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Politics
Andrew Sparrow

Gove says chlorinated chicken would be banned under any UK-US trade deal - Politics live

Michael Gove, the environment secretary.
Michael Gove, the environment secretary. Photograph: Victoria Jones/PA

Afternoon summary

  • Philip Hammond, the chancellor, has said that consumers are suffering “painful” consequences because of the fall in the value of the pound after the Brexit vote last summer. (See 3.35pm.)
  • John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, has reportedly floated the prospect of Labour trying to keep the UK in the single market. Until now this is an option that the Labour leadership has ruled out. (See 3.02pm.)

That’s all from me for today - and for the next few weeks.

Have a great summer.

After the supreme court judgement on tribunal fees the lawyer Adam Wagner posted this on Twitter.

My colleague Jessica Elgot has produced a good guide to other Chris Grayling initiatives that have been reversed. (Grayling is now transport secretary, but was justice secretary when tribunal fees were introduced.)

Tim Montgomerie, the ConservativeHome founder, launched a new website next week. It is called UnHerd and, according to the launch press release, “it will argue that the disproportionate power of the rolling news industry is weakening western nations by encouraging dangerous short-termism amongst politicians, business leaders and other public figures.”

Well, as a minor cog in the rolling news industry, I have some good news for Montgomerie. Politics Live will (within the next hour) be going off air for the summer. There will be no daily Guardian politics blog. In its absence, the burden of bringing down western civilisation will have to fall back on the shoulders of Islamic State, climate change, the Kremlin, social media, neoliberalism, Donald Trump and Love Island. I’m sure they’ll cope with out me.

And I hope you will too. The Guardian will still be covering all the political news (in so far as there is any in August) and a good place to find it is here, on the main politics page. Politics Live will come back full-time on Monday 4 September, the day before the Commons resumes. There may be some politics live blogs in the meantime, if there is enough news on a particular day to keep one going, but generally the blog will be in recess.

I hope you all have a very good summer and that you all get a good break. And if you are missing the blog, you could always read the rest of the Guardian. Or a good book. Or even UnHerd, which actually looks quite good ...

Philip Hammond, the chancellor, has said that consumers are suffering “painful” consequences because of the fall in the value of the pound after the Brexit vote last summer. He told ITV in an interview:

Consumers are being affected by the inflation that was created by the depreciation of the currency in the autumn of last year. That will pass through the economy, but I absolutely recognise it’s painful as it’s passing through the economy.

He also said that he hoped there would be an agreement with the EU on a transitional deal “as early as possible” after the Brexit talks move on to the second stage (when a future trade deal gets discussed), which he said he hoped would happen in September or October.

Philip Hammond visiting IBM’s offices on the South Bank, London, earlier today.
Philip Hammond visiting IBM’s offices on the South Bank, London, earlier today. Photograph: POOL/Reuters

John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, has been campaigning in Wales today. As well as saying Labour would not rule out staying in the single market (see 3.02pm), he also claimed that that Jeremy Corbyn and Carwyn Jones, the Labour Welsh first minister, were “on the same page” on Brexit - even though Jones strongly backs the UK staying in the single market, while Corbyn (until today, at least) has opposed the idea.

McDonnell 'not ruling out' Labour keeping UK in single market, BBC reports

John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, has floated the prospect of Labour trying to keep the UK in the single market, the BBC’s Norman Smith reports.

This is a significant shift. In a speech in April setting out Labour’s Brexit policy Sir Keir Starmer spoke about the party wanting to retain the benefits of the single market. But he also argued that, unless the single market changed, the UK would have to leave under Labour’s plans because “membership of the single market is incompatible with our clarity about the fact that freedom of movement rules have to change”. (By contrast, he said the option of Labour keeping the UK in the customs union was still “on the table”.) At the weekend Jeremy Corbyn said that Labour would leave the single market. And last month Corbyn event sacked three frontbenchers who defied the Labour whip and voted for Chuka Umunna’s amendment to the Queen’s speech saying the UK should stay in the single market.

Lunchtime summary

  • Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, has said the government does not want to see a cut in the numbers of migrants coming to work in the tech industry as a result of Brexit. Speaking on a visit to a tech hub in Sydney, he said the government wanted to ensure that “people who have energy and talent and ideas can still come to the UK”. He added:

Of course there will be pressures to try to constrain the overall immigration numbers because they are very, very high at the moment. But that does not mean we want to see a reduction in the number of tech people who come to London.

