Wednesday, 20 June 2018 08:55

UK’s support will ice NZ’s trade cake

Written by 
EU ambassador Bernard Savage at Fieldays. EU ambassador Bernard Savage at Fieldays.

Britain's top diplomat in New Zealand strongly supports an NZ/EU free trade agreement.

Negotiations for this hoped-for FTA begin this week in Wellington.

UK High Commissioner Laura Clarke told Rural News that the UK has championed an NZ/EU free trade deal, seeing it as complementing such a deal with Britain.

She says when Britain is free to negotiate an FTA of its own (after Brexit), NZ will be top priority for an FTA deal.

Formal negotiations for an NZ/EU FTA will begin when a delegation headed by EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström arrives on Thursday. They will sit down with Trade Minister David Parker and other ministers. 

Officials from the EU and NZ will also meet then to set the agenda for detailed negotiations in Brussels in July.

UK High Commissioner Laura Clarke says Britain supports such a deal because of its strong links with NZ -- “people links, business links, trade links”.

“We want to make the most of those. We already have trade policy dialogue between the UK and NZ so we are looking to prepare the ground for a post-Brexit trade agreement with NZ,” she says.

Meanwhile, Ireland’s Ambassador to NZ, Breandan O Caollai, is also optimistic about NZ getting an FTA with the EU. 

The prospects of a deal are very good, he says. 

The EU depends on trading with other partners and, from Ireland’s point of view, trade with NZ will be important to Ireland after Brexit.  

Although some conflicts will arise, everyone gains more out of free trade agreements than they lose, he says. Free trade is the way the world global economy works and it works very well for Ireland and NZ.

“Issues will need to be ironed out, but the overall prospect favours an FTA; the opportunities will outweigh the difficulties and there is determination to make sure this FTA goes through,” he told Rural News. 

“The EU will be anxiously looking to other parts of the world to make sure the trade bloc maintains its strength.” 

Ambassador O Caollai says the whole future of agriculture in the EU is a very political issue, but he notes that Ireland is progressive and depends less on agriculture than previously. 

“Overall, the thrust of Ireland is for free trade.”

More like this

Helping our youth to be resilient

OPINION: The Rural Support Trust ran a dinner and debate at the National Fieldays last month. In tables of 10, over 540 people were wined and dined, including the Prime Minister, supported by ministers from around the country.

Editorial: Agri's mojo is back

OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.

Sticky situation

OPINION: The Federated Farmers rural advocacy hub at Fieldays has been touted as a great success.

NZ dairy industry needs FTAs quickly

OPINION: New Zealand's dairy exports have been the backbone of the country's economy for several decades, and exports remain buoyant despite pandemic-era disruptions and impending downturns in East Asia in the next few years.

Day out at Fieldays leads to ute win

Out of more than 80,000 entries, Daniel Neil from Piopio has been announced as the lucky winner of the Isuzu D-MAX LX Double Cab 4WD Ute in this year’s Fieldays Ute giveaway.

Featured

NZ household food waste falls again

Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.

Editorial: No joking matter

OPINION: Sir Lockwood Smith has clearly and succinctly defined what academic freedom is all about, the boundaries around it and the responsibility that goes with this privilege.

DairyNZ plantain trials cut nitrate leaching by 26%

DairyNZ says its plantain programme continues to deliver promising results, with new data confirming that modest levels of plantain in pastures reduce nitrogen leaching, offering farmers a practical, science-backed tool to meet environmental goals.

National

Machinery & Products

Tech might take time

Agritech Unleashed – a one-day event held recently at Mystery Creek, near Hamilton – focused on technology as an ‘enabler’…

John Deere acquires GUSS Automation

John Deere has announced the full acquisition of GUSS Automation, LLC, a globally recognised leader in supervised high-value crop autonomy,…

Fencing excellence celebrated

The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards,…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

A step too far

OPINION: For years, the ironically named Dr Mike Joy has used his position at Victoria University to wage an activist-style…

Save us from SAFE

OPINION: A mate of yours truly has had an absolute gutsful of the activist group SAFE.

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter