Independent report

10 February 2022 : Trade and Agriculture Commission update

Published 10 February 2022

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On 17 December 2021, the Secretary of State for International Trade commissioned the Trade and Agriculture Commission (TAC) to provide advice on whether provisions in the UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) that relate to trade in agricultural products may affect the maintenance of UK regulatory standards in relation to:

a) Animal or plant life or health;

b) Animal welfare; and

c) Environmental protection.

Since being commissioned to provide this advice, the Trade and Agriculture Commission has held four meetings. The main outcomes of these meetings are as follows:

  • The TAC has decided to focus on areas in which the FTA is likely to change the factual and legal position for the UK compared to the existing World Trade Organisation (WTO) baseline
  • Accordingly, the TAC has been working on identifying those products which are more likely to be traded at an increased rate under the FTA, and has on this basis been focusing on UK standards most applicable to those products
  • The TAC has also been examining those provisions in the UK-Australia FTA which are most relevant to those standards, namely the chapters on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (Ch 6), Technical Barriers to Trade (Ch 7 and Annex 7A), Environment (Ch 22), Animal Welfare (Ch 26), Technical Barriers to Trade (Ch 7 and Annex 7A), and Exceptions (Ch 31). In this regard, the TAC has been focusing on provisions that change the UK’s legal position when compared to WTO law

The TAC also launched a public consultation on 10 January. The consultation period is drawing to a close shortly; the deadline is 11:59pm on Friday 11 February.

The TAC is due to provide its advice to the Secretary of State by the deadline of 31 March.

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