Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment the Government has made of the potential (a) environmental and (b) carbon impact of agricultural products entering the UK food market as a result of the proposed future UK-Australia trade deal.

HM Government has always been clear that any free trade agreement it signs will not threaten the UK’s ability to meet its environmental commitments or its membership of international environmental agreements. HM Government is seeking a deal with Australia that will further environmental and climate policy priorities and the UK will not compromise on high environmental protection.

HM Government carried out a public consultation and scoping assessment for its free trade agreement negotiation with Australia, which can be found on HM Government’s website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uks-approach-to-negotiating-a-free-trade-agreement-with-australia/uk-australia-free-trade-agreement-the-uks-strategic-approach. This preliminary scoping assessment considered illustrative scenarios and served as a point of reference when concluding the agreement in principle. Following the conclusion of negotiations, a full impact assessment will be published prior to implementation.