Boris Johnson (centre, second right) speaks with PayDock CEO Robert Lincolne (centre, left), British consul-general Michael Ward (centre, second left) and Head of Tyro Fintech Hub Andrew Corbett-Jones (centre, right), during a visit to the Tyro Fintech technology Hub in Sydney.
Boris Johnson (centre, second right) speaks with PayDock CEO Robert Lincolne (centre, left), British consul-general Michael Ward (centre, second left) and Head of Tyro Fintech Hub Andrew Corbett-Jones (centre, right), during a visit to the Tyro Fintech technology Hub in Sydney. Photograph: William West/AP

In an article in the Daily Telegraph (paywall) Nigel Farage, the former Ukip leader, claims that Labour is now offering a “tougher line” on Brexit and immigration than the government. He writes:

A new Cabinet consensus around transitional arrangements has been unveiled. Under it, open borders will be maintained for a minimum of two years after we finally leave the EU in 2019. Britain will have to wait until at least 2021 – five years after the Brexit referendum – to take back control. Millions who voted Leave will feel cheated, and rightly so: it’s clear the great Brexit betrayal has begun ...

ove argues that future migration policy should be shaped by the interests of our economy. Unsurprisingly, our Remain Chancellor, Philip Hammond, agrees, while also apparently believing Britain should stay in the single market post-Brexit. The old alliance of big business and a Tory government is booming again ...

It is strange to think that Jeremy Corbyn is now offering a tougher line than the government when he says he would ban the wholesale importation of low-skilled EU workers. Is this a ploy to damage Theresa May, much as the late Labour leader John Smith cynically opposed the Maastricht treaty in 1992?

Even the shadow trade secretary and staunch remainer, Barry Gardiner, acknowledges that a “key objective” of Brexit was to “have control over our borders”. He says that unless this objective, and others, are met, “we will find it difficult to justify the final result to the 52 per cent who voted Leave”. Mr Gardiner is absolutely right.

Angela Crawley, the SNP’s equalities spokeswoman, has welcomed the supreme court judgement outlawing employment tribunal fees. She said:

This is a hugely welcome judgement against the Tory government’s unfair and unlawful employment tribunal fees, which prevented workers getting access to the justice they deserve.

The SNP strongly opposed the introduction of fees from the start – it was always clear that they would act as a huge barrier to justice for many workers who have faced unfair treatment or discrimination, and the evidence has sadly proven this to be the case.

The SNP rightly committed to scrapping these fees in Scotland at the earliest opportunity, and the Tory government will now be forced to do so – and forced to repay those claimants who were wrongly charged. It is shameful that the Tory government refused to admit they were wrong and wasted so much public money defending this case.

The survey we posted earlier (see 9.34am) found that readers most want to know why American chickens are washed in chlorine. Here’s the answer.

To clean it of bacteria and other contaminants. Proponents say it is healthy as it produces meat without faecal matter and without potentially dangerous germs, such as campylobacter and salmonella. But animal welfare campaigners say chlorination just disguises the real problem, which is rearing and slaughtering animals in dirty and unsanitary conditions. They point out that chlorination does not stop the contamination of meat, so unwanted germs continue to flourish and can become stronger, mutating into more virulent forms and ultimately posing a greater danger to human health.

Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, has criticised “ambulance chasing” lawyers over allegations survivors of the Grenfell Tower blaze are being hounded about legal representation, the Press Association (PA) reports. In an email sent to legal associations and seen by PA, Abbott said her office had received numerous complaints about the behaviour of some law firms. She said survivors were feeling “intimidated” into signing up for specific representation “on the premise that success depends on them all [a group of survivors] instructing one legal professional and/or firm”.

In her email, addressed primarily to the Law Society and Bar Council, she said:

Whilst at this stage it is not clear on which matters these individuals have been advised that they need legal representation, it is evident that legal representation will be required at some point and to this end, it is entirely for those affected by this tragedy to instruct the legal professional of their choice without being coerced into instructing firms who are clearly misleading people whilst they are extremely vulnerable.

I am sure that we all agree that this type of behaviour ‘ambulance chasing’ is disgraceful and should not be tolerated in any circumstance.

We are aware that two paralegals have been suspended following such allegations and I had initially believed that this was the end of the matter, however complaints have persisted and I offered to send this letter in an attempt to ensure that those affected by this have support and a voice where their concerns are raised at the highest level.

Abbott has not singled out any specific law firms for criticism. A spokeswoman for the MP said they were still trying to establish which firms might be to blame.

