice. Industry engagement will also be central to the initiative, with both sides pledging to expand development of the UK-France Business Forum to facilitate collaboration between governments and key businesses.

The partnershipwill be continuously monitored through the annual dialogue between the UK Department for Business and Trade and the French Directorate-General for Enterprise. A Ministerial bilateral will also be added to reinforce this governance structure.

Commenting on the development, Mark Ferguson, a public policy expert at Pinsent Masons, said: “The UK-France Industrial Strategy Partnership is a significant milestone in bilateral economic cooperation and industrial policy alignment between the two countries and further emphasises the Labour government's objective to build positive relations with the European Union.” 

Ferguson said the announced investments also “signal the ambition of the leaders of the UK and France to build a more productive and prosperous relationship between the two nations.”

The National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB), an association of universities and companies, also welcomed the move, saying it represented a “critical step toward reversing recent declines in UK research and development”. According to the NCUB, since 2021 business research and development (R&D) investment in the UK has decreased by 6.3% in real terms, while foreign direct investment into UK R&D has fallen by 26%.

Ferguson said the announcement would provide clarity for businesses, particularly those working in “frontier industries” such as advanced manufacturing, clean energy, retail and AI. “For businesses, this announcement outlines a clear framework for cross-border collaboration and market access and presents significant opportunities and the call for business engagement provides a platform for proactive engagement.”