'Made in Europe' Law Threatens UK Plans for EU Reset

The UK government's planned summit to reset relations with the European Union will be delayed again unless the bloc agrees to discuss legislation that could lock British businesses out of parts of EU industry, government sources have told the Guardian.

The legislation in question, known as the "Made in Europe" law and formally titled the Industrial Accelerator Act, is designed to curb China's growing presence in European industry, according to the sources. However, it was not included in the reset plan agreed by former prime minister Keir Starmer and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at a summit in London in May 2025.

Government sources said the legislation poses a risk to British businesses and must be addressed as part of any renewed reset discussions with Brussels, the sources said.

Details of how the Industrial Accelerator Act would specifically affect UK companies were not fully outlined in the available information, though government sources characterised the risk as one of British firms potentially being excluded from parts of EU industry covered by the law.

The dispute comes as the UK and EU have sought to rebuild ties following years of tension after Brexit. The May 2025 summit between Starmer and von der Leyen had been seen as a significant step toward a broader reset in UK-EU relations, though the timeline for further summits and agreements now appears uncertain, according to government sources.

Neither the UK government nor the European Commission had issued a formal public statement on the matter beyond the comments attributed to government sources.