Farrell tells farmers EU deal is the only one on offer
Trade Minister Don Farrell says the EU deal is final. Red meat access may be renegotiated in five years.
Trade Minister Don Farrell spoke at a National Farmers' Federation meeting. He said there is no better EU trade deal available.
He urged farm leaders to drop their demand that Parliament reject the agreement. Key farm industries have complained about the deal.
The agreement reached in March offered little improvement over earlier terms. Parliament rejected those same terms three years ago.
Red meat quotas were a main concern. Farrell said some farm members want to use the new market access.
They told him this privately. "You don't have to export under this agreement, but please don't block it for those who can and want to," he said.
Farrell brought back $20 billion in trade lost with China under the previous government. He secured access for barley, hay, beef and crayfish.
He said red meat access may be renegotiated in five years. The agreement would generate $10 billion in new trade in its first year.
It would rise to $30 billion.
- Reached in March
- Agreement timeframe
- Possible in five years
- Red meat renegotiation
- $10 billion
- Trade value year one
- $30 billion
- Long-term trade value
Why it mattersThe farm lobby has been pushing Parliament to reject the deal. But Farrell's stance suggests the government will go ahead anyway. This affects market access for Australian agriculture.
AustraliaFarmers, particularly red meat producers, face uncertainty about export opportunities to Europe, while other agricultural sectors like vegetable growers welcome tariff reductions.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 41 min ago
