Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of conducting environmental impact assessments on future trade agreements that the Government seeks to negotiate; and if she will make a statement.

The Government has committed to producing scoping assessments which are published at the point of launching a negotiation. These include a preliminary assessment of the potential implications for the environment. It has also committed to publishing an impact assessment at the point of signature, which include a more detailed assessment of the likely environmental impacts.

The Government will continue to assess environmental impacts in these documents. It also runs public consultations ahead of commencing trade negotiations on any new trade agreement.