Brexit news: Asia taking UK to the cleaners on trade deals, says Labour after New Zealand agreement – The Independent

Boris Johnson and Jacinda Arden announce post-Brexit trade deal

Shadow trade secretary Emily Thornberry has accused the government of failing to secure trade deals that deliver for Britain, telling the Commons ministers are allowing the Asia-Pacific region to take the UK to the cleaners.

In a question to trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, Ms Thornberry said the newly announced UK-New Zealand free trade agreement (FTA) failed on every count to deliver benefits at home compared with those secured abroad.

There is a real problem that this is now the third Asia-Pacific agreement in a row - Japan, Australia and now New Zealand - where more than 80 per cent of the projected growth in trade, by [the trade] department, has gone to exporters in those other countries, and less than 20 per cent has gone to exports to the UK, she said.

The Labour MP also suggested the new deal would allow NZ farmers to undercut British farmers by shipping in meat produced to lower welfare standards.

Ms Trevelyan replied sternly that the Tories would never compromise standards for food coming into the UK, though her assurances have done little to assuage angry UK agricultural workers who say they arent so sure what opportunity the deal offers them.

Good morning, and welcome to The Independents rolling UK politics coverage. Stay tuned as we bring you reaction to the newly-announced UK-New Zealand trade deal, with international trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan set to take questions in the House of Commons at 9.30am.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 07:42

The UK has secured a trade agreement with New Zealand, the government has announced.

Sealed on a Zoom call between Boris Johnson and his Kiwi counterpart Jacinda Ardern on Wednesday, the so-called agreement-in-principle is a major step towards a full free trade agreement.

The deal is expected to offer similar provisions on areas like business travel to the Australia agreement, The Independent understands. Provisions easing travel requirements for contractual services suppliers who want to work in New Zealands market are a first for the country in any of its trade deals. In return, the UK has given New Zealand greater market access for agricultural products such as lamb.

Boris Johnson said the deal would cement a long friendship with New Zealand and noted that it followed the 9.7 billion in investment announced alongside Tuesdays Global Investment Summit, reports our economics editor Anna Isaac.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 07:52

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 07:53

Heres a schedule for all sessions set to take place in Westminster today.

9.30am International trade questions

10.30am Urgent questions/statements, including business questions

Backbench business debates on (i) Cop26 and limiting global temperature rises to 1.5C (ii) World Menopause Month

A short debate on Black History Month

1.30pm UKs climate progress: the Committee on Climate Changes 2021 progress report

11am Introduction of Lord Sedwill

11.10am Oral questions, including questions to Brexit minister Lord Frost

12.15pm Skills and Post-16 Education Bill - report stage (day 2)

A short debate on government plans to consult on measures to enhance the integrity of electoral processes

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 07:58

Lets get some news on the economy now. Borrowing in the UK hit 21.8bn in September, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) down from 28.8bn a year earlier but still the second highest September for borrowing since records began in 1993.

The governments interest payments bill on the huge debts built up during Covid stood at 4.8bn in September due to rising inflation, the ONS added. The latest figure is the same amount as September last year, despite borrowing levels in the month falling and tax receipts rising year-on-year. This is due to the Retail Price Index measure of inflation rising - which is linked to government interest payments - as the economy recovers.

Borrowing so far in this financial year has reached 108.1bn since the end of March - 101.2bn less than the same period a year ago, the data shows.

However, as a result of continued low tax receipts and high expenditure, the public sector borrowed 319.9bn between end of March and September - the equivalent to 14.9 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), the highest ratio since the end of the Second World War when it was 15.2 per cent.

Government debt now stands at 2.2tn at the end of September - around 95.5 per cent of GDP - the highest ratio since March 1963.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said:

Our recovery is well under way - with more employees on payrolls than ever before and the fastest forecast growth in the G7 this year - but the pandemic has had a huge impact on our economy and caused our debt levels to rise.

At the Budget and Spending Review next week I will set out how we will continue to support public services, businesses and jobs while keeping our public finances fit for the future.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 08:13

Priti Patel told the Commons last night the threat facing MPs has been elevated to substantial in the wake of the murder of Sir David Amess.

