Ms Badenoch stood her ground over insisting on cheese being traded under EU rules (Image: Getty)
Years of negotiations have ended in a post-Brexit trade deal between the UK and Canada collapsing after Kemi Badenoch refused to budge on rules for meat and cheese trade.
Both sides have exchanged barbed words after talks - which had lasted for more than two years - were halted yesterday. Britain is Canada’s third largest, single-country trading partner at over 46 billion Canadian dollars (￡27billion)-a-year.
After officials representing British Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch and Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng met yesterday, they agreed to suspend talks following eight rounds of discussions that resulted in a stalemate. Ms Ng has “been in touch” with Ms Badenoch “to express our disappointment,” the Telegraph reported.
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Business and Trade Committee Chair Liam Byrne accused the government of trying to create trade policies on "bluff and bluster".
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He said: "The Government has learned a lesson – trade negotiations are tough, even with close friends like Canada. There are difficult trade-offs and both sides have their minimum demands and red lines.”
"Hubris has now collided with cold, hard reality. Having tried to run trade policy on bluff and bluster, the Government is waking up to the fact that we can’t just churn out free trade agreements on a conveyor belt – unless we keep caving in and just give other countries everything they want every time."
Formal talks with Canada over a new trade began in 2022 to replace the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement, a temporary deal in place following Britain’s departure from the EU.
The UK pushed to extend one of the measures under that temporary agreement that would allow exports of British cheese to Canada to be subject to similar tariffs for those in the EU. Meanwhile, Canada has been pushing for more UK access to its beef and pork producers. It also wants the UK to relax a ban on beef treated with hormones.
Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales, said she was glad the UK government had not "given way" on hormone-treated beef.
Mr Trudeau had promised Canadian diary farmers not to introduce new free trade on dairy products (Image: Getty)
But officials on both sides have traded blows since the talks collapsed.
One senior Canadian government official anonymously told Politico: “We're trying to negotiate in good faith. But you know, you've got to come to the table and meet us halfway.”
Meanwhile, a UK Government official hit back: “Canada seems to have lost sight of the bigger picture – the British and Canadian businesses who do ￡26bn worth of trade a year and the people they employ.”
They added: “If Canada come back to table with a serious offer and desire to make progress we’re all ears, but in the meantime, we’re going to focus on other trade deals that deliver for UK businesses.”
Susannah Goshko, British High Commissioner to Canada, said the UK will “remain open to restoring talks with Canada in the future.”
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It represents the first time the UK has formally suspended talks with a trade partner since it left the EU’s trading scheme in 2021. The lack of agreement could lead to the price of British goods in Canada, such as cars, being driven up.
Justin Trudeau had told Canadian dairy farmers there would be no more foreign cheese important under its strict dairy supply management system after already making some concessions to the US in their own agreement.
“We are disappointed that negotiations with the UK are being paused,” a spokesperson for Ms Ng said in a statement.
“Their decision to continue to maintain market access barriers for our agriculture industry and unwillingness to reach a mutual agreement has only stalled negotiations,” the official said.
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Labour's shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: "This is very concerning news and another significant failure from the Conservatives to honour their promises.
"Rather than strengthening our trading position post-Brexit these failures have left us in a weaker position, particularly for the automotive sector.”
Former Environment Secretary George Eustice told the BBC the UK was "absolutely right to suspend negotiations", and that Canada should "accept the need to comply with British food standards".
Mr Eustice, who was critical of the UK-Australia trade deal, added the Government had to ensure that "any access granted for hormone free beef from Canada is matched with access for UK dairy into the Canadian market".
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A UK government spokesperson said: "We have always said we will only negotiate trade deals that deliver for the British people. And we reserve the right to pause negotiations with any country if progress is not being made.
"We remain open to restarting talks with Canada in the future to build a stronger trading relationship that benefits businesses and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic."
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