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In the book I try to sum up the dangers that the trade deal represents – to our ability to fight climate change, to our food standards, to our rights online, to our public services. Worse still, this far-reaching deal is being negotiated behind closed doors, with little opportunity for democratic scrutiny, yet if implemented it will carry the force of international law. No wonder a part of the British establishment looks to this deal with glee, as a shortcut way of giving the free market free rein over increasing parts of our society. Â
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Yet in some ways, there is nothing particularly special about this proposed trade deal. The huge impact it would have on us is the result of the size of the United States economy in comparison with our own. But Britain is also contemplating trade deals with many countries in the global south where the negative results will be felt by the people of those countries far more acutely than we feel them here. Â
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We need to apply the same energy to fighting against these toxic trade deals, when they emerge, as we are currently putting into the US deal. I give some pointers in the book as to how we might do this, by looking at the great history of trade campaigning. While we obviously haven’t won everything, this history shows how we can overcome the odds and beat toxic trade deals. We must remember and celebrate this history, especially at a time when we’re faced by so many threats and challenges.   Â
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If we’re really to build a better world, we need to fundamentally rethink the way we trade. Current trade rules are written in the interest of big business and super-rich investors. As such they are fuelling climate change, exacerbating inequality and eroding our democracy. There is simply no way we can change these things within the current trade system. And so, I end the book by laying out a framework for a new trade system, which could help lay the foundations of a society which prioritises the needs of people and the planet. Â
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I really hope you enjoy Trade Secrets. I’d love to hear what you think of it, and I’d be delighted to talk about it at local meetings – feel free to get in touch. Most important, join the campaign against a US trade deal. Not only because stopping this deal will throw a huge spanner into plans to give the market ever more power over our society. But because it’s vital to building a strong trade justice movement, capable of challenging and changing a set of rules which give the few enormous power over the many. Â
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Stay safe and stay active, Â
Nick Dearden,
Global Justice Now
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