MEP for the Midlands North-West, Colm Markey, has called for an end to the punitive tariffs placed on the European agri-food sector by the United States. The tariffs stem from a 16-year disagreement over state aid provided to US-based airline manufacturer Boeing and its European competitor Airbus, but have extended well beyond the aviation sector.
“Recent years have seen a move to increased protectionism with barriers to free trade being put in place by the Trump administration. The inclusion of the agri-food sector in this dispute has resulted in pointless damage to our respective economies and a common-sense approach is needed to end these tit-for-tat tariffs. I believe that the new Biden administration could be a breath of fresh air that would provide an opportunity for a reversal of this trend”
Markey also pointed out that this ongoing trade dispute has had a significant impact on Ireland with much Irish trade getting caught in the crossfire.
“Since 2019, a 25% tariff has been placed on certain Irish products with Dairy being particularly affected. More recently, there have been tariffs placed on animal feed coming into Ireland which has affected the beef pork and poultry sectors. This has created additional pressure on top of the difficulties posed by Brexit and COVID-19.”
“Last week the United States Trade Representative imposed a further set of tariffs on EU producers, this time targeting cognac and non-sparkling wines. This is a worrying deterioration in US-EU relations that needs to be addressed immediately.”
“I am hopeful that this is just the last sting of a dying regime and that the upcoming change of US administration offers an opportunity to put the protectionist policies of the past behind us and to look towards beneficial trading arrangements that will open up the US market to the Irish agri-food sector.”
The Louthman is one of a number of MEPs who have written to the European Parliament urging the Commission to introduce urgent measures to help all sectors affected by tariffs placed on EU produce by the US, and to continue diplomatic efforts to reduce or remove them.
“Enough is enough. It’s time to rebuild relations with our friends in the United States and usher in an era of mutual prosperity under the new Biden administration.”