JOHN DEERE OVERHAUL Under the skin of the latest 7R – p68 July 3 2020 | £3.70 | Subscribe for £2.90 | FGInsight.com
THE HEART OF AGRICULTURE BUSINESS
NEWS
ARABLE
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COMMISSION WIN ● Watchdog to scrutinise trade terms ● Continued fears over US standards INDUSTRY has won an 18-month battle with Government to set up a Trade and Agriculture Commission to protect food production standards but concerns remain over whether it will be up and running in time to influence current trade negotiations. Trade Secretary Liz Truss finally relented and agreed to establish the body during a meeting with NFU president Minette Batters last Friday (June 26), just three weeks after Farming Minister Victoria Prentis rejected the idea in an interview with Farmers Guardian, prompting an angry response from the union.
Negotiations Though the move has been universally welcomed, US trade negotiations, which have prompted a huge level of angst over substandard imports, are already underway and pressure is mounting on both countries to secure a deal. US trade representative Robert Lighthizer recently told Congress there would be no deal with the UK without ‘fair’ access for American
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agricultural products and accused the UK of using the standards issue as ‘thinly veiled protectionism’. Some groups, such as food and farming alliance Sustain, felt uneasy about the fact the commission’s work would be ‘strictly time-limited’ and its recommendations advisory only. But speaking to FG, Ms Batters said she did not think it would take long to set up the body, as most of the legwork was done under Michael Gove when he was Defra Secretary. She said: “The recommendations can only be advisory, because you could not have an independent body which could overrule the Government. There was always a realisation this was going to be time-limited work, but the important thing is Parliament has a say in trade deals based on the expert advice of this independent, non-political body. “We want to make sure MPs are well-briefed so they can go back to their constituencies armed with the facts. “It is also really important for the Department for International Trade that these decisions are not taken completely behind closed doors.”
Though the commission’s full terms of reference are yet to be hashed out, Ms Truss said it will be charged with presenting a report to Parliament which considers how to prevent UK farmers being undermined by low-standard imports.
It will also explore how the UK can push for higher animal welfare standards across the globe at the World Trade Organisation, look at new export opportunities and have a duty to ‘reflect consumer interests’, including the price of food.
PICTURE: COUNTRYGIRL MEDIA
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