EU to allow continued data flows to UK following Brexit – Reuters

• The European Commission (EC) has today said that Britain’s data protection laws are in line with the EU’s.
• The EC will start a process to allow police and financial data to flow from the EU to Britain for the next 4 years.
• Before the EU grants a formal adequacy status to British laws, the European Data Protection Board will need to be consulted and will need to approve the decision.
• The process will need to be completed before the end of June, when the interim arrangement for data flows after Brexit ends.

EU warns it will do regular checks on UK data handling – FT

• Today Brussels warned that it would  impose checks on the UK’s handling of personal data, despite giving provisional approval for information flows from the EU to Great Britain.
• It is expected that the EC’s draft ruling is likely to win the required sign off by EU data protection authorities and Member States.
• The decision came as Lis Truss and Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU trade secretary and EU trade policy chief, held separate talks over potentiation cooperation on matters including WTO reform.
• Dombrovskis invited the UK to “cooperate closely with the EU in like-minded groups at the WTO”.

UK manufacturing hit by Brexit trade disruption – FT

• The Markit purchasing managers’ index for manufacturing (released today) fell to the lowest level since May last year.
• The index for delivery times by suppliers to British manufacturers fell to its lowest level since April 2020, with many quoting Brexit-related disruption as an issue holding back production.
• British manufacturers’ export sales declined and respondents commented that difficulties with fulfilling orders to existing EU clients due to higher costs and transport delays, was part of the cause.
• Brexit was the most common cited cause of delays of supplies. Other common responses included problems with shipping and a strong global demand for raw materials.