UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement

Andrew Rosindell Excerpts

Wednesday 5th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

I cannot speak for my colleagues in DEFRA, but I know that progress on the environmental land management schemes framework is developing at pace. That framework will be a really important tool to help our farmers make the right choices, not only about the food production that they choose to do, but about managing the environment that they are stewarding on our behalf as we move forward and—to the question of the hon. Member for Bristol East (Kerry McCarthy) earlier—make sure that we look after the biodiversity and the nature that surrounds us.

However, I disagree with the right hon. Gentleman that this deal is bad for his farmers, because there are great opportunities coming. As I mentioned earlier, the release of the lamb imports plan for the US is opening up a whole new series of markets, and as we continue to do more trade deals and with the opportunities in Asia-Pacific, our amazing farmers will have opportunities to move into new markets that they have not had before. However, as I will continue to say and as the right hon. Gentleman knows, there is nothing like eating local. Our farmers continue to advertise and very successfully sell their products to the British markets too, and I know that my colleagues in DEFRA work very closely with farming groups to help ensure that happens.

[Andrew Rosindell (Romford) (Con)]

What a great way to start 2022. I commend not only the Secretary of State and her predecessor, but the Australian high commissioner, the hon. George Brandis, who has been so passionate about the relationship between the two nations, and strongly support all the work that has gone on to make today possible and have this fantastic trade deal become reality. Is it not fantastic that this deal has been achieved? We were told that it would take 10 years to do any trade deal, and this has been done in a matter of just over a year. Does the Secretary of State agree that this is a golden opportunity in this year of the Queen’s platinum jubilee also to extend more trade and more co-operation to the Commonwealth, and other realms and territories? Please let us not forget that trade is not just within the United Kingdom; we have territories and dependencies for which we are also responsible, so can we make that a priority in the coming years?

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

I concur absolutely with my hon. Friend’s comments that the high commissioner, George Brandis, has been a huge advocate and supporter of the deal and indeed has assisted in some of the logistics challenges of carrying out, using mostly virtual methods, the very complex trade negotiations through different time zones to make sure that we were able to deliver this in an incredibly timely manner. That is reflected in the fact that both countries are very keen to build on their very close and long-standing relationships with what is one of the most liberalising trade deals that exists.