You don't need a trade agreement in order to be able to trade - William Dartmouth

“So, the thing about trade agreements is, and I wish the British government understood this, you don't need a trade agreement in order to be able to trade.” William Dartmouth, UKIP MEP.

European Parliament, Brussels, 25 September 2017. Item on Agenda: 14.0 (INTA/8/10265) Recommendation to the Council on the proposed negotiating mandate for trade negotiations with Australia. Source: UKIP MEPs YouTube channel.

Transcript:

I'm just going to make a couple of historical, just sort of contextual points about the context, very very quickly. First of all, in this committee we talk a lot of time about trade agreements, that's kind of what we do. But I would just like to make the point that Australia has got no trade agreement with European Union. And incidentally no freedom of movement with European Union. Nonetheless, the UK is the largest market for wine produced in Australia. And wine produced in Australia and in UK is fully competitive with wine produced in Germany, in France, in Spain, even in Italy, without a trade agreement. So, the thing about trade agreements is, and I wish the British government understood this, you don't need a trade agreement in order to be able to trade.

The second contextual historical point which I make, which is quite interesting, is that of course the UK had a trade agreement with Australia. We had a trade agreement with New Zealand. And we turned our backs on those trade agreements, we tore them up when we joined the European Union in 1975.

Now, there are many distinguished representatives of the Left here. And that had a consequence. It had a direct consequence on poorer people. And the consequence which it had on poorer people was that the UK consumer, including the less well off people, instead of paying World prices for food, had to pay EU prices for food, what were then Common Market prices for food. And those prices are much much higher. And of course it's entirely regressive. I'm going to leave this with a question. When you look at this agreement, and all we are talking about is agriculture, which has come from the distinguished colleagues, do please bear in mind that the people who suffer from expensive food prices are the less well off people in society. And it's mysterious that these distinguished, eloquent, and articulate representatives of the Left just completely ignore this.

Anyway, I wish they wouldn't. And I hope that those three points that I made would be worthy of the colleagues' consideration.