Given that the two countries have important historical and trade ties, strengthening the UK-Singapore relationship was always going to be a priority post-Brexit. Singapore has long served as the UK’s gateway to Southeast Asia, and with both sides hoping to deepen economic relations, the UK-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (UKSFTA), signed late last year, was the first step forward.
Peter Doraisamy, managing partner of Singapore law firm PDLegal, says the post-Brexit UKSFTA agreement mirrors the terms of the European Union-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA), signed in October 2018, but Brexit will change relationship dynamics.
“It is anticipated that with the current post-Brexit tariffs between the EU and UK, and the harsh reality of a post-Brexit trade deal with the EU, there will be significant degree of import by the UK from sources outside of the EU, for example, through Singapore,” Doraisamy says, noting under the UKSFTA, Asian food products made in Singapore continue to be able to enter the UK tariff-free, up to a combined annual quota, and under the flexible rules of origin, “there is no need that the ingredients used are grown or produced in Singapore, merely that the products are made in Singapore.”