Unite backs calls to protect UK sugar industry

10 April 2008

Unite, along with the National Farmers Union, British Sugar plc, the Least Developed Countries and the ACP Sugar Protocol Countries, have written to the Prime Minister, the Treasury, Defra, DFID and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.

The main recommendations to the UK Government in the world trade negotiations are:

That the "Special Safeguard Clause" must be maintained for sugar to protect the industry from world market volatility
and Sugar should be treated as a "Preference Erosion" product, with the full 15 year transition for tariff cuts allowed in the draft
Brian Revell, Unite national organiser for food and agriculture, said: "There are serious concerns that the European Commission backed by the UK government, will undermine the current investment plans in the sugar industry, which were made in response to the recent introduction of the extremely radical European sugar reforms.

It is our view that the EU Commission and the UK government are going against their commitments to ensure that the WTO deal is consistent with the European sugar reform outcome, which aims to protect the industry from volatility on the world sugar market.

 “Further cuts in import duties will put sugar’s Special Safeguard Clause at risk. It will have serious consequences for the UK and developing countries. Investment will suffer, even more jobs will be put at risk, and recent trade benefits for developing countries will be rendered valueless.”