Dear John,

Supermarkets are told to stockpile.

But the public is told not to panic.

Businesses are still in the dark and consumers are rightly worried. How are we meant to prepare for a no deal, when the government won’t admit there’s any problem with a no deal?

Since the summer, the Affordable Food Deal has warned the introduction of tariffs would add around £250 to families’ food bills.

The British Retail Consortium has agreed a no deal will cost consumers an extra £3.1 billion, while the Food and Drinks Federation has predicted an extra cost of up to £10 billion.

Immediate disruption and cost of living increases will be followed by long-term economic depression and a slowed recovery from the COVID recession. There is no mandate for a no deal, and no excuse for the government not to deliver what it promised the British people.

Sustain UK estimates that 8.4 million people in the UK are living in food poverty. Even small cost of living increases will push more families into crisis this Christmas.

Send a message to your MP now, and let them know the true cost of no-deal tariffs. Ask them to scrutinise any trade deal which makes it harder to put food on the table. 

Even with tariff-free trading, extra red tape and border delays will drive up costs. Import declarations alone could add 4 billion to traders costs every year. But a no deal - which would slap food with tariffs of up to 60% - would drive prices up even further.

The Affordable Food Deal have also warned these costs cannot be totally absorbed by the retailers – especially when importing products which can only be made in Europe. Consumers will be faced with higher prices in the new year.

85% of tomatoes come from the EU, and 90% of lettuce. Fresh produce will be hardest hit by any delays at the border. Not only will prices go up, but the availability of healthy, fresh food will likely go down.

Send a message to your MP. Ask them to push for a deal, and avert another crisis at Christmas. Urge them to scrutinise and improve upon any deal which falls short of what we were promised, and what’s best for Britain. Send your message now.

When food banks are predicting one of the most challenging winters on record, the government is opting to drive up food prices. When the world is fighting together against a pandemic, the government is picking fights with its neighbours.

And where the government promised to level-up left behind communities, they are making them poorer, sicker and more isolated.

One redeeming act would be to reach a deal, mitigate the most immediate disruption, and allow us to build back Britain’s relationship with Europe.

Best wishes,

Naomi Smith, 
CEO, Best for Britain