Farmers set to be losers in post-brexit deals with US

FARMERS stand to be the biggest losers in a post-brexit trade deal with America. In a rush to secure a deal with the US, agriculture may be traded for good deals for the services sector, MPS on the International Trade committee said in a report to the Commons.

Angus Macneil, who chaired the committee, warned the Government not to make a “catastrophic error” by rushing into negotiations with the US without a full “trade strategy” in place.

Deals with the US could mean compromises possibly including a “agriculture for services” trade-off. Services make up 80 per cent of Britain’s GDP and 44 per cent of its exports.

The committee urged the Government to publish a trade policy strategy before beginning negotiations with the US. The policy should “articulate its vision for how the UK will operate as an independent trading nation” and set out Britain’s objectives while addressing how different sectors might be affected,” it said.

“The economic benefits of a US deal are presently unproven,” Mr Macneil added. “Even in ideal circumstances, trade-offs will have to be made to get a comprehensive US deal. Without a trade strategy, we have no idea what these may be. Will the Government, in their rush to secure the future of the UK services sector, sacrifice UK agriculture or manufacturing? What will the Government do to help industries if they are negatively affected?”

MPS also warned of the effect a trade deal with the US could have on the NHS.

American companies are “particularly keen to gain access to the public health systems of Europe”, according to evidence presented to the committee.

“Universal access to healthcare is an accepted fact of life in the UK and must not be compromised by a UK-US agreement,” the committee said.

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The contribution to Britain’s gross domestic product made by the services sector, which also accounts for 44 per cent of UK exports