Trade deal with Canada falls apart amid dispute over beef and cheese exports

British cheese exports are considered one of the stumbling blocks in trade negotiations. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

A post-Brexit trade deal with Canada collapsed after more than two years of negotiations were stalled over a dispute over meat and cheese exports.

Diplomats suspended talks on Thursday , and each side accused the other of impeding progress.

>The main stumbling blocks in the deal are considered to be the export of British cheese and the import of beef from Canada to the UK.

Britain will only negotiate trade deals that «benefit» its people and reserves the right to suspend negotiations that are not moving forward, a government spokesman said on Thursday.

Canadian diplomats accused Britain of abandoning negotiations and allowing the agreement to extend the agreement between the two countries signed by Boris Johnson and Justin Trudeau to end.

“We remain open to resuming negotiations with Canada in the future to build a stronger trading relationship that benefits businesses and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic,” said Suzanne Goshko, British High Commissioner to Canada.

The UK has officially suspended negotiations with a trading partner for the first time since leaving the European Union trading scheme in 2021.

The UK's trading terms with Canada will now be less favorable than they were when the UK was a member. EU.

A Canadian official said Mary Ng, the trade minister, had “contacted” Kemi Badenoch, the business minister, “to express our disappointment.»

The government has begun formal negotiations with Canada over a new trade deal. agreement in 2022, which will replace the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement, an interim agreement in place after the UK leaves the EU.

The UK wanted to extend the measure under this temporary agreement, which expired on December 31, 2023, which allowed the export of British cheese to Canada at tariffs similar to those applied by EU members.

Government negotiators also wanted, for Canada to expand country of origin rules that allowed the country to export products containing EU parts.

Those terms expire at the end of March and the lack of agreement on new rules could now lead to an increase in the price of British goods such as cars in Canada unless the UK changes its supply chains.

A government source told the BBC BBC: “If Canada comes back to the table with a serious proposal and a desire to make progress, we will all listen.”

A Canadian official told Bloomberg that the timing of the measures was clear to both sides, but the UK had not followed through.

“We are disappointed that negotiations with the UK have been put on hold,” a spokesman for Ms Ng said.

“Their decision to continue to maintain market access barriers to our agricultural industry and reluctance to reach a mutual agreement have only stalled negotiations.” » the official said.

Britain is Canada's third-largest trading partner with more than C$46 billion (£27 billion) a year.

Canada pushes for greater access to the UK for its beef and pork producers, and also wants Britain to ease its ban on hormone-treated beef.

Mr Trudeau, Canada's prime minister, has meanwhile promised his dairy farmers will no longer import foreign cheese. as part of strict dairy supply management following concessions to the United States in the North American Free Trade Agreement.