Dominic Raab, the justice minister, has confirmed that the government will get rid of employment tribunal fees in the light of today’s supreme court judgment. He said:

In setting employment tribunal fees, the government has to consider access to justice, the costs of litigation, and how we fund the tribunals.

The supreme court recognised the important role fees can play, but ruled that we have not struck the right balance in this case. We will take immediate steps to stop charging fees in employment tribunals and put in place arrangements to refund those who have paid.

We will also further consider the detail of the judgment.

As the Daily Mirror’s Jack Blanchard reports, Andrew Gwynne, the shadow communities secretary and Labour’s campaign coordinator, has hinted that Labour may shift its stance on Brexit. Critics have argued that, with Labour committed to taking the UK out of the single market, it is currently advocating a hardish Brexit very similar to that backed by Theresa May.

Speaking at an event in London, Gywnne said:

We recognise that the country voted to leave. Whether public opinion shifts in the course of the next couple of years will be interesting to see.

And I think once the reality of what Brexit is going to look like becomes more apparent, it may well be that the political situation changes sufficiently that the Labour Party’s nuanced position might also have more flexibility.

ECJ blocks planned EU passenger data sharing agreement with Canada on privacy grounds

The European court of justice (ECJ) has blocked a planned EU agreement to share details of airline passengers with Canada designed to help in the fight against terrorism and international crime, the Press Association reports. The Luxembourg-based court ruled that the 2014 agreement was “incompatible with the fundamental rights recognised by the EU”, because it would have meant individuals’ sensitive personal data being held for five years, even where there was no indication they were involved in illegal activities. Online privacy campaigners said the ruling had “massive implications” for Brexit, as the same approach can be expected to be applied to any future trade agreement between the UK and EU, making the prospects for a deal involving digital communications “fragile”.

Jim Killock, executive director of Open Rights Group, which campaigns on online privacy, said:

This decision has massive implications for Brexit. The EU courts have rejected an agreement that failed to protect fundamental rights, including the rights to privacy and protection of personal data.

Any future trade agreement between the UK and EU would be subject to the same stringent requirements. Given the UK’s mass surveillance laws and indiscriminate data retention, any trade agreement for digital, communications and even banking and insurance businesses, could look very fragile indeed.

Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, posing for a photograph at the Sydney Opera House earlier today during his Australia visit.
Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, posing for a photograph at the Sydney Opera House earlier today during his Australia visit. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/EPA

Here’s a chlorinated chicken reading list.

Agriculture is 1 per cent of the US economy, and only around 10 per cent of total goods exports, but its ferociously well-organised lobby means it has an outsize influence on trade talks. The concentration of heavily subsidised farmers in sparsely populated states also means they have disproportionate power in the US Senate, which has two representatives per state rather than being weighted by population.

If it truly chooses to mobilise, the farm lobby in effect has a veto over US trade deals. With the American domestic market saturated and output — often boosted by government subsidies — always rising, American farmers of products such as poultry, beef, soya, maize and rice are perpetually on the lookout for new markets abroad. More than a third of US farm cash receipts come from exports.

Chlorine-washed chicken could be the least offensive of the US meat regulations a trade deal might force us to adopt. It has been pushed to the fore because it is less politically toxic than the issues hiding behind it. The European Union rules, which currently prevail in the UK, take a precautionary approach to food regulation, permitting only products and processes proved to be safe. In contrast, the US government uses a providential approach, permitting anything not yet proved to be dangerous. By limiting the budgets and powers of its regulators, it ensures that proof of danger is difficult to establish.

It would be unwise for Britain to acquiesce in order to get a swift deal. The UK prides itself on its health and environmental standards. There is undoubtedly red tape to trim after Brexit, but a massive bonfire may well hurt consumers. Every EU rule Britain ditches will also make it harder to get a trade deal with the EU. Dr Fox himself said that this deal would be the “easiest in history” to negotiate since British laws already line up with those of EU member states. If British supermarket shelves fill up with chickens washed in chlorine, that will no longer be true.

Last year 19 per cent of UK exports went to the United States compared with 44 per cent to the EU. No published analysis suggests that a US deal could make up the difference. If ministers pin their hopes on a speedy trade deal with Trump’s America, it will not be long before those chlorine-doused chickens come home to roost.

The US poultry industry is far more efficient than that of its European counterparts, making it well-placed to drive down the cost of chicken meat in a post-Brexit UK. Data for 2015 show that the average price of a kilo of fresh whole chicken in the US stood at just 79% of the same product in the UK.

Countries in Eastern Europe such as Romania and Bulgaria were themselves significant importers of US chicken meat before their accession to the EU prohibited customers from continuing to enjoy low-cost poultry.

