European Standardisation Strategy: the implications for the UK economy and international trade

The European Commission presented its European Standardisation Strategy in early February outlining the EU’s approach to standards within Member States and internationally. The Strategy aims to strengthen the EU’s global competitiveness, especially when it comes to the green and digital economy, to ensure Europe remains a global standard setter. The package identifies areas for Europe to take the lead, such as standards for emerging technologies, as well as granting more power to national standardisation organisations in setting Europe’s own harmonised standards. Faced with attempts from countries such as China to set international digital rules, the EU looks to reaffirm its position in global standardisation organizations, taking the lead in a number of fields including AI.

What’s included in the strategy?

The Strategy promises a more assertive policy from the EU and its Member States at organisations such as the U.N.’s International Telecommunications Union (ITU) or the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which play a key role in creating international standards and rules. Whilst the European Commission strives to set the trends for the years to come, it also plans to strengthen cooperation in standard setting with like-minded countries, such as the United States via the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC), as well as collaborating on global technical standards via the G7.

Specific measures

Within the Package, the EU aims to use its external economic diplomacy and promote European and international standards through its infrastructure financing activities. To obtain greater competitiveness, the EU is ready to fund standardisation projects in African and Neighbouring countries.

To ensure standards are being developed with input from a range of stakeholders, the European Commission plans to modernise the European Standardisation Organisation, with a particular focus on SMEs and civil society.

The EU has underlined strategic areas where obtaining leadership will be crucial for its success:

• COVID-19 vaccines and medicines production
• certification of semiconductors in terms of security and reliability
• data standards including data interoperability, data sharing and data re-use
• emerging artificial intelligence systems
• climate resilience of infrastructure
• digital passports for products and services

Next steps for the Standardisation Strategy

Under the Strategy, the European Commission has set out the following actions:

• A High-Level Forum on upcoming standardisation priorities
• An EU excellence hub on standards, bringing together a range of expertise to bring together the standardisation expertise, and nominate a Chief Standardisation Officer, to ensure oversight and alignment of EU activities
• A legislative proposal setting out basic criteria that must be adhered to when handling European standardisation requests
• The ‘Standardisation Booster’ to support researchers under Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe
• Dissemination of e-learning training material and standardisation academic teaching modules to train young professionals in standardisation

What does this mean for UK business?

Under the new set of measures, non-EU/EEA standards bodies are to be excluded from EU decision-making processes during the development of standards. Given the UK has now left the EU, exclusion of third countries might endanger UK-EU international cooperation in this critical field.

The CBI is working closely with BusinessEurope to promote international cooperation and ensure business leadership and influence in standards development. In reaction to the Standardisation Strategy, BusinessEurope called on the EU to keep close links to international standardisation organisations and stressed the importance of collaboration with third country markets. The CBI will continue to stress the need for international cooperation in setting key standards and push the EU to work with likeminded partners, including the UK.

In its National AI Strategy, the UK government set out clear plans to advocate for and shape AI standards that reflect UK values at international level, including through a new AI Standards Hub. The CBI is engaging with the UK government and the Hub to support UK leadership in developing international tech standards. It will be critical to continue to follow developments at EU level, and drive greater collaboration, as we support UK leadership on the international stage.

Future standard setting in the UK

In its “Benefits of Brexit” paper, which outlines priorities for a post-Brexit economy, the UK government is looking to identify areas where the UK can position itself as a ‘role-setter’ and world-leader when it comes to regulation. The paper explicitly points to new-emerging sectors where the UK can take the lead including artificial intelligence and data sharing.

Building on this paper, in his recent speech on growth, CBI’s Director General Tony Danker called for the creation of a new Office for Future Regulation, which will set the Government on a new path for efficient policymaking. The CBI argues the UK should use new regulations to unleash growth in future focussed sectors and not use the divergence with the EU for the sake of it.

Next steps

The CBI will continue to support UK leadership in setting standards globally, especially on AI, including driving forward cooperation with partners such as the EU and US.

The CBI is also playing a key role in shaping this year’s B7 recommendations to G7 governments (the B7 brings together the business federations of the G7 nations). This year’s B7, under the German business federation – BDI -, will focus on G7 collaboration and coordination in critical technology standards, particularly focussing on semiconductors, data governance and high-risk AI systems.

• To find out more about the CBI’s work on post-Brexit regulation, and to share your views, get in touch with the team here
• Contact Susannah Odell to get involved in the CBI’s work at the B7 on tech standards setting, including on AI
• Join our AI working group to shape the UK government’s work on AI standards through the forthcoming AI Governance White Paper and AI Standards Hub.