As Brexit negotiations continue to stutter, the Bombardier tariff row should serve as a reminder to our politicians that international trade is far from straightforward
When Theresa May returned from her first meeting with Donald Trump talking up the fantastic US trade deal awaiting us beyond the shores of Brexit, many questioned the wisdom of trusting someone who contradicts himself on an almost hourly basis and had spent his entire presidential campaign promising a new era of US protectionism.
Though no trade deal has yet been done, the current Boeing / Bombardier dispute is the first serious test of this relationship and with the spat threatening to turn into an all-out trade war, the PM’s early confidence is looking all the more misplaced. With Bombardier employing more than 4,000 people at its factories in Northern Ireland, it’s also a major test of the government’s relationship with the DUP, upon whom it relies to stay in power.
To recap, earlier this week the US Department of Commerce decided that Bombardier jets manufactured in Northern Ireland should be subject to a 219 per cent import tariff. The move – the result of a complaint from Boeing that Bombardier had received unfair state subsidies from the UK and Canadian governments – has been widely criticised in the UK, with a number of commentators suggesting the move is a sign that US business is emboldened by Trump’s America first strategy.
Others have accused Boeing of hypocrisy and bullying. The company is no stranger to government support itself and doesn’t produce commercial aircraft as small as the C-Series jets that triggered the dispute in the first place.
In response, UK Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, has warned that the tariffs could jeopardise the US firm’s future relationship with the UK. Boeing defence contracts with the UK are currently worth around £8bn to the company.
With the US government still to make a final ruling on the decision in February, it’s too early to predict how this will end. And we shouldn’t rule out the possibility – however unlikely it may be – of Trump wading into the debate. Indeed, somewhat uncharacteristically, the president hasn’t yet weighed in with any tweets on the matter. Perhaps it’s wishful thinking – and he’s simply been too busy trolling the NFL and North Korea – but this might be a sign of hope for the thousands of UK workers directly and indirectly employed by Bombardier’s aerospace division.
In the meantime, at a critical time in the UK’s Brexit negotiations, the spat is a timely reminder that trading relationships aren’t as simple and straightforward as some government ministers would have us believe.
Definitely a wake up call to those hell bent on a hard Brexit and perhaps we should seriously considering not pulling out due to the damage to science and engineering that is going to be done.
Hard and Soft Brexit, just an invention of the #remoaners.
Hard Brexit as you call it is just #Brexit – Leaving the an EU that is dying slowly and embracing the whole world, returning to our roots, a global Britain.
Soft Brexit, otherwise known a #Remain – Staying part of an #EU that is an ever shrinking part of global GDP currently under 20% and droping. But this time with absolutely no say in how the EU is run but bound by all its rules
No doubt the Brexiteers will tell us, that such protectionist realities don’t matter as the German carmakers will be desperate to sell us their cars and thereby put us in even more debt. I’ve never quite worked that one out!
Maybe we should get our Manufacturing facilities in order and stop buying large quantities of German cars and American aircraft. Before we joined the EU our UK Engineering/Manufacturing industry was stronger than today!
Totally agree. In addition we are the EU27’s biggest customers. 20% of EU27 GDP.
The UK manufacturing industry has big problem finding well trained ( apprentice trained ) staff
simply due to the lack of apprenticeships. In Germany there are on-going around 300.000 people in apprenticeships – and there are around 50.000 unfilled. Vocational training is the sacred cow in Germany together with free college and univerity studies. The government even has an English website to attract foreigners to come and train and hopefully stay. Any more questions?
Two reasons for this, engineering jobs are underpaid and we have an establishment in our schools who continually run down, engineering
The government are so naïve that they think every one will comply with what they want. The world is a small place today, & we need to be exporting goods to bring in the money to get the country out of debt, but the main problem is that they have over the last 40+ years sold virtually everything off that was British, so any money these foreign companies make goes to their country not ours. We need to stay in Europe to at least keep some sort of income coming into the country otherwise Britain will become a third world country!
What has been said above and in the Article is just part of the answer to the Brexit Problem. Go back to Harold Wilson’s era and the selling off of UK Technology and the closing/selling off of the Rail system that followed and all this technology sell off has continued. Why you may ask? Well it is because the Bureaucrats/Permanent Civil Servants have no idea of the UK’s Engineering and Scientific strengths- look at TSR-2, Hovercraft, High speed trains, Aerospace and Motor Racing, Electronics. All were [ some still are under different names] leaders in their Fields and some would still be today be exporting world wide [TSR-2 would still be a world beater if resurrected today with the latest Avionics/Electronics, engines and munitions!]
Yet the Government “Whalleys” never backed these smaller companies then unless they are a multi Million Pound enterprise and can make them shine in the Public’s eyes in the media or on TV.
The history of waste in the UK is disgraceful, non of the car companies are owned by the UK, except by foreigners [Motor Sports Mfg no one can touch the UK for its continuing expertise and hopefully will never be] including the Aerospace companies, where are Saunders Roe, Short Bros, Avro, Hawker Sidley, BAC now BAE, and several others?
Until the UK wakes up and stands its ground on how the EU is to be run- right now non of the Brussels crowd were elected, just appointed by self-serving friends and powerful corporate entities. UK negotiations are a joke over the Brexit situation. no one dares stands up and lays down in very precise terms what needs to be done and not just for the UK but the whole EU group of now 27 countries (lets call call them STATES in the EU Union and forget the word COUNTRY). Make all persons in the EU Parliament elected officials from each STATE in the Union and allow the Parliament to elect a Premier (not a President- leave that out) them each state has its own Premier/Governor.
The tariffs which will return between the UK and the EU will be so disruptive if BREXIT continues. There needs to be a National Budget for the whole EU and then each State has its budget accordingly, all must be set and no Deficit spending allowed by law [unless a war breaks out or a major catastrophe occurs in the EU or a State]
The intent of the EU was a uniform Europe to compete in the World markets and be competitive, except this aim has been lost by the Greed and unintended consequences of allowing non-elected bureaucrats into the EU Parliament and the overwhelming greed of the Stock markets and World Bankers going back to the US “Bretton” Woods financial meetings after the war, then the dismantling of the worlds Gold Standards in foreign Exchange and the printing of “Fiat Money by many governments” and fiddling of currencies and marketing of Paper from various financial institutions and Wall St/London Stock market Mavens.
THE EU really needs the UK more than anyone really understands – the UK could end up being the 51st State of the USA, if Trump has his way- makes him and his Swamp Cronies that much closer to the EU, if it does not break up with the help of Putin and Russia. Don’t think it could not happen, remember what Prime Minister May said when she came back, what did she really mean [ “talking up the fantastic US trade deal awaiting us beyond the shores of Brexit”]?