In a detailed analysis of the implications of Brexit on food and farming, the Lib Dem ex-leader Nick Clegg argues for a deal that would combine membership of the Single Market with the freedom to forge separate trade deals
Organisations all over the UK are drawing up position papers on the implications of Brexit. This contribution from the Liberal Democrats lays out the case for what they consider to be the best outcome of the forthcoming negotiations.
Short of continued EU membership or becoming a full member of the European Free Trade Area, their preferred option would be a transitional deal modelled on Norway’s relationship with the EU, which combines membership of the Single Market with the freedom to strike trade deals with the rest of the world.
However, the paper finds that recent Ministerial statements about immigration, budgetary payments and EU jurisdiction suggest that the government is unlikely to seek such a deal -- even if the EU27 were open to negotiating of one. In any case, agriculture falls outside Norway’s conditional Single market membership.
Read the full statement here, and read more here about Sustain's ongoing work on post-Brexit food and farming.
Published Friday 21 October 2016
Sustain: Sustain The alliance for better food and farming advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, enrich society and culture and promote equity.
