Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether (a) lamb from mulesed sheep flocks and (b) pork from pigs reared in sow stalls will be permitted to enter the UK under the terms of the newly agreed tariff rate quotas as part of the UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
Answered by Greg Hands
The UK has secured ground-breaking provisions on Animal Welfare in its deal with Australia going further than any free trade agreement in force anywhere in the world, and will work with them closely – including internationally – to progress animal welfare standards.
Maintaining the UK’s high domestic standards and including protections for the agriculture industry is a red line in its trade negotiations. The UK already imports meat from Australia and imports will continue to meet the same UK food safety and biosecurity import standards as they did before.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether there is no conditionality on animal welfare standards in the newly agreed tariff rate quotas for (a) beef and (b) lamb as part of the UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement as agreed in principle; and whether she plans to raise that matter with her counterparts the Australian Government as part of the legal scrubbing of the texts before that Free Trade Agreement is fully agreed.
Answered by Greg Hands
The deal the UK has done is the first by Australia to ever include an Animal Welfare chapter as part of the package agreed. The UK has secured ground-breaking provisions on Animal Welfare going further than any free trade agreement (FTA) in force anywhere in the world.
This includes a non-regression clause, a first for an FTA. Securing a commitment to non-regression on animal welfare standards means that neither country can lower their animal welfare standards to undercut the other to effect trade.
The UK has also secured a comprehensive partnership to work with Australia, including internationally, to progress animal welfare in partnership with Australia.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will publish her Department’s policy process which ensures that the UK's animal welfare standards are not undermined when agreeing new free trade agreements.
Answered by Greg Hands
This Government is committed to building a transparent trade policy, which is subject to robust and appropriate parliamentary scrutiny. The Government has made and fulfilled commitments to transparency, including publishing objectives and economic scoping assessments for its proposed Free Trade Agreements. At the end of negotiations, the Government will lay a final impact assessment prior to ratification under the statutory framework provided for by the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.
In all trade negotiations the Government works with industry through our Trade Advisory Groups (TAG), Strategic Trade Advisory Groups (STAG) and the Trade and Agriculture Commission (TAC). The new TAC will report on whether new free trade agreements are consistent with maintaining UK statutory protections for animal and plant health, animal welfare and the environment.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps her Department will take to ensure that (a) Australian beef (i) from feedlots, (ii) injected with hormones and (iii) transported for over 24 hours will not enter the UK market as part of a UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement and (b) Australian beef imports do not undermine the UK's animal welfare standards given that those practices are illegal in the UK.
Answered by Greg Hands
All agri-food products imported into the UK under existing or future free trade agreements (FTA) will, as now, have to comply with UK’s import requirements. Hormone-treated beef is banned in the UK and will not be allowed to enter the UK market, and this will not change under any FTA.
As the Government has stated in its manifesto, in its trade negotiations the Government will not compromise on high environmental protection, animal welfare and food standards.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps her Department will take to ensure that (a) lamb from mulesed sheep flocks do not enter the UK as part of an Australia-UK Free Trade Agreement and (b) Australian lamb imports do not undermine the UK's animal welfare standards since that practice is illegal in the UK.
Answered by Greg Hands
All agri-food products imported into the UK under existing or future free trade agreements will, as now, have to comply with the UK’s import requirements. That will not change as part of an FTA. Australian animal welfare standards are higher, comparatively, than many countries around the world and the Australian industry has a long-standing commitment to phase out the practice of mulesing. The Government wants to see this happen.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether Defence and Security Equipment International event organisers Clarion have negotiated with the government to secure covid-19 quarantine exemptions for attendees of the Defence and Security Equipment International 2021.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government will not be able to grant a large-scale exemption for attendees at Defence and Security Equipment International 2021.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, when the new Trade and Agriculture Commission will be established; and when the Government plans to respond to the recommendations made by in Interim Trade and Agriculture Commission’s Final Report published in March 2021.
Answered by Greg Hands
On 7 June, the Department for International Trade (DIT) launched a call for expressions of interest for expert advisors to join the new Trade and Agriculture Commission. The Commission will be established in time to scrutinise the planned free trade agreement with Australia, to inform parliamentary scrutiny following signature.
DIT officials have been working closely with Whitehall Departments on the Government’s response to each of the 22 recommendations in the original Trade and Agriculture Commission’s report. The Government will publish the response as soon as it is ready.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the recent decision of the United States Administration to support a temporary suspension of intellectual property rights for covid-19 vaccines; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave earlier today (UIN: 448).
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will put on hold the approval of fossil fuel projects in UKEF’s pipeline until the new policy relating to the Prime Minister’s announcement on 12 December 2020 that the UK will end international finance for fossil fuels and support the sector’s transition to green technology and renewable energy is adopted.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The date of implementation of the new policy will be determined following the consultation that was launched on the same day. During the consultation period and ahead of the implementation of the new policy, the government will continue to apply current policy for all in-scope activities including proposals for high carbon projects, taking into consideration relevant factors including climate change. During this period, UK Export Finance (UKEF) will apply government’s current policy and continue to consider applications for support in the oil and gas sector.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of the implications of the Prime Minister’s announcement on 12 December 2020 that the UK will end international finance for fossil fuels for the approval of those fossil fuel projects already in UKEF’s pipeline.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The date of implementation of the new policy will be determined following the consultation that was launched on the same day. During the consultation period and ahead of the implementation of the new policy, the government will continue to apply current policy for all in-scope activities including proposals for high carbon projects, taking into consideration relevant factors including climate change. During this period, UK Export Finance (UKEF) will apply government’s current policy and continue to consider applications for support in the oil and gas sector.