Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with the Leader of the House on making time for a debate on a substantive motion on the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership during the ratification process.

The Government is committed to effective scrutiny of its trade agenda and has put in place a comprehensive framework for scrutiny of free trade agreements (FTAs). This includes a commitment to seek to hold a general debate on a new FTA where one is requested by the relevant Select Committee in a timely manner, subject to parliamentary time. The Government's view is that a general debate is the appropriate mechanism for Parliament to debate a new FTA.