On 11 December 2025, the UK hosted the fourth annual dialogue between the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and France’s Direction générale des Entreprises (DGE). The UK government says the meeting focused on implementing the UK–France Industrial Strategy Partnership agreed in July 2025, with commitments to deepen work on SME AI adoption, clean energy, critical minerals and economic security.

Context matters. The Partnership launched at the 10–11 July UK–France Summit alongside more than £1 billion of investment deals into the UK, and the joint statement gave this DBT–DGE dialogue an oversight role, with a proposed ministerial bilateral to keep delivery on track. It also referenced a semiconductor supply‑chain stress test run in January 2025 as a template for practical cooperation.

For SMEs, the signal is clear. Officials on both sides committed to share what actually works when smaller firms put AI into everyday operations-from quality control to customer service-while tightening the guardrails on data and security. We’ll be watching for pilots that lower the cost of compute and model access, paired with training that maps cleanly across UK and French compliance.

Clean energy collaboration is likely to show up first in supply chains rather than blockbuster announcements. With clean energy industries listed as a pillar of the Partnership, the near‑term opportunity set points to offshore wind components, grid digitalisation, power electronics and industrial software-areas where UK mid‑market suppliers already sell into France and can scale with better procurement visibility.

Critical minerals is the other stress point. The January semiconductor exercise mentioned in the joint statement hints at a wider playbook: map inputs, test stress scenarios, and line up alternatives before shocks hit. If batteries and permanent magnets get similar treatment, exporters should see clearer expectations on licensing, traceability and due‑diligence.

France remains a top customer for UK services. ONS figures compiled by business.gov.uk put total UK–France trade at £104.2bn in 2024. In the four quarters to Q1 2025, UK services exports to France reached £22.9bn, with computer services at £2.7bn-evidence that any progress on digital standards and security checks would move real revenue.

People and process matter here. DBT’s Amanda Brooks CBE and DGE’s Thomas Courbe led this year’s session, with both embassies in the room-an operational sign this work is now routine rather than ad‑hoc. Brooks, DBT’s Director General for Trade Negotiations, has long experience corralling cross‑government delivery, which should help turn principles into procurement lots.

Economic security can sound abstract, but for firms it usually becomes investment‑screening clarity, export‑control guidance, and joint supply‑chain mapping. The joint statement tasks the annual dialogue with oversight of delivery and proposes a ministerial bilateral, which should shorten the gap between technical fixes and political sign‑off.

What to watch next is a joint roadmap and stronger industry input via the UK–France Business Forum. If officials use that forum to surface live bottlenecks-grid connections, software standards, or customs paperwork on dual‑use components-suppliers can plan 2026 bids with fewer unknowns and better timelines.

Bottom line for finance teams: treat 2026 as the year to scale France‑facing sales where you can link AI‑enabled productivity to clean‑energy or advanced‑manufacturing contracts. Pair that with a lightweight supply‑chain risk review-semiconductors, battery materials, high‑spec electronics-and a training budget that fits both UK and French rules.