Oral Answers to Questions
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 6 months ago)
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Conor Burns
We are working aggressively to continue the roll-overs, and many are very close to being completed. Despite the hon. Gentleman’s distinguished position as Chair of the International Trade Committee, if optimism were a disease, he would be immune.
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
The Trade Bill was supposed to govern the roll-over of EU trade deals, but the Government abandoned it in the last Session because they knew that they would lose votes on important amendments, including on scrutiny and parliamentary approval. Can the Minister confirm that the Government will carry over those vital provisions into the new trade Bill, so that elected Members of this Parliament can properly scrutinise all trade agreements, to prevent our NHS, food standards and environmental protections from being traded away to President Trump?
Conor Burns
As a distinguished parliamentarian, the hon. Lady knows how this House works. She will have ample opportunity to scrutinise the trade Bill during its passage through Parliament and, if she wishes, to make amendments to the Bill, which can then be considered by the House. I wish that the Opposition would stop peddling this lie, which is worrying people, about the NHS and the United States. The Prime Minister has made it repeatedly clear that the NHS is not on the table in any trade agreement. She should stop scaremongering.
Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
Peter Aldous (Waveney) (Con)
Mims Davies
I thank the hon. Lady for this opportunity to comment on the wider picture. As the Minister for employment with responsibility for jobcentres, I would tell anybody experiencing hardship at any point in their life to go to the jobcentre and to speak to their local citizens advice bureau—[Interruption.] The jobcentres do so much more than help people into work. They are a place of safety if you are suffering domestic violence, if you are looking to get support on benefits or if you are looking for housing support. It is a severe frustration for me as the Minister that people simply do not understand that jobcentres do much more than help people into work.
Judith Cummins
Yesterday, along with many other colleagues in this House, I met a group of 1950s women who have been affected by the changes to the state pension age. Having been silenced while other groups took legal action, they are frustrated that they are still no further forward. What concrete actions will the Minister now take to help those women and give them the justice they deserve?
Mims Davies
I appreciate that this will look and feel frustrating to many women because of the legal action and the live litigation, but I absolutely believe that we are trying to find a balance in our Department in supporting people of all ages at all points in their lives when they need support and ensuring that we are balancing an ageing demographic and a secure retirement.
NHS and Future Trade Deals
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 9 months ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hartlepool (Mike Hill) on opening this important debate and speaking so eloquently on behalf of the Petitions Committee. I thank hon. Members who contributed to the debate, including my hon. Friends the Members for York Central (Rachael Maskell), for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham), for Hornsey and Wood Green (Catherine West), for Sheffield Central (Paul Blomfield), for Weaver Vale (Mike Amesbury), for Warwick and Leamington (Matt Western), for Blaydon (Liz Twist) and for Warrington South (Faisal Rashid), as well as the hon. Member for South Thanet (Craig Mackinlay).
The petition calls on the Government to categorically rule out including the NHS in future trade deals. It has been signed by more than 166,000 people, while another petition organised by Keep Our NHS Public has been signed by more than half a million people. Last week the Government published a summary of responses to their consultation on trade negotiations with the US, Australia and New Zealand, as well as potential accession to the comprehensive and progressive agreement for trans-Pacific partnership. Over 600,000 people responded, with an overwhelming number of those responses calling explicitly for protections for the NHS in trade deals.
The British public are absolutely clear: they do not want the NHS to be bargained away as part of a trade deal, they do not want companies to have the right to sue our Government for decisions taken in the interests of public health, and they do not want drug prices to be pushed up by American pharmaceutical giants. We on the Labour Benches firmly agree with that. We are extremely proud of the Labour-created NHS and we know how important it is to the people of the United Kingdom. We will always defend the principles of universality and the NHS being free at the point of use.
A number of hon. Members, including my hon. Friends the Members for Hartlepool, for Coventry South, for Blaydon, for Warrington South and for Hornsey and Wood Green, mentioned the comment made by the President of the United States when he said the NHS would be “on the table” in any US-UK trade deal. A few hours later, perhaps after some encouragement from the current Prime Minister, he appeared to row back somewhat. On Wednesday we are entering a brave new world, with a new Prime Minister. The person almost certain to be that new Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), has repeatedly stated that he regards concluding a quick trade deal with the US as an absolute priority. So this is a timely debate and one that will no doubt continue in the coming months and years.
My hon. Friend the Member for Blaydon made the point that the NHS cannot be part of trade deal; that is her red line. My hon. Friend the Member for Warrington South spoke about our moral duty. In my remaining time, I want to mention a number of areas where aspects of trade deals could threaten the NHS if proper safeguards and guarantees are not put in place. I will then turn to the importance of the proper scrutiny of trade deals, both in Parliament and more generally, to ensure that no Government can put our NHS in danger.
First is the risk that trade deals could increase and consolidate privatisation of the NHS. Services chapters in free trade agreements typically include provisions that lock in liberalisation measures, such as privatisation. There is genuine concern that trade agreements could force us to lock in market liberalisation of the NHS, so that future Governments are unable to bring these services back in house. The move from positive lists, where only listed services are subject to liberalisation, to negative lists, where all services are deemed open to liberalisation, unless explicitly excluded, makes that significantly more likely.
