This report warns that an incoherent government approach to the UK’s post-Brexit regulatory freedoms risks creating new costs for businesses, harming its international trade ambitions and destabilising the union.

There are good reasons why the government might want to do things differently to the EU: to better reflect the UK’s specific circumstances or strengths in particular sectors, to promote innovation in emerging technologies such as fintech and life sciences, or just to reflect different policy choices, as with the live animal export ban. But the government should avoid divergence for its own sake and instead weigh up – and be clear on the costs as well as the benefits of its approach.

This report sets out the steps the government should take to deliver the promised benefits of regulatory freedom from the EU and avoid the risks that freedom brings.