A political history of the United Kingdom banana trade : A matter of interests

Abstract

The thesis undertakes to assess the complex political interactions of the United Kingdom banana trade, as a controversial issue within international affairs. At the centre of the study is an investigation of the relationship between the traditional actors in the trade, namely governments (and government departments), private corporate interests, and producers. More particularly, there is a detailed analysis of why the United Kingdom banana trade developed in the way it has, and why in the last three decades the influence and importance of the traditional actors within the trade has diminished. In order to understand the precise dynamics of the United Kingdom banana trade, a number of themes are considered which have shaped the trade since its inception in the late 19^th Century. The themes of corporate ownership and monopoly control, colonial and post-colonial responsibility, political and economic realignment of commitments from the colonies and former-colonies to Europe, and the influence of an empowered world trading organisation in promoting a more liberal trading environment, have all had a bearing on the banana trade in the United Kingdom over the last century.

The study draws on interest group literature to interpret the wealth of new empirical data. Such an approach is chosen to enable a detailed assessment to be undertaken of the motivations, actions, and relationships of the actors involved in the United Kingdom banana trade, and to assess the context in which policy decisions are made. The thesis argues that the important political and economic developments that have occurred at the European and global level marginalised the actors which had been so successful in defending the concept of preferential trade for over 60 years. An evaluation of the United Kingdom banana trade provides an insight into the complex relationship between a European power and its former colonies over the last century, while also highlighting how the increasingly insecure nature of the international economy has affected the viability of an important export industry in the Caribbean, which was formerly underpinned by a relatively narrow set of interests.

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