Food Drink Ireland is calling for measures to offset potential tariffs on its exports to the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit outcome.
The group representing Ireland’s food and drink industry was responding to an announcement on Tuesday (19 February) the UK plans to impose tariffs on some EU imports to protect the country’s domestic farming industry.
The planned measures, revealed by Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, helped allay concerns among the UK agri-food sector that Britain might consider a tariff-free system to boost trade if the country leaves the European Union without a deal on 29 March.
However, from Ireland’s standpoint, such actions risk hurting trade with the UK, and may also put jobs on the line.
Paul Kelly, the director of Food Drink Ireland (FDI), is calling for a so-called “tariff stabilisation fund” to offset the impact of possible levies on its food and drink exports to the UK. Gove said yesterday he will be making an announcement “shortly”.
“Direct and immediate support measures are needed to offset these tariffs,” Kelly said in a statement posted on the FDI website. “For the EUR4.5bn (US$5.1bn) of food and drink that Ireland exports to the UK, an additional EUR1.7bn in tariffs could be placed by the UK.
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By GlobalData“Tariffs are in effect a tax on trade and commerce. They would decimate much of Ireland’s agri-food exports to the UK. Tariffs flow back to central exchequers at a national and EU level, and must be recycled into a tariff stabilisation fund to offset serious damage to exports and job losses.”
