Demand a voice for Scotland in trade bills after Brexit
The UK government will begin to make its own trade deals after Brexit. This could be a disaster: a US trade deal could open the market for the sale of chlorinated chicken and GM food from US farms here in Scotland, for example. ..But it is also an opportunity.
The trade bill has now been published and will be scrutinised by the party over the coming months. It is essential that the new bill is amended to ensure proper scrutiny of its future trade deals at Westminster and that the Scottish Parliament is also given power to influence these deals.
The Scottish parliament can choose to withhold its consent for the trade bill. We believe that unless the bill is amended to allow Scotland to have its say, they should use this power.
We also want the trade bill to set out an ethical policy for future trade negotiations with other countries. As a coalition, we have developed a set of principles on which we believe trade policy should be based. We are calling on our politicians in Scotland to endorse these principles and speak up for an ethical trade policy for the UK.
Please ask your MP to sign up to these ethical trade principles.
Read the Just Trade Principles
Read the Just Principles for Trade policy briefing (useful for writing to your MP)
Stop Trump placard
Please ask your local councillors to support our trade principles
As we know from campaigning on new EU trade deals, local councils will feel the impact of future trade deals if public services and public procurement are to be included. During the campaign against TTIP, one third of Scottish local councils voted to make their local area a TTIP-free zone.
That is why we are now asking Scottish local Councils to sign up to our ethical trade principles.
We have put together a draft motion that Councillors could use. Please contact your local councillors and ask for their support.
Download our draft Just Trade Principles motion here
Inverclyde Council are the first in Scotland to pass a motion in support of our Just Trade Principles. Read the motion here