A group of right-wing and libertarian groups in the United Kingdom are secretly planning to lobby Ministers for a free trade agreement with the USA that would lift a current ban on everyday essential items consisting of meat, chemicals and drugs.
Many Brexiters see the EU as over-regulated, compared to a much more liberalized set of standards in the United States. Were they to get their way, British regulators would allow chlorinated chicken and hormone-reared beef to be imported and sold in the UK for the first time.
Alarmingly, the plans call for the EU’s ‘Precautionary Principle’ — which places an onus on traders to prove that something is safe before it is sold — to be scrapped.
The plans came to light when these were mistakenly published online by the Initiative for Free Trade (IFT), which leads the group. The other members are the Heritage Foundation, keen to see repeal of environmental protections, and the Cato Institute, funded in part by the brothers Charles and David Koch — who are well known for their influence over the policy platform of the Republican Party.
From its founding, DiEM25 has argued against a deregulatory agenda that will lower the standard of living of people and lead to further inequality. We call on the people of Europe to join us in advocating for a new, progressive agenda that protects animals, workers, and the environment.
 

Jane is a member of our London DSC and blogs at www.ambitiousmamas.co.uk on feminism, politics and race. You can also follow her on Twitter.

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