UK-EU agree Free Trade Agreement

A Free Trade Agreement has been agreed between the United Kingdom and European Union.

Responding to this news, President of the CLA Mark Bridgeman said:

“Whilst we are yet to see full details of the agreement, it seems clear that many farmers and rural business owners will be breathing a sigh of relief – both in the UK and the EU.

“The EU sells £33bn of agricultural products to the UK each year, which is almost £20bn more than we sell to them.  So it was right for the Prime Minister to negotiate hard, but a No Deal scenario would have likely been catastrophic for a number of farming sectors and it was vital that a deal was struck.

“If this deal includes zero tariffs and zero quotas for agricultural products, European consumers can carry on enjoying world class British products without any major increase in price.

“But a word of warning: we have seen this week the importance of keeping trade routes open, particularly between Dover and Calais.  Trade in perishable food is especially vulnerable to friction at ports – so it is now hugely important that UK and EU politicians continue to find ways to make trade between our markets as simple and low-friction as possible.”

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