Responding to the publication of ‘Green Trade’ by the
Government’s Board of Trade, chaired by , Labour’s
Shadow International Trade Secretary, , said:
“This 52-page report from the Board of Trade contains 7 pages of
pictures, and just 2 of recommendations. On some of the most
important current issues relating to trade and the environment –
imported carbon, carbon border taxes, due diligence, and investor
state dispute settlement – the report seeks either to shut down
debate, or ignore the issues entirely.
“At any time, a report as thin, weak and full of holes as this
one would look shockingly inadequate and complacent in the face
of the climate crisis. But it is almost 100 days until the COP
summit will begin in Glasgow, and if the Government thinks a
report like this amounts to global leadership on climate change,
then we risk wasting this crucial opportunity before it has even
started.”
Labour has highlighted ten areas where the Board of Trade fails
the test of global climate leadership:
1. No mention of ISDS: World leaders from Joe
Biden to Jacinda Ardern have warned of the constraints that
Investor State Dispute clauses in trade agreements can place on
the ability of countries to take effective action to reach net
zero, yet the issue goes entirely ignored in the Board’s report.
2. No alarm over Imported
Carbon: The report barely mentions the carbon emissions
produced overseas to service our country’s need for imported
goods, despite the fact that the UK has the highest carbon
emissions per capita resulting from imports among the G7
countries.
3. No urgency on Carbon Leakage: The report says
there is ‘limited evidence’ of corporations moving production
overseas to avoid the measures being taken in countries like the
UK to reach net zero, that it is ‘mainly a forward-looking risk’,
and that any solution to the issue ‘will take time’.
4. No debate on Carbon Border Tax: The most
pressing debate in current environmental trade policy – proposed
carbon border taxes to tackle offshoring and leakage – is given
one passing mention in the entire report, despite the EU just
announcing their plans and the US actively considering theirs.
5. No discussion on Due Diligence: The report
notes the UK’s participation in international fora on
deforestation, but avoids any discussion of the ‘due diligence’
law before Parliament, whether about the merits of requiring
companies to police their supply chains, or the flaws in that
particular law.
6. No rules and no enforcement: Instead of new
laws, the report repeatedly advocates reliance on market forces
and voluntary actions by companies to deal with the climate
crisis, even on the adoption of international product standards
for goods with significant environmental impacts.
7. No action on Food Emissions: The report
dismisses the concept of ‘food miles’, and publishes a chart
showing that beef production in Australia, the US, Canada and
Brazil all cause more emissions than the UK, with no reference to
the UK’s proposed deals eliminating tariffs on their beef
exports.
8. No delivery on Free Trade Agreements: The
report talks of the importance of agreeing ‘best in class’ FTAs
to promote environmental goals, but cannot point to a single
example of what it means among the UK’s deals since 2019 with 67
countries, with the EU, and now with Australia.
9. No action on Green Technology: Again, the
report discusses using FTAs to increase trade in green goods and
technology, despite the fact that none of the UK’s dozens of
trade agreements since 2019 have delivered any specific
improvements in this area whatsoever.
10. No comment on ACCTS: The report mentions the
New Zealand-led Agreement on Climate Change, Trade and
Sustainability (ACCTS), which is working to break down barriers
to green trade, but offers no view on the calls from Labour and
others for the UK to join the agreement.
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. The Board of Trade’s Report is published here:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-trade-report-argues-uk-should-reject-green-protectionism-and-harness-free-market-to-address-climate-crisis