Complying with EU legislation was estimated to add some 5.1% to the total production costs of poultry, according to 2011 data. The same report found that other US efficiencies mean that the production costs of US broiler meat stood at just 78% of the EU average in 2013, despite requiring “standards for food safety and animal health [which] are similar to those in the EU”.

Customer choice need not be sacrificed. Chickens described as “organic” in the US are not subjected to PRTs, and UK labelling rules could be updated to ensure that British customers had the same information when choosing what to have for dinner.

[Liam Fox] knows that outside the EU, Britain must choose whom to align itself with – the US or Europe. Fox’s preference is clearly the former, because that would push us down the path of lighter regulation, lower standards, and “the market knows best”. That’s why failure to secure an EU trade deal while agreeing a US deal has enormous implications for our society.

Here is Ed Conway, Sky News’ economics editor, on the chlorinated chicken row.

Here is the Guardian’s story on the Unison supreme court victory on employment tribunal fees.

Here is how the story starts.

A trade union has won a landmark case to quash fees for those bringing unfair dismissal claims at employment tribunals.

The supreme court ruled in favour of Unison, which launched a legal battle against fees of up to £1,200, which it said were preventing workers, especially those on lower incomes, from getting justice.

The decision was made by seven justices, headed by the court’s president, Lord Neuberger. It comes after the union lost in the high court and court of appeal. The action was against the lord chancellor and justice secretary, Liz Truss.

The highest UK court said it based its conclusion on the fact that fees were “inconsistent with access to justice” and had resulted in a substantial fall in claims being brought.

And here is some more reaction.

From Jeremy Corbyn

From Andrew Fisher, Corbyn’s head of policy

From the shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon

From the Unite union

From Torsten Bell, director of the Resolution Foundation

Bell is referring to what Metcalf said yesterday in his new role as director of labour market enforcement.

From the legal blogger Adam Wagner

From the legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg

Here are two Labour MPs on Michael Gove’s interview, saying much the same thing.

From Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary

From Ben Bradshaw

Gove says he would accept ECJ having power over UK during Brexit transitional period

In his Today interview Michael Gove also made it clear that he would be happy with a Brexit transitional deal even if it involved Britain having to accept high levels of EU immigration and to obey European court of justice rulings for a period after withdrawal. Asked if he would accept this, he replied:

Yes. Ultimately, the important point is we’re leaving, and there will be a point where we are outside the European Union, and then fully outside, master of our own destiny, when we have taken back control of our own laws and of our borders. But, provided we know we are going to get to that destination, then I want to ensure that we take as pragmatic an approach as possible consistent with ensuring that we have access to the talent that we need, in agriculture and other areas, and that we also give business the confidence that it needs to plan.

These are from the Daily Mirror’s Jack Blanchard.

Here is the press summary of the judgment (pdf).

And here is the judgment in full (pdf).

Supreme court rules against employment tribunal fees

Unison has won its case at the supreme court on tribunal fees. The Press Association has just snapped this.

Unison has won its challenge to controversial fees for taking a case to an employment tribunal, the supreme court has ruled.

In his Today interview Michael Gove, the environment secretary, was also talking about the government’s clean air plan, and its proposal to ban all new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040. He said:

We can’t carry on with diesel and petrol cars, not just because of the health problems that they cause, but also because the emissions that they cause would mean that we would accelerate climate change, do damage to our planet and to the next generation.

Gove said the government would work with councils to develop “value for money and appropriately targeted” diesel scrappage schemes. But he said he thought generalised car scrappage schemes were poor value for money, because they involved subsidising people who were planning to get rid of their cars anyway.

Gove also said he did not believe it was “necessary” to bring in charges to prevent polluting vehicles entering city centres. But, if a council wanted to bring in charging, the government would allow that, he said. He went on:

On the evidence I’ve seen, while charging could bring local authorities into compliance with the law, it is not necessary ... Charging is a blunt instrument. It is a blunt instrument that could bring us into compliance. Rather than using that blunt instrument, I would prefer to use a series of surgical interventions, because I think that is both fairer to drivers, but also likely to be more effective, more quickly, in the areas that count.

UK suffers 'notable slowdown' as GDP rises by 0.3% in second quarter of 2017

The economy grew by just 0.3% in the second quarter of 2017, today’s growth figures show.

My colleague Graeme Wearden has all the details on his business live blog.

Across the site we’ve been experimenting with a tool that asks readers what they want explained. Here is one on chlorinated chicken.

