The food and farming industry is asking for protection against competitive Imports as well as closer relations with Europe ahead of the government’s new trade strategy reveal.
The Department for Business & Trade has opened a consultation on a new trade strategy, which is due to be published “in the spring”.
The NFU urged ministers to ensure agrifood imports abide by the highest standards to protect UK farmers and consumers from imported food that would be illegal to produce in Britain.
The NFU’s submission to the DBT comes as the new Labour minister gears up for trade conversations with countries including India, the US, Mexico and Chile, which have previously raised concerns over controversial issues like chlorinated chicken, hormone-fed beef, and high pesticide levels.
NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: “After regaining independent control of our international trade policy in 2020, the previous government chose to move at pace, striking unbalanced trade deals and positioning the UK on the global stage without a clear and transparent strategy.
“Confidence among UK farmers has hit rock-bottom, not helped by an approach to trade policy that encouraged the import of goods produced to lower environmental and animal welfare standards.
“It’s unreasonable for our government to demand ever-increasing standards from our farmers that bring additional costs and burdens, while allowing products to be sold on our market that fail to meet equivalent production standards.”
The NFU urged government to introduce a set of statutory core production standards that must be met by both domestically produced and imported food to be sold in the UK.
Meanwhile, the British Chamber of Commerce has also called for ministers to focus on closer relationships with the EU to “reduce cross-border red tape, goods movement compliance costs, and the costs of doing trade” with the bloc.
And Logistics UK, the trade group representing logistics and supply chain businesses, also stressed that “immediate changes should be made to border processes to ease the movement of goods across the UK’s borders with Europe”.
Supply chains have faced disruptions since the introduction of the post-Brexit border regime in April last year, which saw the UK introduce full controls on EU goods.
According to trade association, the cumulative impact of changes to trade and border policies following the UK’s departure from the EU is “adding significant cost and inefficiency to the sector”.
Logistics UK policy manager Josh Fenton said: “The past decade has brought enormous challenges for many businesses, particularly in the logistics sector, and the current lack of stability has damaged business confidence which, ultimately, has affected domestic and international investment and trading relationships with our EU neighbours.
“Many businesses that previously were trading internationally are now solely focusing on the domestic market, reducing opportunity for the UK to benefit from strong, profitable business opportunities.
“The trade strategy can reset the UK’s trading position, creating the environment to smooth trade and drive growth across the economy.”
The BCC also urged government to offer more support to companies either exporting or thinking of exporting to countries within the trans-pacific trade region, the CPTPP, of which the UK is also now a part – allowing businesses to enjoy reduced or zero tariff trade regimes.
Business & trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds pledged this week to bolster UK exports, which have been at their lowest levels in more than a decade, as part of Labour’s plan to drive economic growth under its Plan for Change.
He appointed a new “global growth team” of UK trade envoys made up of 32 MPs drawn from across the political spectrum, who have been tasked with identifying trade and investment opportunities for businesses in different markets across the globe.
The move is part of the government’s new trade strategy, which will “prioritise rebuilding our relationship with the EU and seizing opportunities to access new markets further afield”, Reynolds said.
It also comes only days after the European Union’s new trade chief responsible for post-Brexit negotiations, secretary Maros Sefcovic, said a “pan-European [customs] area is something we could consider” as part of “reset” discussions between the UK and EU.
He alluded to Britain joining the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention (PEM), where member countries can source and trade parts and ingredients for manufacturing goods tariff-free.
The BCC also made the case for Britain joining the customs deal in its submission to the trade consultation. Downing Street has since suggested joining the PEM would not cross the government’s “red lines” for its relationship with the EU.
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