Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether exemptions from the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism were sought by Government during accession negotiations to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) with all member states.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership’s (CPTPP’s) investment chapter includes investor protections that are backed by a modern and transparent investor state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism. These commitments guarantee the treatment investors will receive when accessing and operating in CPTPP markets and provides an independent form of legal redress should investors not receive such treatment.
The UK already has investment agreements containing ISDS provisions with seven of the eleven CPTPP countries: Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Having ISDS provisions in a treaty is not new for the UK with the majority of CPTPP countries.
In light of the investment relationship the UK has with Australia and New Zealand, we have agreed to disapply the ISDS provisions in CPTPP between our countries.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had recent discussions with her Mexican counterpart on taking steps to facilitate student exchanges between UK and Mexican students.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Secretary of State met with her Mexican counterpart in Mexico City in February. Discussions focused on boosting trade and investment between the United Kingdom and Mexico through the UK’s accession to CPTPP and a new free trade agreement. Facilitating student exchange was not a topic of discussion. However, I am pleased to note that the UK Government’s outward student mobility scheme which was launched in 2021, the Turing Scheme, has already successfully enabled funded organisations to send more than 800 UK students on placements to study and work in Mexico.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will take steps with her Mexican counterpart to include measures on the mutual recognition of higher education qualifications in a free trade agreement with that country.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We are looking to enhance our existing trading relationship with Mexico through a modern free trade agreement which secures additional benefits for the whole of the UK. We do not pursue the mutual recognition of higher education qualifications in our trade agreements. However, we will be seeking commitments to facilitate the mutual recognition of professional qualifications such as for architecture and audit. As well as other measures which reduce trade barriers and provide certainty for the UK’s world-leading higher education service suppliers.
Asked by: Lord Allen of Kensington (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in negotiating a free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council; and when they expect to reach an agreement.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We have an ambitious programme of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations to help our nation become a truly Global Britain. We have completed two rounds of negotiations with Mexico, and three rounds of negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council. The fifth round of negotiations with Canada concluded on 24 March.
We look forward to concluding negotiations at the earliest opportunity, but it is the substance of trade deals that is important, not the timing.
Asked by: Lord Allen of Kensington (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in negotiating a new trade agreement with Canada; and when they expect an agreement to be reached.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We have an ambitious programme of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations to help our nation become a truly Global Britain. We have completed two rounds of negotiations with Mexico, and three rounds of negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council. The fifth round of negotiations with Canada concluded on 24 March.
We look forward to concluding negotiations at the earliest opportunity, but it is the substance of trade deals that is important, not the timing.
Asked by: Lord Allen of Kensington (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in negotiating a new trade agreement with Mexico; and when they expect an agreement to be reached.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We have an ambitious programme of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations to help our nation become a truly Global Britain. We have completed two rounds of negotiations with Mexico, and three rounds of negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council. The fifth round of negotiations with Canada concluded on 24 March.
We look forward to concluding negotiations at the earliest opportunity, but it is the substance of trade deals that is important, not the timing.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many UK pensioners living overseas had their pensions stopped incorrectly in 2022 broken down by nation.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Where payments are stopped and then reinstated, this is due to late return or non-return of a life certificate rather than from anything incorrect on the part of DWP. The number of payments stopped as a result of late return or non-return are:
Albania | 7 |
Andorra | 51 |
Anguilla | 74 |
Antigua | 88 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 8 |
Armenia | 1 |
Bahamas | 211 |
Bangladesh | 429 |
Barbados | 796 |
Benin | 2 |
Bermuda | 90 |
Brazil | 737 |
Bulgaria | 348 |
Burkina Faso | 1 |
Canada | 19,061 |
Cayman Islands | 42 |
Central African Republic | 1 |
Costa Rica | 55 |
Croatia | 105 |
Cyprus | 1,831 |
Czech Republic | 126 |
Denmark | 525 |
Djibouti | 1 |
Dominican Republic | 38 |
Egypt | 224 |
Estonia | 18 |
Falkland Islands | 11 |
Fiji | 60 |
France | 1,690 |
Gambia | 50 |
Georgia | 12 |
Greenland | 0 |
Grenada | 217 |
Guam | 0 |
Guyana | 86 |
Hong Kong | 527 |
Hungary | 146 |
India | 1,934 |
Indonesia | 246 |
Israel | 426 |
Jamaica | 2,847 |
Jordan | 67 |
Kenya | 234 |
Kuwait | 17 |
Kyrgyzstan | 5 |
Liberia | 2 |
Luxembourg | 85 |
Malawi | 33 |
Malaysia | 74 |
Maldive Islands | 0 |
Mexico | 454 |
Monaco | 92 |
Montserrat | 27 |
Morocco | 7 |
North Korea | 0 |
Panama | 28 |
Philippines | 1,564 |
Puerto Rico | 4 |
Republic of the Congo | 2 |
Russia | 5 |
Saudi Arabia | 3 |
Serbia & Montenegro | 77 |
Seychelles | 2 |
Singapore | 191 |
Slovakia | 8 |
Sri Lanka | 30 |
St Lucia | 457 |
St Vincent/Grenadines | 190 |
Sudan | 5 |
Swaziland | 2 |
Switzerland | 105 |
Syria | 6 |
Taiwan | 17 |
Tanzania | 34 |
Trinidad & Tobago | 264 |
Turks & Caicos Islands | 4 |
Uganda | 49 |
United Arab Emirates | 50 |
Uruguay | 22 |
Vietnam | 88 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 29 |
Virgin Islands (USA) | 15 |
Zimbabwe | 47 |
The Management Information used has been taken from the same operational source data systems as our published administrative data. However, as this Management Information is not a recognised National or Official Statistic, it has not been subjected to the same level of Quality Assurance. As a result, these figures should be treat with caution.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in receipt of a UK pension live in countries without a reciprocal social security agreement with the UK by (a) the country they live in and (b) their gender.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
This information is published on Stat-Xplore https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk and currently extends to November 2020.
