Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans his Department has to support UK businesses to increase exports after the UK leaves the EU.

The UK produces billions of pounds worth of high-quality goods and services each year, and there is a clear demand from around the world for these products with UK exports rising 2.0% (12bn) to £626.4bn, in the 12 months ending October 2018. [ONS UK Trade: October 2018]. The Export Strategy, launched in August 2018, sets out how the Government will encourage, inform, connect and finance UK businesses to enable them to take advantage of this international demand.

The Department for International Trade’s offer to UK businesses includes impartial export advice from International Trade Advisors and our overseas network in markets across the world. British businesses are also promoted via the government’s network of Trade Envoys and given assistance in the Midlands and Northern Powerhouse through our Export Champions.

The Department also runs a major UK facing marketing campaign called “Exporting is Great” which inspires and encourages business to start exporting and seek new markets. The campaign is UK wide and includes a mobile outreach export hub.

DIT is building on the Export Strategy with a whole of Government Approach and has recently enhanced digital service on great.gov.uk which allows business to connect to over 20,000 export opportunities and ensures finance is at the heart of its offer: in 2017/18 UKEF provided £2.5bn in support, helping 191 UK companies sell to 75 markets around the world. 77% of these companies were SMEs.

The full Export Strategy can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/export-strategy-supporting-and-connecting-businesses-to-grow-on-the-world-stage