Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to increase (a) international and (b) domestic consumer awareness of non-food and drink products made in Britain.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department for International Trade (DIT) is responsible for promotion of UK products in international markets. Some of the measures this department is taking to boost exports of non-food and drink products made in the UK are: trade promotion campaigns in key markets; UK presence at tradeshows; leveraging DIT’s teams in 110 countries; providing finance and insurance from UK Export Finance; global promotion via the GREAT campaign; export hubs in all Nations; and working in partnership with UK companies and trade associations.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to build (a) international and (b) domestic consumer awareness of non-food and drink products made in the UK.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department for International Trade (DIT) is responsible for promotion of UK products in international markets. Some of the measures this department is taking to boost exports of non-food and drink products made in the UK are: trade promotion campaigns in key markets; UK presence at tradeshows; leveraging DIT’s teams in 110 countries; providing finance and insurance from UK Export Finance; global promotion via the GREAT campaign; export hubs in all Nations; and working in partnership with UK companies and trade associations.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what progress she is making to secure a free trade agreement with Canada.
Answered by Greg Hands
The UK-Canada Trade Continuity Agreement (TCA) was signed on 9 December 2020 and completed Constitutional Reform and Governance (CRaG) in Parliament on 3 February 2021. Once ratified in Canada, the TCA will lock in preferential trade in goods and services worth £23 billion in 2019. We also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Canada on 21 December 2020 ensuring continued preferential goods trade pending full ratification. The TCA sets out a clear path to begin negotiating a new, more ambitious trade deal, which will be tailored to the British economy and interests. The Department is currently preparing for these talks with a view to beginning negotiations later in the year.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions she has had on a future trade deal with her (a) Australian, (b) Canadian and (c) New Zealand counterparts.
Answered by Greg Hands
Strengthening and enhancing our bilateral trading relationships with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, are key priorities for the Government’s trade negotiations programme.
The Department for International Trade is committed to negotiating and securing ambitious free trade deals with Australia and New Zealand as soon as possible, harnessing the opportunity to negotiate a high-quality agreement with like-minded, liberal trading nations. Officials have just closed the second round of negotiations with Australia, with the third expected to take place in November, and they will open the second round of negotiations with New Zealand on 19th October.
Similarly, both the United Kingdom and Canada agree on the importance of protecting and strengthening our trading relationship, now that we have left the European Union. Our shared goal with the Government of Canada is a seamless transition of our trading relationship beyond 1st January 2020, so that British and Canadian businesses and consumers can continue to benefit. Officials have been in regular contact to discuss this since trade talks recommenced in August, with technical discussions taking place on a rolling basis.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of using digital platforms to progress trade negotiations during the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Greg Hands
This Government aims to agree Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with countries accounting for 80% of current UK trade within the next three years.
We have used digital platforms to launch our negotiation programme with the priority countries of the USA, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. These negotiations are now proceeding at pace on a remote basis mirroring the long-established structures for engagement on trade.