The UK government paid £2.3 billion to the European Union to settle a long-standing fraud case relating to imports of Chinese textiles and footwear, saying the payment was necessary to fulfill its international obligations.
(Bloomberg) — The UK government paid £2.3 billion to the European Union to settle a long-standing fraud case relating to imports of Chinese textiles and footwear, saying the payment was necessary to fulfill its international obligations.
Britain made payments to the bloc of 1.2 billion euros (£1.1 billion) on Feb. 6 and 700 million euros on Jan. 13, in addition to 678 million euros paid out in June 2022, Chief Secretary to the Treasury John Glen said in a written statement to Parliament on Thursday.
“These are substantial sums but represent the final payments and draw a line under this long-running case,” Glen said.
The European Commission had sued the UK in March 2018 over undervaluation fraud involving Chinese imports, and the European Court of Justice ruled against Britain in March 2022. The UK had been contesting the case, saying it took appropriate steps to counter the fraud in question.
But Glen on Thursday said that even though Britain has now left the EU, the UK government is “committed to fulfilling its international obligations” and was “keen to resolve” the case.
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