Trade (Australia and New Zealand) Bill — 6 Sep 2022 at 17:47

“If large local economic effects occurred, this could…result in a net GVA loss for Northern Ireland.”

“The Government does not envisage a new FTA proceeding to ratification without a debate first having taken place on it.”

“raises questions about her willingness to listen to the needs of farmers and the wider food industry.”

“We support too few shows, we don’t send enough business, our pavilions are often decent but overshadowed by bigger and better ones from our competitors.”

“There have been a number of times when she hasn’t been available, which would have been useful, and other Ministers have picked up the pieces.”

“part of the gains results from a reallocation of resources away from agriculture, forestry, and fishing”,

“almost nothing in the deal that will prevent an increase in imports of food produced well below the production standards required of UK farmers”.

“I don’t think we have ever done as well as this”.

“there is little in this deal to benefit British farmers”?

“both parties’ commitments to upholding our obligations under the Paris agreement, including limiting global warming to 1.5°.”-[Official Report, 1 December 2021; Vol. 704, c. 903.]

“does not contain commitments to ILO core conventions and an obligation for both parties to ratify and respect those agreements”,

“a much weaker commitment to just the ILO declaration”.

“Government has failed to secure any substantive concessions on the protection of UK Geographical Indications in Australia.”

“Our fears that the process adopted by the UK government in agreeing the Australia deal would set a dangerous precedent going forward have just been realised.”

“The Australian-UK trade deal has gone through its scrutiny phase without MPs having a chance to have their say on behalf of constituents.”

“there is fundamentally no reason why the UK Ministers need to hold this power in relation to devolved Scottish procurement.”

“I cannot think of another country that has significant agricultural production- so not the Hong Kongs or the Singapores of this world-liberalising fully in agriculture, even over what is almost a generation. … That is unusual.”

“very one sided, with little to no advantage for Scottish farmers”.

“it also gives those powers to UK Ministers without any requirement to obtain Welsh Ministers’ consent”.

“we will be opening our doors to significant extra volumes of imported food-whether or not produced to our own high standards”.

“Despite assurances that these sectors would be afforded some level of protection, we will see full liberalisation of dairy after just six years, sugar after eight years and beef and lamb after 15 years.”

“Just as concerningly, the UK has agreed to beef and lamb quotas which will favour imports of high-value cuts, despite this being the end of the market where British farmers tend to derive any value from their hard work. It’s also difficult to discern anything in this deal that will allow us to control imports of food produced below the standards legally required of British farmers”.

“Our cattle go 30 miles down the road and are slaughtered within two hours of leaving this farm. Cattle in Australia can travel up to 24 hours without food and water”.

“Prioritising a negotiating partner like Australia…with a lack of progress towards climate targets, with some fairly poor enforcement of environmental laws at the state level, and with the lack of enforceable commitments that we see in the FTA to progress on multilateral environmental agreements, it just feels that we have a set of multilateral environmental commitments on one side and we have a set of trade agreements on the other that pay lip service to those, but in practice they are contributing…to emissions.”

“restrictive and difficult to be actually brought into action that we don’t think it’s going to be possible to use”.

“I can confirm that we will have a world-leading scrutiny process…That will mean the International Trade Committee scrutinising a signed version of the deal and producing a report to Parliament”-[Official Report, 8 October 2020; Vol. 681, c. 1004.]

“renew and strengthen our bond of friendship, help bring greater prosperity to our peoples, and send a clear signal to the rest of the world that like-minded democracies are prepared to stand up for free trade and the rules underpinning international trade.”

Debate in Parliament |