FDF welcomes Brexit deal on EU workers
27 Mar 2018
Food and Drink Federation director general Ian Wright has welcomed guarantees provided in the Brexit transition agreement for EU workers in Britain.
The 27 other member states of the union endorsed last week’s agreement governing the period from the UK’s formal departure in March 2019 up to December 2020.
While Britain will be free to make its own trade deals, all EU citizens arriving in the country in the period will have the same rights as those who entered the country in the pre-Brexit period.
The FDF has been a leading advocate for a deal that would provide access to EU labour, which comprises a large minority of workers in the sector.
it is great news that our 117,000 European workers and their families can have confidence about their future and that no manufacturer will face a cliff edge in recruiting and retaining talent
Ian Wright, director general, FDF
“The UK’s 7,000 food and drink manufacturers will welcome the certainty today’s agreement brings. As the first business group to call for the right to remain for EU citizens, it is great news that our 117,000 European workers and their families can have confidence about their future and that no manufacturer will face a cliff edge in recruiting and retaining talent,” remarked Wright.
“A time-limited transition period has been at the top of FDF’s negotiation wish list. We are very pleased that the agreement also protects manufacturers’ access to EU third country trade deals, worth £2.3 billion to our industry.”
However, he warned that, with 70% of his members' trade deriving from EU states, it was essential a balance was struck between creating new markets and maintaining existing ones.
Wright added: “Every day raw materials and finished products travel seamlessly over the Channel and the Irish Sea. Until the appropriate technological solutions can be found for the island of Ireland, then it is right to leave the option of a regulatory backstop on the table.
“We need a mechanism to openly assess readiness through the 21 months in consultation with sector representative groups, with the option to extend this period where necessary, depending how quickly the nature of our future trading relationship with the EU is confirmed.”
