Anyone still wondering about Truss's performance should look no further than her much trumpeted trade deals with Australia and New Zealand. She's happy to let the country suffer so she can boast about signing a trade deal. Anyone concerned about the UK's reducing food production should look away now.
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It [Freedom of Information request] shows that:
— Officials advised Truss an Australia deal would spark a 3.44 percent shift in employment away from the semi-processed foods sector over 15 years, making it the hardest-hit part of the U.K. economy in employment terms.
— At the same time, the department projected a 0.46 percent drop in the value of that sector to the U.K. economy under the Australia deal.
— For the New Zealand pact, Truss was warned to expect a 2.69 percent shift in employment away from semi-processed foods to other sectors, and a 2.97 percent hit to its economic value.
— Agriculture, forestry and fishing were also set to take a hit, the analysis showed. The department projected a 0.69 percent long-term shift in jobs away from agriculture, forestry and fishing under the Australia pact, and a 0.16 percent dip to the sector's value over the same span.
— For the New Zealand pact, Truss was advised agriculture, forestry and fishing would see a 0.60 percent shift in employment away from the sector, and a 0.85 percent blow to its gross value.
The projections were made under the department's "Scenario 2," an outcome that most closely resembles the final deals struck with each nation.
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https://www.politico.eu/article/liz-...nd-trade-deal/
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Originally Posted by OLD BOY
But you’d think so, given what people are saying.
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People critically scrutinising candidates is not anywhere like saying the end of the world is nigh. Many of us have evaluated Johnson's likely successors and found them wanting. We've been similarly critical of Starmer and his policy-lite approach even though he won't be the next PM.