Thursday, January 25, 2024

Britain walks on trade talks


 

British negotiators have walked out of trade talks with Canada, reportedly because they can’t get access to the Canadian cheese market.


Brtiain was able to export cheeses to Canada as part of the European Union, but lost that a few years after it withdrew from the European Union.


It had interim access to continue marketing cheeses to Canada, but that has now expired.


Canadian dairy farmers gained a promise from the Canadian government that it will not yield any more access to dairy markets in future trade deals.


Both sides are dug in.


"We have always said we will only negotiate trade deals that deliver for the British people. And we reserve the right to pause negotiations with any country if progress is not being made," a U.K. government spokesperson told CBC News.


Canada’s International Trade Minister Mary Ng said "we will not negotiate an agreement that is not good for Canadians and not good for our Canadian business, farmers and workers."


She described the negotiations as “paused”.