Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the priority objectives of a Prime Minister's trade envoy.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Prime Minister’s Trade Envoys support the UK’s economic growth and help businesses take advantage of the overseas opportunities arising from our global trade agenda.
They champion Global Britain and promote the UK as a destination of choice for inward investment across all regions of the UK, helping to level up the country by supplementing the UK’s existing trade relations in their respective markets, working with our regional Trade Commissioners and global network to promote British business across the globe.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the criteria for selection to be a Prime Minister's trade envoy.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Prime Minister’s Trade Envoys are drawn from both Houses and from across the political spectrum. As unpaid roles they are chosen based on relevant skills, experience and their appetite to undertake the role. Experience can be related to a particular market or UK industry knowledge, or their Government-to-Government experience, as well as willingness and an ability to undertake some international travel.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the (1) status, and (2) timetable, for the conclusion of a free trade agreement with India; and whether the (a) sectorial, and (b) regional, diversity in India will be included in that agreement.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
HM Government will soon conclude round 5 of negotiations, which is taking place from 18th-29th July. Both countries have committed to concluding the majority of talks on a comprehensive trade deal by Diwali in October 2022. We are in detailed discussions on text and are confident in our progress as we work towards a comprehensive deal for the whole of the United Kingdom.
We are negotiating with the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, responsible for negotiating trade deals on behalf of the Government of India.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider entering into negotiations with the United States and Commonwealth countries to establish a single free trade agreement involving all of those nations.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
The United Kingdom already has trade deals with 33 Commonwealth nations. In addition, we are negotiating free trade agreements with India, as well as Brunei and Malaysia through the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
A further fifteen Commonwealth nations, who qualify as developing nations, will benefit from reduced tariffs under the new Developing Countries Trading Scheme.
The United Kingdom is ready to progress negotiations on a trade deal with the United States when they are ready to do so. In the meantime, both sides have agreed to develop a roadmap to further strengthen Anglo-American trade.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many requests have been (1) received, and (2) accepted, by the Secretary of State for International Trade for a meeting with a trade minister from another government in each of the past 12 months; from which governments they have received such a request; and when any such meetings (a) occurred, and (b) are due to take place.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Given the number of invitations received for Ministers, this information is not readily available or held centrally.
Meetings between Ministerial departments and their international counterparts are a regular part of Government business. For security and diplomatic reasons we do not routinely publish details of these meetings.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the environmental impact of the UK joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
The Government shares the public’s high regard for the UK’s environmental protections and has made clear it will not sign trade deals that compromise these. We will continue to ensure a high level of protection of the environment in new trade agreements. The UK has long supported the promotion of our environmental values globally and this will continue if we join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
The Government will ensure that accession negotiations with CPTPP are consistent with the UK’s environmental interests and the Government’s policies and priorities. We will be outlining our specific position on environmental standards in our Outline Approach and will publish a scoping assessment, including an assessment of the potential impacts on the environment, at the outset of negotiations.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what criteria they use to determine which (1) countries. (2) regions, and (3) markets, have a Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy appointed to them.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
The Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy Programme supports British businesses overseas and attracts investment into the UK. The programme works in collaboration with other trade promotion activities, and it focuses on emerging and high growth markets where additional senior interactions can be valuable, or larger economies where multiple interactions at different levels are effective. Trade Envoys are appointed to markets where there are opportunities to increase bilateral trade.
We are constantly reviewing suitable countries, regions, and markets to identify where the appointment of a Trade Envoy can be of greatest benefit to the trade and investment aims of the UK with the Prime Minister ultimately making that decision.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 18 March 2020 (HL2250), whether they will now answer the question put, namely when they intend to publish (1) each of Her Majesty's trade commissioners' latest annual reports setting out the strategy, objectives and overarching priorities for each delegated region, and (2) the budgets supporting the delivery of those objectives.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Individual Regional Trade Plans are not published.
The Department for International Trade’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2019-20 (link) were laid in Parliament on 16 July 2020. Budgets for Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioners (HMTCs) are published at a group level and are included in Global Trade and Investment Group Budget (p63, Resource DEL expenditure).
HMTC budgets for 2019-20 were published at a regional level in the National Audit Office report ‘Department for International Trade and UK Export Finance: Support for Exports’ (link). The table is replicated attached.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to create a comprehensive trade and environment strategy; and how they plan to publicise any strategy ahead of COP26.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
The Government is clear that more trade does not have to come at the expense of the environment. We are actively working to promote environmental objectives through our independent bilateral and multilateral trade policy as well as through our export and investment promotion support.
For example, under the UK’s new Global Tariff, we have liberalised tariffs on over 100 environmentally friendly goods. The Government has also underscored the environment as one of the three priorities for UK leadership in the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
We will use our presidency of COP26 and the G7 this year to continue to push for ambitious international action to tackle climate change and nature loss, including through trade.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure cooperation between the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for International Trade, on (1) trade, and (2) climate strategy and policy implementation.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Climate change and trade are top priorities for the Government, and cooperation across government departments will be vital for delivering our ambitious environmental commitments. Therefore, the Prime Minister established the Cabinet Committee on Climate Change which brings together ministers responsible for domestic and international climate change policy. This includes representation from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Department for International Trade (DIT).
We will continue to work together at all levels to factor climate change and environmental impacts into the Government’s trade strategy, in order to drive the transition to a more sustainable global economy, whilst delivering economic benefits for the UK.