PM urged to ensure £1.6bn trade agreement does not undermine industry with influx of lower-welfare meat
A trade deal with Gulf states could severely undermine British farmers by allowing the importation of low-welfare meat, the National Farmers’ Union has said in a letter to the prime minister.
The UK is close to signing a £1.6bn trade agreement with Gulf states – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – amid deep dissatisfaction from farming and animal welfare groups over an expected deal for food imports.
Human rights groups have also criticised the proposed deal for making no concrete provisions on workers’ rights, modern slavery or the environment.
Last week, the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, said there would be “chapters in that agreement” on human rights that were not legally binding. “You don’t have that in trade deals, but it’s important you have that ethos and that approach reflected,” he said.
