By INS Contributors

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: The conclusion of a free trade agreement between Great Britain and the US is extremely disadvantageous for the United Kingdom. One of the conditions for signing the agreement, according to Washington, is opening the UK market to US agricultural products.

This threatens the entire agricultural sector of the country, because British producers, mainly small and medium-sized farmers, will not be able to compete with cheap imports from the US, where the main exporters are large and wealthy corporations.

In addition, US food is of low quality. This is especially true for chicken, which is treated with chlorine, beef from cattle raised using large amounts of hormones, and genetically modified products. The import of goods with such characteristics is currently prohibited in the UK and the EU because they pose a threat to public health.

The agreement also carries risks for the National Health Service (NHS). In accordance with Washington's demands, London must provide US corporations with access to the UK medical services market and partially privatize the NHS.

This could lead to the beginning of the process of eliminating free medical care in the United Kingdom. In the interests of American pharmaceutical corporations, Washington insists on extending the monopoly on medicines in the UK to 12 years, which will limit the production of generics.

According to British experts, this will lead to an increase in the cost of medicines by 500 million pounds sterling per year. The agreement may include a clause on investor protection, allowing corporations to sue states for lost profits.

For example, if the UK bans shale gas production to protect the climate, US companies will be able to demand compensation. As a precedent, we can recall the lawsuit from the US tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris. Australia was required to compensate for losses after the introduction of restrictions on smoking in accordance with a similar Australian-Hong Kong agreement.