Australian beef and lamb producers tariff-free access to the UK market.
This proposed dealt with Australia is considered to be crucial since it would mark UK’s first free trade agreement reached since Brexit, instead of a rollover of existing agreements with the European Union. Reports claim that the cabinet is split over whether to approve the deal with Canberra.
Meanwhile, British farmers claim that an increase in imports of cheaply produced Australian beef, sugar and lamb would drive down the price of these products which are produced to a higher standard, at a higher cost, in the UK. They also point out that this deal with Australia would set a dangerous precedent for future trade agreements with other countries.
“I cannot state the damage that I feel it would do,” Minette Batters, president of the NFU, said.
“The conversations I have with the US, with the New Zealanders, with the Canadians, they would definitely be looking for the same,” said Batters. “If we give away our negotiating capital to Australia, which is the second-largest exporter of beef in the world, second to Brazil, the others would most definitely want it.”
Last year, the British government published a mandate in which it said London is committed to upholding…
