SCOTLAND should be developing its own trade policy right now, the SNP front-bencher Hannah Bardell told a fringe meeting at her party’s annual conference.
The Livingston MP, who is SNP trade spokeswoman at Westminster, was speaking at a meeting discussing a potential UK trade deal with the United States.
UK Trade Secretary Liam Fox had preliminary talks across the Atlantic in July to try to lay the foundations for a future deal. Bardell was responding to Nick Dearden, director of the campaign group Global Justice Now, which was hosting the event.
Dearden said trade deals could benefit people if they promised to maintain high standards in areas such as workers rights, food safety, environmental protections,
But the audience heard the challenge in a future UK-US trade deal was that the US has lower regulations in most areas, including over food safety which for instance allows chicken carcases to be washed in chlorine – a process not allowed in the EU. The challenge would be to keep UK standards and not accept lower US ones. Dearden suggested trade deals which did not sacrifice such standards were possible.
He said: “The problem for us is that the left hasn’t put forward a clear enough conception of what good trade could look like.
“And we need to do this because if we don’t the likes of Trump, Le Pen and Farage will convince people they represent the interests of ordinary working people.
“We know that they don’t, of course. Their vision is the vision of the bully. Rip up the rules so that we come out on top. I believe we can convince people of a different sort of economy based on internationalism, redistribution and solidarity ... where trade deals clearly state they are subservient to climate and human rights obligations ... a just form of trade. A fair form of trade. We want SNP to take a leading role in this discussion.”
Bardell said she wanted the SNP to develop their own policies on trade, and also on immigration, despite both areas currently being reserved. She also spelt out her fears over the impact a hard Brexit would have on Scotland’s economy.
Stephen Smellie, of Unison Scotland, said post Brexit the UK would be starting trade talks from a weak position and was likely to secure a “bad deal”.
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