The number of people in receipt of a UK State Pension living in countries without a reciprocal social security agreement with the UK is 298,294.
The breakdown by country and gender are shown in the tables below:
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Antigua | 141 | 166 |
Albania | 8 | 7 |
Algeria | 13 | 5 |
Andorra | 91 | 74 |
Anguilla | 33 | 48 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 20 | 19 |
Argentina | 128 | 132 |
Aruba | .. | 6 |
Ascension Island | 7 | .. |
Australia | 100,047 | 122,289 |
Bahamas | 116 | 139 |
Bahrain | 79 | 48 |
Bangladesh | 175 | 795 |
Belize | 57 | 38 |
Bolivia | 17 | 12 |
Botswana | 89 | 55 |
Brazil | 485 | 284 |
Brunei | 16 | 8 |
Burkina Faso | .. | .. |
Burma (Myanmar) | .. | .. |
Cameroon | 6 | 5 |
Cape Verde Islands | .. | 6 |
Cayman Islands | 111 | 78 |
Chile | 168 | 141 |
China People's Republic | 249 | 74 |
Colombia | 128 | 127 |
Cook Islands | 9 | .. |
Costa Rica | 65 | 38 |
Dom Commonwealth (Dominica) | 217 | 244 |
Dominican Republic | 26 | 17 |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Ecuador | 54 | 33 |
Egypt | 189 | 116 |
El Salvador | 8 | 5 |
Equatorial Guinea | .. | .. |
Ethiopia | 22 | 7 |
Falkland Islands & Dep | 47 | 26 |
Faroe Islands | 5 | 7 |
Fiji | 63 | 28 |
French Polynesia | .. | .. |
Gambia | 44 | 23 |
Ghana | 451 | 388 |
Greenland | .. | .. |
Grenada | 402 | 500 |
Guatemala | 7 | 5 |
Guyana | 110 | 101 |
Honduras | 6 | 8 |
Hong Kong | 1,510 | 904 |
India | 2,145 | 2,113 |
Indonesia | 314 | 42 |
Iran | 21 | 11 |
Iraq | 5 | .. |
Japan | 4,644 | 2,158 |
Jordan | 72 | 46 |
Kampuchea | 40 | .. |
Kenya | 345 | 305 |
Kuwait | 10 | 5 |
Laos | 19 | .. |
Lebanon | 73 | 49 |
Lesotho | 6 | 7 |
Macau | 7 | .. |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Malagasy Republic | 6 | 5 |
Malawi | 39 | 31 |
Malaysia | 1,072 | 1,159 |
Mexico | 241 | 228 |
Monaco | 246 | 143 |
Montserrat | 29 | 40 |
Morocco | 112 | 70 |
Mozambique | 9 | .. |
Namibia | 49 | 42 |
Nepal | 29 | 13 |
Nevis, St Kitts-Nevis | 131 | 148 |
New Caledonia | 8 | 10 |
Nicaragua | 15 | 6 |
Nigeria | 1,090 | 804 |
Norfolk Island | .. | .. |
Oman | 71 | 29 |
Pakistan | 1,103 | 1,579 |
Panama | 23 | 14 |
Papua New Guinea | 8 | 5 |
Paraguay | 14 | 8 |
Peru | 66 | 64 |
Qatar | 41 | 15 |
Republic of Azerbaijan | 11 | .. |
Republic of Belarus | 13 | 12 |
Republic of Georgia | 19 | .. |
Republic of Kazakhstan | 12 | .. |
Republic of Kyrgyzstan | 5 | .. |
Republic of Moldova | 5 | .. |
Republic of Yemen | 172 | 501 |
Russian Federation | 95 | 41 |
San Marino | .. | .. |
Saudi Arabia | 75 | 20 |
Senegal | .. | 8 |
Seychelles | 73 | 78 |
Sierra Leone | 18 | 27 |
Singapore | 514 | 359 |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Solomon Islands | .. | .. |
Somalia | 9 | 13 |
South Africa | 12,932 | 17,411 |
South Korea | 288 | 91 |
Sri Lanka | 557 | 572 |
St Helena & Deps | 56 | 48 |
St Lucia | 376 | 454 |
St Vincents & Grenadines | 221 | 229 |
Sudan | 5 | .. |
Surinam | 5 | .. |
Swaziland | 42 | 37 |
Syria | 5 | .. |
Tahiti | 7 | .. |
Taiwan | 88 | 20 |
Tanzania | 54 | 23 |
Thailand | 4,777 | 586 |
Togo | .. | .. |
Tonga | 8 | 6 |
Trinidad & Tobago | 456 | 843 |
Tunisia | 62 | 53 |
Turks & Caicos Islands | 17 | 6 |
Uganda | 47 | 26 |
Ukraine | 59 | 33 |
United Arab Emirates | 431 | 180 |
United States Minor Outlying Islands | .. | 5 |
Uruguay | 35 | 27 |
Vanuatu | 24 | 13 |
Venezuela | 24 | 16 |
Vietnam | 105 | 14 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 28 | 19 |
Western Samoa | .. | .. |
Zambia | 79 | 86 |
Zimbabwe | 311 | 546 |
Please note:
