9.ª legislatura Brian MONTEITH

Brexit Party MEPs abstained on this legislative consent procedure proposal. The EU bans beef being imported from the USA, which has been treated with hormones, but allows a quota of non-hormone treated beef form the USA being imported. This has been a long standing trade dispute which has led to tariffs and counter measures between the two parties for decades. This proposal is a final agreement between the EU & USA, which will maintain the EU ban on hormone treated beef imports, but will give the USA a greater share of the non-hormone treated beef imports. This will mean there will be a reduction of beef imports to the EU from Australia, Uruguay and Argentina. While we don’t want to legitimise the EU negotiating the UKs trade policy, it is up to the EU to decide their own tariffs once we finally leave.

Brexit Party MEPs voted against this non-legislative resolution. The EU bans the import of beef from the USA which has been treated with hormones, but allows a quota of non-hormone-treated beef from the USA to be imported. This has been a long-standing trade dispute which has led to tariffs and countermeasures between the two parties for decades. This non-binding resolution is attached to a previous vote on the same issue. We opposed this resolution as it seeks to politicalise trade and calls on the EU to take more action in the world.

The Brexit Party abstained on this non-legislative resolution. We reject the development of an EU foreign policy and attempted interference by the European Union abroad and within third states. Specifically on the judgement of whether or not the ending of President Morales’ term constitutes a coup d’état is a political judgement, one which the EU should not be making. We remain concerned by ongoing reports of breaches of human rights and welcome steps towards the return of Bolivia to a fully functioning democracy with free and fair elections.