Under the negative list system, the UK would have to explicitly opt out all healthcare and related services. If we did not, it could be difficult to ever bring privatised services back in house. In my area of Bradford, I am fighting alongside Unison to stop the creation of a wholly owned company for NHS staff such as cleaners and porters. If this goes ahead, and we agree a trade deal without the correct exceptions, bringing those services back into the NHS will be even more difficult and complex.
There are similar concerns about the inclusion of ISDS procedures in trade agreements. The threat of Government or NHS bodies being sued under ISDS, for example for bringing a service back in house, can have a major chilling effect on public policy decisions. There are numerous examples of this around the world. The Labour party has taken a clear position on ISDS. We do not think it is necessary and we do not think it is right. We believe there are many alternatives that balance the need for investor protection with proper guarantees, so that Governments can make public policy decisions without fear of corporate legal action.
A potential deal with the US is of major concern in respect of drug pricing. Last year, President Trump accused the rest of the world of freeloading on the US, resulting in high drug prices in the US. He claimed that:
“When foreign governments extort unreasonably low prices from U.S. drug makers, Americans have to pay more to subsidize the enormous cost of research and development”.
In particular, he blamed countries that
“use socialized healthcare to command unfairly low prices from U.S. drug makers”.
The NHS purchases drugs in significant volumes and therefore uses its bargaining power to set the price at the lowest possible levels. When the Office of the US Trade Representative published an outline of negotiating priorities for a US-UK trade deal in February, it included in a section entitled “Procedural Fairness for Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices” a statement that the US would
“seek standards to ensure that government regulatory reimbursement regimes are transparent, provide procedural fairness, are non-discriminatory, and provide full market access for U.S. products”.
The threat here should be evident. The US Secretary of Health and Human Services put it even more starkly when he said that the US would “pressure” other countries through trade negotiations,
“so we pay less, they pay more.”
The Government may say that that is not what they intend, but we must recognise the very real risk that, in the rush to complete a trade deal with the US, it will happen—a case of marrying in haste and repenting at leisure. In negotiations with Australia and New Zealand, the US has already tried to force changes to their medicines pricing policies. In those cases, the US backed down to achieve other trade objectives, but that is highly unlikely to be the case with the UK, given the size and scope of the NHS’s purchasing power. That could lead to higher prices and less choice for the drugs the NHS needs. The effect on the NHS would be significant and potentially devastating for patients.
As many hon. Members have made clear, there are numerous and credible threats to our NHS in potential future trade agreements. That is why parliamentary scrutiny of trade agreements is critical. We in the Labour party have repeatedly pushed for the Government to bring forward an inclusive, transparent and meaningful system of scrutiny and accountability. We tabled amendments to the Trade Bill and the Lords passed amendment 12 to the Bill, which secured Parliament’s right to vote on the mandate and to have a meaningful debate on any signed deal before ratification. Alas, it seems that the Trade Bill has disappeared. Can the Minister confirm today whether it will ever see the light of day again? It must be this Parliament’s right to scrutinise and approve trade deals and it is our duty to protect the NHS in trade agreements.
To finish, I thank all my hon. Friends who have made it clear that we in the Labour party will not allow our NHS to be sold off as the price of a quick trade deal. The NHS is more than a service; it is one of our proudest national institutions, and we must defend it with all we have.
Oral Answers to Questions
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 9 months ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
If trade is to work for all parts of the UK, all parts of the UK—including Kettering—must be heard before, during and after trade negotiations. The Government have announced the creation of a ministerial forum for international trade, but they have provided no information about its membership, how often it will meet, or what its exact terms of reference will be. Will the Secretary of State now give us some much-needed detail on how both the nations and the regions of the UK will be included in the entire trade negotiation process?
Dr Fox
As I have said, the Board of Trade’s advisers—which is what they are technically called—are the Secretaries of State for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We have visited all the English regions, and I intend in future to be constantly moving around the regions and nations of the UK, to thank the businesses that have contributed to Britain’s record export performance, to consult those businesses and to create a network of business people who will act as champions and mentors for companies that want to export.
Oral Answers to Questions
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 10 months ago)
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Dr Fox
I see it going from strength to strength, and as greater investment goes into both economies we will be able to scale up the innovation and creativity that is clearly shown in the tech sector. That will be of benefit not only to our two countries, but to the wider global economy.
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
I wish to associate myself fully with the Secretary of State’s remarks and pay tribute to the sacrifices of the fallen.
What assessment has the Secretary of State made of Israel’s participation in the agreement on pan-Euro-Mediterranean cumulation on the trade in medical products between the UK and the EU? What progress have the Government made in replicating other agreements between the EU and Israel, including the 2013 EU-Israel agreement on conformity assessment and acceptance of industrial products?
Dr Fox
As the hon. Lady is aware, we reached a continuity agreement with Israel on 19 February, which will come into effect as we leave the European Union. The conformity assessment element of that is very important because of the number of generic prescriptions that the NHS takes advantage of that are produced by Israeli pharmaceutical companies. We will want to see as much continuity in all those arrangements as possible.
