Before I conclude, I have one more question to ask. It is clear that at the last opportunity, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not expect the Polisario Front to complain to stop the entry into force of a trade agreement between the EU and Morocco. She did it, and she succeeded, so she stopped the whole process, and we`ll see what happens. In the briefing prepared for the members of the Committee on the European Union, he tells me that I also thank – as did the noble Lord Lord Lord, Lord Stevenson – the EU Committee of the House of Lords and its officials for examining in detail our continuity agreements, as presented in his reports on the review of international agreements. You play a crucial role. 12.Under the EU-Morocco agreement, Moroccan nationals who work legally in the EU for a period of time are entitled to certain pensions and provisions relating to pensions and medical care. The time spent in each EU country is important and the agreement between the UK and Morocco has been amended to ensure that this continues. However, there is still no agreement between the EU and the UK on the sharing of data that would support such an agreement. FCO officials told us that the government was “confident” in an agreement that would be in the best interests of both parties. However, if no agreement is reached, Moroccan nationals residing in the UK who would otherwise be eligible because of their previous stay in an EU member state may not be able to prove their eligibility and be disadvantaged.8 The approval of the agreement, Reilly said, “marks a concrete step in deepening and extending our bilateral agreement.” If the UK and Morocco have an agreement with one of the other countries under the Rules of Origin Protocol, you can continue to use materials and, in some cases, processing from that country when exporting to Morocco. You must ensure that the work or transformation you are doing in the UK goes beyond the minimum operations mentioned in the agreement and that the other relevant conditions are met.

You can continue to use EU materials or transformations in your exports to Morocco. The United Kingdom and Morocco must have met the requirements of the origin protocol. You must also ensure that the work or transformation you are doing in the UK goes beyond the minimum operations mentioned in the agreement and that the other relevant conditions are met. However, I remain of the view that it would be a grave mistake to start negotiations on new free trade agreements with countries in which we are not only advancing an EU agreement and with those with which we do not have a national free trade agreement before the conclusion of negotiations with the European Union or the United States. If I say, “before we are done, I mean, before we finish it or realize that there is no point in following this subject with these countries for the foreseeable future – which, of course, is another possible outcome.