Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
, To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what accountability standards and reporting mechanisms for civilian harm the UK requires of Saudi Arabia for the exports of arms and military equipment; and what the evidence basis is for those requirements.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
Licence applications for the export of arms and military equipment are rigorously assessed against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria (the ‘Consolidated Criteria’).
A key test for licensing in these circumstances is Criterion 2c of the Consolidated Criteria, which considers whether there is a clear risk that the items to be exported might be used in the commission of a serious violation of international humanitarian law. These assessments take into account all relevant sources of information, and the then Secretary of State for International Trade’s written statement of 7th July 2020 (HCWS339) set out the methodology that is applied to credible incidents of concern in detail.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to her Department's press release, Creation of four major new Trade and Investment Hubs across the UK, published on 23 March 2021, if she will expand the remit of those hubs to widen outreach by engaging customers on trade across the UK.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The new Trade and Investment Hubs will be home to teams of export and investment specialists. These teams can provide businesses with expert support and advice to help them maximise their export potential. They will also help businesses boost their trade in new markets overseas, gain better access to major trade markets like Japan, the US and India, and feed directly into the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) free trade agreements programme.
The new Hubs build on the nationwide support already offered by DIT. This support includes the UK Export Finance offer, the £38m Internationalisation Fund, the Export Academy programme, our network of around 300 International Trade Advisors across England, and over 400 Regional Export Champions.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to his Department's press release, Creation of four major new Trade and Investment Hubs across the UK, published on 23 March 2021, what steps her Department is taking to work with (a) consumers and (b) other interest groups via specific outreach in those areas and other parts of the UK.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The new Trade and Investment Hubs will be home to teams of export and investment specialists. These teams can provide businesses with expert support and advice to help them maximise their export potential. They will also help businesses boost their trade in new markets overseas, gain better access to major trade markets like Japan, the US and India, and feed directly into the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) free trade agreements programme.
The new Hubs build on the nationwide support already offered by DIT. This support includes the UK Export Finance offer, the £38m Internationalisation Fund, the Export Academy programme, our network of around 300 International Trade Advisors across England, and over 400 Regional Export Champions.