Asked by: Damian Green (Conservative - Ashford)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will introduce a rolling review process for future Free Trade Agreements to protect the interests of UK agriculture.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
We will always consider the effects of any trade agreement we negotiate on the agricultural industry, and we have a range of tools to defend British farming against any unfair trading practices. The Australia and New Zealand Free Trade Agreements both include safeguards for our farmers.
In addition, the independent Trade and Agriculture Commission will scrutinise new free trade agreements once they are signed, providing an additional layer of independent scrutiny.
Asked by: Damian Green (Conservative - Ashford)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate he has made of number of SMEs that (a) export, and (b) expressed an intention to stop exporting in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The latest published figures from the ONS Business Survey for the calendar year 2017, estimate the number of SMEs (i.e. businesses with an employment size of less than 250) that exported goods and/or services at 232,300.
We have no evidence to suggest that businesses will stop exporting if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.