Staying power
More than 500 attendees gathered at the London Hilton, Park Lane, this week for the Food and Drink Federation’s (FDF) annual Food and Drink Industry Dinner.
Guest speaker Liz Truss, secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, used the opportunity to discuss the importance of a ‘remain’ decision at the EU referendum on 23 June – a day that will impact the food and drink industry more than any other economy, she told guests.
Truss highlighted the damage a ‘Brexit’ would do to the sector in terms of being shut out of the single market; something FDF director general Ian Wright has previously warned of. He notes that the EU has signed hundreds of international trade agreements, from which the UK draws market access. “I think it is naïve in the extreme for proponents of exit to believe that in any negotiation it would be possible to get a short route to Britain remaining within the terms of those agreements,” he comments. “If you leave the club, you lose its benefits. And one of the benefits of the club is all those trade agreements.”
The FDF has been consulting with its members on the issue and, mindful of the varied views on the referendum, has created an online resource for those working in, or with an interest in, food and drink manufacturing to use when considering their position.
Members can find details on the UK’s EU settlement covering areas such as economic governance, competitiveness, welfare and free movement that would take immediate effect should voters choose to remain, along with the process of EU withdrawal should voters choose to exit the EU.
Wright says, “71 per cent of FDF members who voted believe the interests of their business will be best served by the UK voting to remain in the EU. Members identified the single market, access to raw materials and the free movement of labour among key considerations in coming to their view.
“While FDF and many members take a view in favour of remain, we have pulled together these unbiased facts to help inform our industry colleagues and stakeholders’ decision making on the referendum.”
