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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what trade protections will be in place on (1) egg, and (2) egg product, imports from countries outside the EU in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

The Government recognises the importance of eggs as an affordable and nutritious food for UK consumers. The UK egg industry has led the way in promoting high welfare standards, which the Government is committed to maintaining along with our existing high food standards for all imports.

If the UK leaves the EU without a deal on 12 April a temporary tariff regime would apply to all UK imports from countries with which no trading arrangement is in place, including the EU.

In setting that temporary regime the Government has sought to strike a balance between the impacts on consumers and producers. No duty would apply to eggs or egg products.

The temporary tariff policy would only apply for up to 12 months. During the 12 month period, the Government will work with industry and remain responsive to businesses and consumers. We will consider exceptional changes where clear evidence is provided against the criteria set out by the five principles of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018.

After this, the Government intends to introduce a long term tariff regime. This would be developed over the course of the next 12 months following an appropriate public consultation process with interested stakeholders, including the egg sector.