–following Brexit, Ambassador Quinn assures
By Ravin Singh
HIGH on the agenda of the United Kingdom (UK) are negotiations of new trade agreements with countries, including Guyana, to preserve relations following the UK’s unexpected exit from the European Union (EU).
This was confirmed by the UK’s High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregory Quinn, on Thursday during a press conference held at his Bel Air residence. Prior to Britain’s entry into the EU, trade between the former and the Anglophone Caribbean was conducted under a Commonwealth preferences scheme. However, the scheme was subsequently eroded after Britain entered the regional bloc.
Having subsumed its authority for trade, all trade agreements with the EU, Britain was left with no direct formal trade agreement with any of the 12 Caribbean countries.
And the existing trade agreement between the Caribbean and the UK, via the EU, is one of over 50 trade agreements currently existing between the EU and other countries around the world.
However, the UK’s move to leave the regional bloc following a referendum last week has put the superpower nation in a position with no trade agreement with the Caribbean region, which includes Guyana.

In light of this, the High Commissioner gave the assurance that the UK will have to negotiate new trade agreements to preserve its relationship with countries around the world, including Guyana.
“We’re going to have to, as part of the leaving process, negotiate new trade agreements, because obviously we want to continue to trade with all of these countries around the world, including the Caribbean and Guyana,” Quinn said.
Uncertain of whether the trade agreements will be made between individual countries in the Caribbean or through the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Quinn said that he was confident that negotiations will be forthcoming.

PRIORITY
And although he could not say when specifically, given that “Brexit” was only recently confirmed, the High Commissioner noted that negotiations for trade agreements remain high on the UK’s agenda.
“Negotiation of trade agreements is certainly something which is high on Government’s agenda for the coming period,” he said.
Guyana and Europe have a long-standing trade relationship. EU relations and cooperation with Guyana are carried out both on bilateral and regional bases, the latter within the framework of the on-going EU-CELAC and EU-CARIFORUM dialogues.

Guyana is party to the “Cotonou Agreement”, the Partnership Agreement between the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States and the European Union.
The EU-Guyana cooperation strategy for the period 2008-2013, focuses mainly on macro-economic support, support to the sugar industry and coastal management.
At the regional level, the Caribbean was pioneer in signing, in October 2008, the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM countries) and the EU, a framework to help make trade, investment and development assistance easier for all parties, in particular promoting regional integration. Guyana is a signatory of the EPA and ratified the agreement on May 19, 2012.

Meanwhile, the EU is CARIFORUM’s second largest trading partner, after the US.
In 2011, trade between the two regions topped €8 billion. In 2013, CARIFORUM ran a trade deficit with the EU of some €0.8 billion. In other words, CARIFORUM countries exported €0.8 billion less in goods and services to the EU than they imported from the EU.
The main exports from the Caribbean to the EU are fuel and mining products, notably petroleum gas and oils; bananas, sugar and rum; minerals, notably gold, corundum, aluminium oxide and hydroxide and iron ore products and fertilisers.
The main imports into the Caribbean from the EU are boats and ships, cars, construction vehicles and engine parts; phone equipment; milk and cream; and spirit drinks.