Prime Minister says UK will ‘work ever more closely’ with Germany

Sir Keir Starmer has hailed the “closeness” of the UK and Germany, as the two nations signed a treaty that is set to free up school exchange visits and passport e-gates.

The Prime Minister and German chancellor Friedrich Merz signed the deal – to be known as the Kensington Treaty – at the V&A Museum on London, as Sir Keir said they will look to “work ever more closely” on issues such as trade and security.

The agreement was also signed by Foreign Secretary David Lammy and his German counterpart Johann Wadephul.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Prime Minister told Mr Merz: “It’s a privilege to have you here today, particularly to sign this Kensington Treaty, which is a very special treaty, because it’s the first of its kind ever, if you can believe it, between our two countries.”

Sir Keir described it as “evidence of the closeness of our relationship as it stands today” as well as a “statement of intent, a statement of our ambition to work ever more closely together”.

As part of Thursday’s deal, Berlin has agreed to allow some arriving UK passengers to use passport e-gates.

The move will initially be available for frequent travellers and is due to be in place by the end of August.

The treaty also includes the UK and Germany agreeing to establish a taskforce aimed at paving the way for direct train services between the countries.

It is hoped services could begin within the next decade.

Mr Merz also delivered remarks after the signing of the treaty. According to a translation of what the German chancellor said, the treaty has also reached an agreement on school exchange visits.

It comes as part of a wider visit by Mr Merz as Downing Street looks to boost ties on defence and tackling people smuggling, after Germany committed last year to make facilitating the smuggling of migrants to the UK a criminal offence.

Mr Merz is expected to commit to adopting the law change by the end of the year.

Downing Street has described the move as a “significant step”.

Asked if Sir Keir was frustrated by the slow pace of change in Germany, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said that people smuggling is “an international issue that requires international solutions”.

“And over the last year, you’ve seen the Prime Minister working tirelessly to reset relationships across Europe, and you’ve seen a number of examples of the progress of that, not least with the French last week,” he added.

“This is a significant step that will give law enforcement and prosecutors the tools they need to address this scandal of small boats which are destined to cross the Channel being stored and concealed in Germany.”

After the signing ceremony, the two leaders then travelled to Downing Street for a further meeting.

Mr Merz said he had been “surprised” to learn that the agreement was the first UK-Germany treaty since the Second World War.

“We had you in the European Union and we thought that was enough,” he said.

“But we are now learning that it’s not enough so we have to do more on that.”