Dr Neil Hudson, MP for Penrith and The Border and Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Commons Select Committee member, has joined forces with other members of this cross-party Committee to table an amendment to the Agriculture Bill.
The Motion calls on Government to enshrine commitments to upholding food standards in law. It follows a Committee hearing with representatives from the agriculture, animal welfare and trade sectors, in which MPs took evidence on how the UK can ensure that imports under new trade agreements are produced to the high animal welfare and environmental standards expected by the public.
The amendment, reiterating the points made in a 2018 EFRA Committee report on the Agriculture Bill, will ensure that food products imported as part of any future trade deal meet or exceed British standards relating to production, animal welfare and the environment.
Dr Neil Hudson MP said ‘I strongly believe that food production standards and animal welfare have to be our top priority while negotiating new free trade deals in this sector with the EU and other countries. We must ensure that the food we eat is produced to the highest standards that are at least equivalent to our own UK animal welfare and environmental standards. We also have to ensure that our own farmers are protected by never allowing food production standards to be used as a leverage in future trade deals.’
The EFRA Committee Membership is as follows:
Neil Parish MP (Chair) (Conservative, Tiverton & Honiton); Geraint Davies MP (Labour, Swansea West); Dave Doogan MP (SNP, Angus); Rosie Duffield MP (Labour, Canterbury); Mary Glindon MP (Labour, North Tyneside); Dr Neil Hudson MP (Conservative, Penrith and The Border); Robbie Moore MP (Conservative, Keighley); Mrs Sheryll Murray MP (Conservative, South East Cornwall); Toby Perkins (Labour, Chesterfield); Julian Sturdy (Conservative, York Outer) and Derek Thomas (Conservative, St Ives).