  • Why are many American chickens chlorine-washed?
  • What exactly does the process involve?
  • What are the potential health effects of chlorine?

Updated

Gove says UK should be 'a leader in environmental standards'

Here is another extract from Michael Gove’s Today programme this morning. He told Nick Robinson that he would stop chlorinated chicken coming into the UK market even if that mean no trade deal with the US.

NR: So if the Americans say, ‘Ah, this super great deal’ - whatever Donald Trump’s language is - ‘We’ve got to have access for our farmers’, Michael Gove says, ‘Well, Mr Trump, sorry, you can kiss goodbye to your trade deal’?

MG: Yes. Critically, we need to ensure that we do not compromise those standards. And, I said last week when I was speaking to the WWF environmental charity, we need to be in a position as we leave the European Union to be leaders in environmental and in animal welfare standards. It is the case at the moment that inside the European Union that we have to accept some environmental provisions, we have to accept a common agricultural policy, which does not work in the interests of the environment.

Britain’s role traditionally, when Margaret Thatcher was prime minister and now, is to be a leader in environmental standards.

Here is video of Liam Fox on Newsnight last night.

On Newsnight last night Liam Fox, the international trade secretary, said - just as Michael Gove did this morning - that Britain would not become a “low regulation alternative” after Brexit.

But, on the subject of chlorinated chicken, Fox was non-committal. It was not a health issue, he said. He told the programme:

There is no health issue with that - the European Union has said that is perfectly safe.

The issue lies around some of the secondary issues of animal welfare and it’s perfectly reasonable for people to raise that but it will come much further down the road ...

We will want to ensure that the scientific advice that we have ensures proper protection for British consumers because dropping our standards is not the way for Britain ...

In terms of where we will be on specifics by the time we finish a free trade agreement, which could be two or three years by the time it’s concluded and implemented depending on what happens with the rest of our relationship with the EU, it’s too early to say.

But you can say on a general principle that we are not going to be the low regulation alternative that some people have suggested.

Liam Fox (right) in Washington on Monday with the US trade representative ambassador, Robert Lighthizer.
Liam Fox (right) in Washington on Monday with the US trade representative ambassador, Robert Lighthizer. Photograph: Sait Serkan Gurbuz/AP

Updated

Gove says chlorinated chicken would be banned under any UK-US trade deal

For the last three days the debate about Brexit, and the rights and wrongs of leaving the EU and instead relying on trade deals with countries like America to power British growth, has come down to an argument about chlorine-washed chicken. It is commonplace in the US, but banned in Europe. If the Americans insist on Britain letting it into supermarkets as the price for a trade deal, should Britain agree?

On Monday Number 10 was evasive when asked about this. Liam Fox, the international trade secretary, has also criticised the media for obsessing over the issue. But today Michael Gove, the environment secretary (and a leading Brexit campaigner), gave a firm answer. In fact, he answered Nick Robinson’s question on the Today programme so directly that Robinson was almost stumped for words.

Here is the key exchange.

NR: Chlorinated chickens, should they be allowed? You are the man who ultimately, if you are still agriculture secretary when a deal is done, who will have to decide. We don’t need to waste time on this. Yes to chlorinated chickens or no?

MG: No.

NR: Under no circumstances?

MG: I made it perfectly clear, and indeed this is something on which all members of the government are agreed, that we are not going to dilute our high animal welfare standards or our high environmental standards in pursuit of any trade deal.

As Newsnight’s Ian Katz points out, Gove’s claim that “all members of the government are agreed” is contestable, to put it politely.

I will post more from the interview soon.

Here is the agenda for the day.

9.30am: The department for environment, food and rural affairs (Defra) publishes its air quality plan. As Anushka Asthana and Matthew Taylor report, it will propose banning all new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2040.

9.30am: Growth figures for the second quarter of 2017 are published.

9.45am: The supreme court delivers its ruling in the case bought by Unison, which is arguing that tribunal fees are illegal.

And the government’s three leading Brexit ministers are all abroad on business. Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, is in Australia. Liam Fox, the international trade secretary, is in Mexico. And David Davis, the Brexit secretary, is in Germany.

As usual, I will be covering breaking political news as it happens, as well as bringing you the best reaction, comment and analysis from the web. I plan to publish a summary at lunchtime and another in the afternoon.

You can read all today’s Guardian politics stories here.

If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I’m on @AndrewSparrow.

I try to monitor the comments BTL but normally I find it impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer direct questions, although sometimes I miss them or don’t have time. Alternatively you could post a question to me on Twitter.

Updated

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