The controversy over a trade deal between the UK and Australia centers on how much access Australian farmers would get to the UK market, an expert told Euronews.
It comes amid reports that London plans to finalize the deal by early June.
Die National Farmers Union says the deal will put UK agriculture at risk and “could cause the demise of many, many cattle and sheep farms”.
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Center for European Reform, an independent think tank, told Euronews that the debate at the heart of the UK government is about how much access should Australia be given.
“The big controversy is how much access Australian farmers offer.
“Some in the cabinet [hochrangige britische Minister] would prefer if the [Zugang] would be restricted, so the UK offer was something like “tariff quotas” which limited the amount of products that could be delivered duty free.
“Other parts of the government want duty and duty free trade, ie no tariffs, albeit for a long period of 15 years.
“It seems that the group that wants quota free trade won the day and I suppose the reason is because they need to get this done quickly.
“They want to do it before the G7 (in June). While it might be possible to negotiate slightly reduced rates, that would mean the negotiations would take longer, as would the EU and Australia negotiations on the exact same subject. “
The UK’s agreement to leave the European Union came into force on January 1, 2021. London has agreed deals to continue normal trade with numerous non-EU countries previously ruled by Britain’s membership in the bloc.
When asked why London is looking for a trade deal with such a distant country from an environmental point of view, Lowe replied, “You have to put it in the broader context of Britain’s exit from the European Union and the desire of this government to be a bastion of Free trade worldwide. In this context, a trade agreement with Australia has as much priority as another trade agreement with New Zealand.
“And I suppose there is a feeling in the (UK) government that it could be quite difficult to get things done in the future if they can’t get them done. I therefore assume that this will be completed in the near future. ” a few weeks. ”
Watch the full interview in the video player above.
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Those: Euronews
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