Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions has he had with his counterparts in Commonwealth countries on the future of trade and investment between the UK and other member states.
Answered by Greg Hands
In March 2017 the Commonwealth Trade Ministers' Meeting was held in London. My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade and my noble Friend the Minister of State for Trade Policy met over 20 trade ministers from across the Commonwealth. My Ministerial colleagues and I continue to have a range of contacts with counterparts from the Commonwealth, both specifically in preparation for the 2018 Commonwealth Summit and as part of our ongoing bilateral trade relationships.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions he has had with other Commonwealth countries on future trade and investment opportunities.
Answered by Mark Garnier - Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Work and Pensions)
During the Commonwealth Trade Ministers’ Meeting held earlier this month, my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade, and my Noble Friend Lord Price, met many of the 35 visiting Commonwealth Trade Ministers to discuss trade and investment issues of mutual interest during the two day event.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the level of business interest in the great.gov.uk digital platform.
Answered by Mark Garnier - Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Work and Pensions)
The great.gov.uk digital platform has received over 2,400,000 page views and 780,000 unique visitors since its launch on 14 November 2016.
Since the launch, over 10,000 user accounts have been created on great.gov.uk services and nearly 25,000 enquiries about export opportunities have been submitted.
The Department for International Trade is continually evaluating and iterating its services to ensure that it provides the best possible support to businesses.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking to increase British beer exports.
Answered by Mark Garnier - Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Work and Pensions)
The Department for International Trade is committed to increasing exports of British food and drink, including beer. We offer a range of services and support for both new and experienced exporters and we work closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and industry bodies such as the British Beer and Pub Association to help British brewers in their export efforts.
We are developing export campaigns in high growth markets where there is potential for increasing sales of British beer and we continue to help British brewers enter those markets and expand internationally. For example, in November last year we organised the first ever UK Beer and Cider Pavilion at the Food and Hotel China trade show in Shanghai. Over 30 British brands were represented.