Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2017 to Question 111584, on World Trade Organisation, which schedules need to be updated in order to minimise disruption.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In order to replicate as far as possible current obligations under the WTO as we leave the European Union, the Government is preparing full UK-specific schedules under the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade – goods) and the GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services – services). The Government is also preparing a UK-specific Annex on Article II (Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment) exemptions under the GATS. The Government plans to submit these schedules and list of exemptions to the WTO ahead of the UK’s leaving the EU, and to assert them after leaving the EU.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2017 to Question 111584, on World Trade Organisation (WTO), what his planned timetable is for the (a) preparation and (b) agreement with the WTO of the amended schedules.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In order to replicate as far as possible current obligations under the WTO as we leave the European Union, the Government is preparing full UK-specific schedules under the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade – goods) and the GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services – services). The Government is also preparing a UK-specific Annex on Article II (Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment) exemptions under the GATS. The Government plans to submit these schedules and list of exemptions to the WTO ahead of the UK’s leaving the EU, and to assert them after leaving the EU.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November 2017 to Question 111399, on trade agreements: USA, whether the Trade and Investment Working Group involves discussions between US and Commonwealth nations.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
There have been two meetings of the bilateral UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group to date, both involving discussions between representatives of the governments of the United Kingdom and the United States only.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what research his Department has commissioned to support the development of the economic interest test which is to be used as part of the trade remedies investigation.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As set out in the Department’s White Paper, "Preparing for our future UK trade policy," the UK’s trade remedies regime will include an economic interest test, which will be applied during any investigation and prior to any application of provisional or definitive trade remedy measures. The test will balance the need to address injury with the interests of domestic producers, any regional impacts, as well as those of other interested parties such as user industries and consumers.
We are considering the detail of how this test will work in practice and, in doing so, we have been engaging with stakeholders to get their views and are committed to continuing that engagement. This process will also be informed by economic research commissioned by this Department through a public tender to provide evidence on the design and implementation of a future trade remedies framework, covering the following three broad themes:
· Determination of injury
· Consideration of wider economic interests
· Review, monitoring and evaluation
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what form the economic interest test to be used as part of the trade remedies investigation will take.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As set out in the Department’s White Paper, "Preparing for our future UK trade policy," the UK’s trade remedies regime will include an economic interest test, which will be applied during any investigation and prior to any application of provisional or definitive trade remedy measures. The test will balance the need to address injury with the interests of domestic producers, any regional impacts, as well as those of other interested parties such as user industries and consumers.
We are considering the detail of how this test will work in practice and, in doing so, we have been engaging with stakeholders to get their views and are committed to continuing that engagement. This process will also be informed by economic research commissioned by this Department through a public tender to provide evidence on the design and implementation of a future trade remedies framework, covering the following three broad themes:
· Determination of injury
· Consideration of wider economic interests
· Review, monitoring and evaluation
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 31 October 2017 to Question 109062, whether the Government plans for the trade remedies investigating authority to be operational by the end of March 2019.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The creation of a Trade Remedies Authority is essential to protect UK industry against unfair and injurious trade practices and to ensure the UK is able to make a smooth exit from the EU.
In order to ensure continuity in relation to our trade around the world and avoid disruption for business and other stakeholders, the UK needs to prepare ahead of its exit from the EU for all possible outcomes of the negotiations, and ensure that we have made the necessary arrangements to operate a fully functioning trade policy, including our own Trade Remedies Authority.
In doing so, the Government will take account of the terms of any time-limited implementation period agreed between the UK and the EU.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking to encourage World Trade Organisation (WTO) members to meet their obligations under Article 25 of the WTO's Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK is a strong supporter of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) subsidies rules. The Government believes that it is critical for WTO members to notify their subsidies and meet their other obligations under Article 25 of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures. The EU and other WTO Members have put forward proposals to encourage notification and the Government will continue to engage with that work. Once the UK has left the EU, we will be looking to ensure that all WTO obligations are fulfilled.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the cost to the public purse was of establishing the trade remedies framework between January and August 2017.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The Department for International Trade is still in the process of establishing a trade remedies framework and it will be subject to Parliamentary approval. Between January and August 2017, the Department invested resources to develop the policy, legislative and operational plans for a new trade remedies framework alongside its wider preparations for EU Exit.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, on how many occasions (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have met their counterparts in the US to discuss a UK-US free trade arrangement.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The United States-UK bilateral trading relationship is an important one and vital to our economy. Total trade between the UK and US in 2016 totalled £167.6bn and both sides have committed to deepening our commercial relationship further.
My Ministerial colleagues and I have regular contact with the US Administration, business representatives and others, including through our diplomatic missions in the United States, to support and increase investment and trade flows. To this end, we have established a Trade and Investment Working group dedicated to strengthening the bilateral trade and investment relationship between the UK and US.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if the UK will be required to reapply to the World Trade Organisation after the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK has been a Member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) since its founding in 1995. In exiting the EU, we do not need to reapply for WTO Membership, but do need to update the terms of our Membership where, at present, our commitments are applied through the EU as a whole. To minimise disruption to our trading relationships with other WTO Members, the Government is preparing the necessary schedules that replicate as far as possible our current obligations.