Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what progress has been made on ensuring that UK sugar cane refiners have improved access to cane sugar through free trade deals.

Colombia, Peru, Panama and the region of Central America have recently negotiated access to the EU sugar market through their Free Trade Agreements.

UK sugar cane refiners also benefit from duty free access to sugar imports from Least Developed Countries under the Everything But Arms Agreement (EBA) and the EU’s Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. From 2009 these agreements have increased the quantity of cane sugar which can be imported duty-free.

EPA negotiations between the EU and Southern Africa were recently concluded and we expect this EPA to provide UK sugar cane refiners with improved access to cane sugar from Swaziland and South Africa. In addition, the recently negotiated EU-Fiji EPA should also allow UK firms to continue to buy duty-free Fijian cane sugar.