So we're here with Professor Kenneth Armstrong, who is the Director of the Centre for European Legal Studies

and this is the first in a series of videos about important issues leading up to the referendum.

So, Kenneth, you got to start by talking about an area of your

expertise and why that matters? I think the area that I think I'm interested in talking about

is free trade. It seems to be a very important part of the referendum discussion. And on the one hand,

for some people, free trade is important because they think it's a means of creating economic

prosperity, increasing jobs.

But on the other hand, people worry about the consequence of free trade in areas, for example,

like workers' rights and even something like animal welfare, animal protection.

What role has the EU played in bringing about free trade?

The origins of the European Union rest in the creation of a common market with the aims of removing barriers to trade right across the EU member states.

And again, for some people, that's a good thing because it enhances the choice for consumers in the market, increases possibilities for business

in terms of cross-border treatment activity.

But again, on the other hand, some might see then that as a danger and no risk in terms of the capacity

of businesses to relocate from one part of the European Union to another with consequential impact on jobs and on the

area of animal welfare, for example, the movement of livestock across borders and concerns about

the levels of protection that are supported in the circumstances.

So from a legal perspective, where do you think the law has got it right at EU law level?

It's a difficult one because we always have to think about, well, if it wasn't the European Union,

what would fair trade look like elsewhere?

Much the referendum debate discusses a range of different models, whether it's a

Norway style model or something

...