The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) has announced that while it is helpful that the government has put on paper its plans for both future customs arrangements and addressing the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland and Ireland after Brexit, it is still concerned that these will not satisfy the association’s priorities for the agriculture and food industries.
UFU President, Barclay Bell, said it was important to remember that these were what the government hoped to achieve, and that there was a big difference between that and what might be acceptable in Brussels and to the EU-27.
Bell stated: “From the outset we have been very clear that our priorities were for both a border between Northern Ireland and the Republic that would not hinder the industry, and also a plan to ensure we can still sell food into the EU market.
While this is obviously the UK government’s initial position, for when negotiations with the EU on future arrangements commence, early reaction from Europe has suggested that this will not be acceptable to other EU member states.
“The government proposal for a transitional period to help manage any change is something that we have been pressing for but it has also committed to leaving the customs union which is the basis for countries outside accessing the EU market and then negotiating something very similar going forward and we cannot take it for granted that others will agree,” Bell added.
The president stressed that these are crucial issues for the Northern Ireland economy, with food and farming the biggest manufacturing sector employer.
He noted: “Long before the EU existed, farming operated and traded on an all-island basis. That has become even more the case, thanks to cross-border ownership of many key businesses.
Limiting their flexibility to trade would inevitably have a negative impact on our industry at every level.
“For that reason we will be watching carefully, and engaging with local and national politicians, as discussions between the UK and Brussels begin over these issues that are so crucial to the future of our industry.
“Thousands of jobs across Northern Ireland depend on a farming and food industry well-placed to trade within the island of Ireland, the EU and with the rest of the world,” Bell said.
Reaction to AFBI report
Giving its reaction to the recent report from the AFBI (Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute) on the implications of possible policy options for UK trade in food and agricultural products after Brexit, the UFU said that it is a sound foundation for a much-needed debate.
Also Read: Report unveiled on post-Brexit trade agreements and agricultureHowever, the UFU stressed that the options considered are theoretical, and that the final outcome is unlikely to be as clear-cut as the analysis.
UFU Chief Executive, Wesley Aston, spoke about the report, saying: “The three options are: a special deal with the EU; trading at World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariff rates; and a tariff-free import approach.
The final outcome could very well be a mix of these, and farmers need to look cautiously at the conclusions drawn.
The UFU noted that while the analysis of trade based on WTO tariff rates might look attractive on the surface to producers, in terms of increasing prices and keeping out some imports from Europe, the final outcome will be driven more by politics than economics.
Aston elaborated on this, saying: “We have warned from the outset that a big threat to agriculture would be imports from third countries, such as Brazil, where reduced agricultural tariffs could be used to buy a bigger industrial deal.
“Given that the government will not want food prices to rise for consumers, since that would undermine confidence in Brexit, farmers need to be cautious of backing the WTO option, just because it initially could, in theory, boost returns for the key farm commodities,” Aston added.
The UFU stressed that its comments do not take away from the AFBI report being a valuable and worthwhile focus on issues now moving up the political agenda in London.