1. The ".." denotes a nil or negligible number of claimants or award amount based on a nil or negligible number of claimants.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many UK pensioners living overseas had their pensions stopped in 2022 because of life certificate forms and postal issues, broken down by country.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
DWP allows 16 weeks for the completed Life Certificate to be returned under normal circumstances. In 2022, DWP was notified of the postal issues effecting deliveries in Canada. In light of this, we reinstated the State Pension of those effected and extended the normal 16-week time limit by another 48 weeks for the completed Life Certificates to be returned.
DWP does not maintain data regarding the temporary suspension of International State Pensions owing to postal issues, as this is not something the Department is able to determine. However, DWP does hold data for the temporary suspensions due to the non/late return of a Life Certificate in 2022.
The number of UK State Pension customers whose payments were temporarily suspended due to the non/late return of Life Certificates issued in 2022 was 37,517; this is broken down by country as follows: -
Albania | 7 |
Andorra | 51 |
Anguilla | 74 |
Antigua | 88 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 8 |
Armenia | 1 |
Bahamas | 211 |
Bangladesh | 429 |
Barbados | 796 |
Benin | 2 |
Bermuda | 90 |
Brazil | 737 |
Bulgaria | 348 |
Burkina Faso | 1 |
Canada | 19,061 |
Cayman Islands | 42 |
Central African Republic | 1 |
Costa Rica | 55 |
Croatia | 105 |
Cyprus | 1,831 |
Czech Republic | 126 |
Denmark | 525 |
Djibouti | 1 |
Dominican Republic | 38 |
Egypt | 224 |
Estonia | 18 |
Falkland Islands | 11 |
Fiji | 60 |
France | 1,690 |
Gambia | 50 |
Georgia | 12 |
Greenland | 0 |
Grenada | 217 |
Guam | 0 |
Guyana | 86 |
Hong Kong | 527 |
Hungary | 146 |
India | 1,934 |
Indonesia | 246 |
Israel | 426 |
Jamaica | 2,847 |
Jordan | 67 |
Kenya | 234 |
Kuwait | 17 |
Kyrgyzstan | 5 |
Liberia | 2 |
Luxembourg | 85 |
Malawi | 33 |
Malaysia | 74 |
Maldive Islands | 0 |
Mexico | 454 |
Monaco | 92 |
Montserrat | 27 |
Morocco | 7 |
North Korea | 0 |
Panama | 28 |
Philippines | 1,564 |
Puerto Rico | 4 |
Republic of the Congo | 2 |
Russia | 5 |
Saudi Arabia | 3 |
Serbia & Montenegro | 77 |
Seychelles | 2 |
Singapore | 191 |
Slovakia | 8 |
Sri Lanka | 30 |
St Lucia | 457 |
St Vincent/Grenadines | 190 |
Sudan | 5 |
Swaziland | 2 |
Switzerland | 105 |
Syria | 6 |
Taiwan | 17 |
Tanzania | 34 |
Trinidad & Tobago | 264 |
Turks & Caicos Islands | 4 |
Uganda | 49 |
United Arab Emirates | 50 |
Uruguay | 22 |
Vietnam | 88 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 29 |
Virgin Islands (USA) | 15 |
Zimbabwe | 47 |
The Management Information used has been taken from the same operational source data systems as our published administrative data. However, as this Management Information is not a recognised National or Official Statistic, it has not been subjected to the same level of Quality Assurance. As a result, these figures should be treat with caution.
Asked by: Nick Thomas-Symonds (Labour - Torfaen)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what her planned timetable is for negotiating trade agreements with (a) India, (b) Canada and (c) Mexico.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We have an ambitious programme of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations to help our nation become a truly Global Britain.
We have completed seven rounds of negotiations with India, four rounds of negotiations with Canada, and two rounds of negotiations with Mexico.
We look forward to concluding negotiations at the earliest opportunity, but it is the substance of trade deals that is important, not the timing.