A review by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre linked to MI5 was launched after the Tory MP for Southend West was stabbed to death on Friday at a constituency surgery.

While it did not find any specific or imminent threat to MPs safety, the home secretary said the threat level to MPs was now deemed to be substantial and counterterror police will ensure the change is properly reflected in the operational posture.

While we do not see any information or intelligence which points to any credible or specific or imminent threat, I must update the House that the threat level facing members of parliament is now deemed to be substantial.

This is the same level as the current national threat to the United Kingdom as a whole, so I can assure the House that our world-class intelligence and security agencies and counterterror police will now ensure that this change is properly reflected in the operational posture.

Substantial means an attack is likely, while the lower level of moderate means an attack is possible, but not likely.

Patel delivered the update last night following concerns around the safety of MPs

(PA)

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 08:26

On that note, Matt Hancock has returned to the spotlight not, this time, with a job announcement only to be rejected in public later with a piece in The Times urging the government to tackle online abuse.

Teaming up with rival politician Rupa Huq, the pair said Sir David Amess murder should spark permanent change to tackle online hatred of politicians and set public debate on a better path.

In a co-authored Times column, the pair said Parliament had been shocked to its core over veteran MPs death, and that they had also been disgusted to see MP Michael Gove harassed in public only days later.

They said democracy cannot survive a continuing coarsening of public debate and called on social media companies - the creators of algorithms that feed people content that only reinforces what they already think - to bear responsibility. They also shone a light on the difficulty of enforcing libel laws in the internet age.

It is female politicians, particularly from ethnic minority backgrounds, who receive the worst online abuse, they said, but white men were not immune, citing one social media post calling for Mr Hancock to be executed live on BBC1.

Acknowledging the challenge ahead, they wrote:

It is hard to prove that a single post by a social media user with a few hundred followers causes significant damage, but when that post is shared and added to by hundreds or thousands of others, it has the same effect as a defamatory newspaper piece in days gone by.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 08:34

Health minister Edward Argar has claimed the NHS is under sustainable pressure despite the alarm being raise by a major doctors union urging the government to introduce measures to control the spread of Covid.

It comes after Sajid Javid, the health secretary, suggested the country could see 100,000 cases a day, but resisted demands to implement plan B, which includes advice to work from home, making face masks mandatory and vaccine passports, reports our political correspondent Ashley Cowburn.

Defending the governments approach this morning, Mr Argar told Sky News on Thursday: Well we continue as you expect to look at all the data. The NHS while under huge pressure at the moment, and I pay tribute to all those working in it, is that its sustainable pressure at the moment.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 08:41

A huge leak of documents has revealed countries are trying to change a crucial scientific report on how to tackle climate change.

Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia are among the nations asking UN officials to play down the need to move rapidly away from fossil fuels, according to BBC News who published the leak.

It also shows some wealthy nations are questioning paying more to poorer states to move to greener technologies.

The lobbying comes at a particularly crucial time for the government, with just 10 days to go until the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow at which world leaders will be asked to make significant commitments to slow down climate change and keep global warming to 1.5C.

The comments from governments the BBC claims to have read are overwhelmingly designed to be constructive and to improve the quality of the final report, the news service says.

Justin Rowlatt, the BBCs climate editor, had the following to say on Breakfast earlier:

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 08:51

Health minister Edward Argar claimed today the original plan for tackling Covid is still working, despite cases rising on Wednesday to levels last seen in March.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4s Today programme, he said:

What Sajid [Javid] has highlighted now is that we are facing a challenging period winter.

People are indoors, infection rates are rising, and I think what hes done is levelled early with people, here is what were seeing, but there are ways you can... the single biggest way you can impact on that and mitigate it is to have the jabs, thats the thing.

Plan A in that sense, if you want to call it that, is still working. But what he highlighted is its a race - and Ive used this phrase with you, I think, before when Ive been on your programme - it is a race between the vaccines, and getting those in peoples arms, and the virus.

Were still winning that race at the moment, but its narrowing, that lead is narrowing. So what we need to do is that sprint for the line.

Sam Hancock21 October 2021 09:11

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Brexit news: Asia taking UK to the cleaners on trade deals, says Labour after New Zealand agreement - The Independent