Western Daily Press (Saturday)
> Sheep being judged at the 125th Devon County Show which made a welcome return after a 26-month absence due to the pandemic.
THE controversial trade deal struck between Britain and Australia will open up a “big opportunity” to secure export orders beyond Europe and worldwide, the Environment Secretary has said.
Speaking at the CLA Breakfast on the opening day of the 2021 Devon County Show, George Eustice said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) had “pushed very hard” to establish a number of safeguards to protect the nation’s agri-food producers.
There are widespread concerns within the industry that the deal the first to be negotiated from scratch since Brexit - could see the high standards adhered to by British farmers undermined by cheaper and lower quality imports.
But Mr Eustice, responding to a question posed by his colleague, MP Neil Parish, sought to reassure an audience of leading figures from across the region’s rural sector of his intentions for a “successful, vibrant, profitable” agricultural industry.
Mr Parish, a farmer himself and chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) Committee, said: “We are going to get more pressure now as trade deals are rolled out, with the Australian deal done and the New Zealand one not far away, I suspect. So there will be pressure on production and sales in this country.”
Mr Eustice said: “We have some sensitive sectors when it comes to trade deals; it’s why Defra pushed very hard and did get some safeguards in the Australia trade deal. There’s a special agricultural safeguard mechanism that Defra has designed, with a strict volume trigger which means from between 10 and 15 years if there’s any jump in any one year, then tariffs spring back in.
“We will also be seeking similar arrangements with other trading partners.”
On exports, Mr Eustice described the UK-Australia deal as a “big opportunity”, with the Environment Secretary adding that he is working with the AHDB to put together a “coherent five-year programme” on how the agreement will impact key agricultural sectors.
He continued: “We will be working on that plan and I think there’s a real opportunity to up our profile in some of those key overseas markets with agri-food councillors - I’m working with the Department for International Trade on that - and the AHDB is also taking a much more assertive role in getting that market access and securing those overseas orders.”
Mark Bridgeman, president of the CLA, added: “We’ve lived under the protection of the EU for a long time and haven’t really looked outward as much as we could, I think we need to be and we can be, because we’ve got a fantastic product to sell.”
Mr Eustice also used his speech to commend the organisers of the Devon County Show for having the courage to “nail their colours” and go ahead with the three-day event, which returned to Westpoint Exeter after a 26-month absence and runs until tomorrow.
We have some sensitive sectors when it comes to trade deals GEORGE EUSTICE