Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, on what (a) policy and (b) technical areas he plans to consult the devolved administrations when (i) scoping and (ii) negotiating new free trade agreements; and what steps his Department has taken to identify such areas in which it will be necessary for different provisions of free trade agreements to apply to take account of differences in law between each constituent part of the UK.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The Department for International Trade will work with citizens and businesses from across the UK to ensure we develop a trade policy that works for the whole of the UK, and reflects the interests of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the turnover rate for UK Trade and Investment local-hire staff in overseas postings has been in each of the last three years.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The records for local hire staff in overseas postings are not held centrally by the Department for International Trade. In order to obtain this information would incur disproportionate costs.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment the Government has made of the implications of different legal frameworks in the devolved administrations for any new trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As EU powers return to the UK, our guiding principle will be to ensure that no new barriers to living and doing business within our own Union are created. We will maintain the necessary standards and frameworks to empower the UK as an open, trading nation to strike the best deals around the world.
On the basis of these principles, we will work with the devolved administrations on an approach to returning powers from the EU that works for the whole of the UK and reflects the interests of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if he will publish the section of his Department's People Survey for 2016 that covers UK Trade and Investment.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) did not undertake an independent Employee Engagement Survey in 2016. However, the organisation previously known as UKTI, now ITI (International Trade and Investment) was included within the overall Department for International Trade People Survey in 2016. The overall results from this survey can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-people-survey-2016-results.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the (a) click-through rates to export opportunities and (b) conversion rate to exporters was for the Exporting is Great website in each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The Exporting is GREAT website has received over 700,000 unique visitors since launch in November 2015, resulting in over 74,000 applications for export opportunities.
The Department for International Trade is currently evaluating the Export Opportunities service. This includes working with HMRC data via the tax return system to determine the definitive number of businesses who export through the service and the resulting export value.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the turnover rate was for international trade advisers in his Department in (a) 2014, (b) 2015 and (c) 2016.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for International Trade was created in July 2016, the transfer of functions order established DIT as a corporation sole on 9 November 2016.
The Department does not directly hold this information as the international trade advisers are employed by our Contractors in the English Regions, who have provided the information in the following table.
Year | 1st January 2014 | 1st January 2015 | 1st January 2016 |
No. of ITAs in post | 270 | 291 | 279 |
No. of ITAs leaving post in year | 22 | 37 | 49 |
No. of ITAs starting in post in year | 35 | 36 | 22 |
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2016 to Question 52244, which countries he and Ministers of his Department have visited since 14 November 2016.
Answered by Mark Garnier
Since 14 November 2016, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade and his Ministerial team have undertaken a total of 15 overseas visits to 18 countries. Details of these visits are listed in the attached Annex.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to the Prime Minister's speech to the Gulf Cooperation Council on 7 December 2016, what assessment his Department has made of the trading opportunities for UK businesses in the Gulf over the next five years.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region is an important market for British business. The GCC has a combined GDP of $1.4trn. In 2015 UK exports to the region were worth £20.4bn. In 2015 the Department for International Trade (DIT) facilitated over £2.1bn of Gulf investment into the UK. Through UK Export Finance, DIT has provided nearly £16bn in financial support to UK exporters in the GCC market since 2011, and we continue to support new business opportunities in the region in order to promote British exports.
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how much Scotch whisky was exported from (a) England and (b) Scotland in the last 12 months for which figures are available.
Answered by Mark Garnier
HMRC special analysis showing the value of Scotch Whisky exports from England and Scotland is set out in the table below. Data are provisional and subject to revision.
Exports of Scotch Whisky (£million) | |
April 2015 to March 2016 | |
| |
England | 144 |
Scotland | 3,554 |
Source: HMRC special analysis of Regional Trade Statistics database | |
Asked by: Angus Brendan MacNeil (Independent - Na h-Eileanan an Iar)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how much shellfish was exported from (a) England and (b) Scotland in the last 12 months for which figures are available.
Answered by Mark Garnier
HMRC special analysis showing the value of shellfish exports from England and Scotland is set out in the table below. Data are provisional and subject to revision.
Exports of shellfish (£million) | |
April 2015 to March 2016 | |
|
|
England | 191 |
Scotland | 185 |
Source: HMRC special analysis of Regional Trade Statistics database | |