Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure that the interests of Palestinians are reflected in the negotiations for the free trade agreement with Israel.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
Palestinian goods imported from the Occupied Palestinian Territories benefit from the trade preferences outlined in the bilateral agreement negotiated between the United Kingdom and the Palestinian Authority, which came into force on 1st January 2021. While the focus of these negotiations is trade with the State of Israel, we value our bilateral trade relationship with the Palestinian Authority too, and will continue to build upon our commercial links through our bilateral agreement.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions her Department has had with the US Administration on the removal of UK tariffs on American whiskeys.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt
My Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade has engaged with the US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, most recently on 12 November, to press for a resolution to the Section 232 tariffs. Our preference is the full removal of 232 tariffs, in which case the UK's tariffs on American whiskeys will not be required.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what consultations (a) she has held and (b) plans to hold with the North Wales Economic Ambition Board on the terms of free trade agreements she has concluded, or is seeking to conclude.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ministerial colleagues at the Office of Secretary of State for Wales regularly engage with the North Wales Economic Ambition Board on a wide range of policy areas.
The Department for International Trade has established an extensive stakeholder engagement framework consisting of various mechanisms to allow business and civil society stakeholders the opportunity to feed into its trade policy, ensuring the UK position is well-informed and reflects the interests of the whole of the UK.
We want every relevant organisation, in every part of the UK, to feel engaged with our trade policy and we will continue to engage with a range of businesses, industry, civil society and all willing stakeholders in different ways as we continue to seek out the opportunities free trade provides us.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to help safeguard the interests of British agriculture in trade negotiations with the United States.
Answered by Greg Hands
Any trade deal with the US must work for UK consumers, farmers, and companies. A deal with the US can help create opportunities for agricultural producers by opening up new markets for the UK’s high-quality produce.
As set out in our manifesto, we will not compromise our standards as we negotiate new trade deals. At the end of the transition period, all existing EU food safety, animal welfare, and environmental standards will be retained and form part of our domestic law. This includes all existing import requirements.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, when she plans to appoint a trade envoy to Libya.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Prime Minister’s Trade Envoys are appointed at the discretion and direction of the Prime Minister.
The position of PM’s Trade Envoy to Libya has been vacant since my former colleague Sir Henry Bellingham stepped down as a Member of Parliament. I would take this opportunity to state my appreciation for all of the work he undertook to advocate UK trade in relation to Libya.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential effectiveness of UK companies in developing Bahrain's oil and gas sector.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Our assessment is that UK companies should be in an excellent position to compete for suitable projects.
UK Export Finance stands ready to provide support.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by George Hollingbery
As of 30 January, my department has laid four exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.