Comment - Australia Trade Deal

Alan Clarke, Chief Executive of Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) said:

“While trade deals are of vital significance to the UK moving forward post-Brexit, today’s agreed deal highlights the importance of transparent negotiations to ensure industry confidence. As the details of what has been agreed emerge, we are disappointed that representative bodies and wider parliaments were not able to conduct due diligence on what was being proposed.

“ This deal sets a new precedent has and we hope the statutory Trade and Agricultural Commission will be swiftly appointed to provide a greater level of scrutiny and consultation with any forthcoming negotiations.

“In Scotland, 92% of shoppers agree that red meat carrying the Scotch labels are produced more sustainably and to higher standards of animal welfare. We must ensure that consumer confidence is not compromised, or access to the domestic market is reduced for our producers, in the name of ‘free trade’.”