Rural Communities at Risk if UK Signs US Trade Deal, Warns Former Food Tsar
The UK’s rural communities could be "destroyed" if the government signs a US trade deal that undercuts British farming standards, according to the former government food tsar, Henry Dimbleby. The warning comes as ministers are working on a new trade deal with the US, after previous post-Brexit attempts stalled.
The proposed deal has sparked concerns from some sectors that it will give the US access to the UK agriculture market and lead to a similar situation as seen with Australia and New Zealand, where tariff-free access to beef and lamb was granted. The US side is reported to be pressuring the UK to weaken sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards and give tariff-free access to some meat products.
Dimbleby, who wrote the previous government’s food strategy, has joined farmers in warning against an unfavourable deal for UK food producers. "There is no point in creating a way of farming in this country that produces nutritious food, restores the environment and has high levels of animal welfare, and then import food that is produced in ways that would be illegal for our farmer – you just export those harms abroad, and in the meantime destroy our rural communities," he said, as quoted in The Guardian. "The government has been clear that it will not do this, and it must stick to that promise."
The Labour MP Clive Lewis has also urged ministers to align with the EU rather than sacrifice standards in agriculture for a US trade deal. "Since Brexit, the UK has begun drifting from the EU’s higher food and environmental standards. Now we face pressure from a US administration that champions deregulated, corporate-led agriculture, demanding access for products that are more processed and of lower standard," he told The Guardian. "So when ministers talk about trade generating ‘growth’, we have to ask: growth for whom? Certainly not for British farmers, food security or the environment."
Farmers are already furious at the government for changes to inheritance tax on agricultural land and are expected to bring fresh protests if such a deal goes ahead. The National Farmers’ Union president, Tom Bradshaw, said: "There are serious concerns that the US administration is pressuring the UK government to weaken its SPS standards as a concession for lower tariffs or as part of a new trade deal. This could lead to imports of products that would be illegal for our farmers to produce domestically."
The government has insisted that it will not lower its high food standards. A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade said: "The US is an indispensable ally and negotiations on an economic prosperity deal that strengthens our existing trading relationship continue. We will only ever sign trade agreements which align with the UK’s national interests and we will never lower our high food standards."
Martin Lines, the chief executive of the Nature Friendly Farming Network, added: "The government was elected on a promise not to undermine UK food standards through imported products, and it is absolutely critical that they stick to that. We cannot ask British farmers to maintain high environmental and animal welfare standards while opening the door to imports produced under significantly weaker regulations."
The proposed US trade deal has sparked concerns about the impact on rural communities and the environment. The government is under pressure to ensure that any deal does not compromise UK food standards or lead to a flood of cheap, low-quality imports.
The business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has ruled out imports of food such as hormone-fed beef and chlorine-washed chicken, and said there are US products that currently meet trade standards. However, the UK is currently subject to a blanket 10% tariff imposed by the US president, Donald Trump, combined with a push from the UK’s Labour government for economic growth, have caused ministers to redouble efforts to expedite a deal, which is expected, say some sources, within weeks.
As reported by The Guardian, the tariffs recently imposed by the US president, Donald Trump, have added urgency to the trade talks. The UK is currently subject to the blanket 10% tariff Trump imposed on the world, and of 25% on aluminium, steel and cars.
The proposed deal has also sparked concerns about the impact on food security and the environment. The Labour MP Clive Lewis has urged ministers to prioritize high standards and align with the EU rather than sacrifice standards in agriculture for a US trade deal.
In conclusion, the proposed US trade deal has sparked concerns about the impact on rural communities, food standards, and the environment. The government is under pressure to ensure that any deal does not compromise UK food standards or lead to a flood of cheap, low-quality imports. As The Guardian reports, the former government food tsar, Henry Dimbleby, has warned that rural communities could be "destroyed" if the government signs a US trade deal that undercuts British farming standards.
