Gove assures public that food will not run out as no-deal campaign launches
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster says everyone will have the food they need after UK leaves EU
MICHAEL GOVE has clashed with retailers after claiming there would be “no shortages of fresh food” in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, who is in charge of no-deal preparations, said that while some food prices would increase in the event of no deal, “everyone will have the food they need”.
“There will be no shortages of fresh food,” he told The Andrew Marr Show.
When pressed on whether food prices would rise, Mr Gove said: “I think that there are a number of economic factors in play. Some prices may go up. Other prices will come down.”
However, his comments were criticised by the British Retail Consortium (BRC). “It is categorically untrue that the supply of fresh food will be unaffected under a no-deal Brexit,” a spokesman said. “The retail industry has been crystal clear in its communications with Government over the past 36 months that the availability of fresh foods will be impacted as a result of checks and delays at the border.”
Last night there was growing pressure on the Government to set out how no deal would impact the food supply.
Gordon Brown warned that “imports of almost a third of our food could be subject to disruption”.
The former prime minister said: “Uncertainty, restricted supplies and a weakened pound could raise prices. This would be a catastrophe for the food industry but also for family budgets, hospitals and those driven to food banks due to the decimation of our social security system.”
His comments were echoed by Tim Roache, general secretary of the GMB union, who added that the risks of no deal were “writ large when it comes to the food we eat”.
“It’s time for Boris Johnson to come clean,” he said. “With no deal, we’re likely to see a huge impact on everything
‘There are a number of economic factors. Some prices may go up. Other prices will come down’
from increased cost of the family shop and less choice on shelves, to job losses in food production and reduced nutrition in school and hospital meals.”
Mr Roache accused the Government of “walking us to a cliff edge” as they “seem more interested in ideological Tory party politicking than making sure we have a stable food supply”.
His remarks come as Sir Mark Sedwill was asked to review the Government’s £100million no-deal advertising campaign, amid concerns that information designed to “instill confidence … and reawaken enthusiasm for Brexit” could be applied to a general election campaign.
Meanwhile, doctors warned that a no-deal Brexit will have a devastating impact on the NHS as services prepare for the onslaught of winter pressures.
A report, published today by the British Medical Association and titled “A health service on the brink: dangers of a ‘no deal’ Brexit”, states the “NHS is already routinely overwhelmed by seasonal pressures” and how “the addition of another, complicating factor is certain to dramatically exacerbate that problem”.