Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) customs checks and (b) regulatory barriers in UK-EU trade on food prices.

Consumer food prices depend on a range of factors including import prices, domestic agricultural prices, domestic labour and manufacturing costs, and Sterling exchange rates. Some of these factors are influenced by our trading arrangements with other countries. Changes in food prices are dependent on changes in one or more of these factors.

One source of barrier facing UK-EU trade are SPS checks. The Government estimates the measures introduced through the Border Target Operating Model would have a minimal impact on consumer food price inflation of less than 0.2 percentage points in total over a 3-year period.

Final_Border_Target_Operating_Model.pdf