International Education Strategy
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 11 months ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hollobone. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich West (Mr Bailey) on securing this important debate. I thank all hon. Members who spoke, including my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Stephen Timms) and my hon. Friend the Member for City of Durham (Dr Blackman-Woods).
International student numbers have increased year on year, and the Government have been quick to celebrate their success in growing education exports. However, we should note that the Department for Education has acknowledged that accurate data does not exist, so we cannot fully ascertain the export success of the sector. Although the figures may be rising, our performance relative to our peers, including Australia, Canada and the United States, leaves much to be desired. Given the time constraints in this debate, I will get straight to the point that hon. Members have made about international students and visas.
The all-party parliamentary group for international students noted last year that the Government’s hostile environment has resulted in a marked drop in the UK’s attractiveness as an education destination for international students. It notes that between 2012 and 2015, the UK recorded just 0.7% growth in international student numbers, compared with 22.5% in the US, 26.9% in Canada and 18% in Australia. Researchers at University College London found that the UK has already slipped behind Australia and the United States as the biggest destinations for international students, and warned that Canada is poised to overtake it. Universities UK data shows that the number of Indian students coming to the UK has approximately halved in the past five years.
The hostile environment policy vigorously pursued and rigorously applied by the Government has seen thousands of students denied the right to work after graduation. Thousands who were in the UK legally have had their student visas revoked, as the Government unfairly attempted to clamp down on international students. Universities UK also found that 98% of overseas students complied with their visa requirements. What message does that send to prospective students? Many students come to the UK in good faith to undertake a course of study but find themselves the victims of unscrupulous fraudsters. Instead of tackling the fraudsters, the Government have criminalised the students, who now may be seen as criminals.
The recent TOEIC cases, which my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham raised, highlight just how negligent and damaging the Government’s handling of this matter has been. Some 7,000 students have been found to have had their visas wrongly revoked over accusations of cheating. Students are left in a legal limbo, with their visas revoked through no fault of their own. They are barred from accessing public services and prevented from obtaining work or renting housing. Many find themselves barred from entering the United Kingdom for 10 years. The damage that that has done to our international reputation as a preferred destination for international students is clearly substantial.
The Government’s clumsy handling of trade talks with India will have done nothing to reverse that trend. The message is, “We want your business, but we don’t want your people.” The Government’s obsession with arbitrary immigration targets has slowed progress in talks about visa arrangements for students and workers. That is hurting our capacity to market UK education as an overseas export and sell Britain as a destination for foreign direct investment. It is likely to be a recurring issue in trade talks with other nations, given that the relaxing of mobility and visa arrangements is a key feature of modern trade agreements. Perhaps the Minister will tell us what the Government’s position on that matter will be, in respect of all the various trade agreements that they have promised, which have largely failed to materialise.
These issues have been compounded by the Government’s handling of Brexit. Since the EU referendum result, universities have reported a fall in the number of EU students—in particular, postgraduates—enrolling in British universities. EU students are reported to contribute up to £2.75 billion per year to the British economy through tuition fees and related costs. Additionally, approximately £1 billion in research funding to British universities is provided through the European Union.
It is now understood that the Government intend to withdraw home fee status from EU nationals from 2020 onwards, which is likely further to drive the decline in the number of international students. That is already squeezing the finances of many of our universities and stifling their capacity to plan for the future. Will the Minister set out precisely what the Government’s policy is in that respect? What impact will the proposed changes have on our education sector? That is in addition to the uncertainty about the future of Erasmus and Horizon 2020. How does the Minister intend to achieve the targets set out in the international educational strategy of boosting education exports to £35 billion a year and growing international student numbers by 600,000 by 2030?
Trade etc. in Dual-Use Items and Firearms etc. (Amendment) (EU Exit) (No. 2) Regulations 2019
Judith Cummins Excerpts(4 years, 11 months ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Austin.
When we considered the original Trade etc. in Dual-Use Items and Firearms etc. (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, I asked the Minister whether, given the drafting errors, we might be back at some point in the future to discuss them again—and here we are. As the Minister said, the regulations correct the drafting errors in the original regulations, including the inadvertent consequences of removing annex IV. Labour will, of course, support the Government in correcting those errors.
Hon. Members will be thankful to hear that I will not repeat everything that I said in the first debate, although I will make some brief points. Labour fully supports a robust export control system. We therefore support the Government’s intention to ensure that the existing approach to export controls for dual-use items and firearms continues once we leave the European Union. We want to see minimal disruption to exporters, and safeguards in place, to ensure that controlled goods are not inadvertently exported inappropriately.
Labour recognises the considerable contribution that a responsible, world-leading defence and security industry makes to the UK economy. We also believe that strong export controls have a vital role to play in sustaining a legitimate trade in arms, while protecting UK jobs and research and development. As I said before, we also believe that we need a tighter approach in some areas of our export control regime, and we have called for the cessation of exports to countries where there is a concern that those exports would be used to violate international humanitarian law.
Recently, I asked several written questions on some technical aspects of the regulations. One question concerned the way in which the UK Government intend to work with our European partners once we have left the EU. I hope that the Government will at some point set out exactly what they intend to do in that regard. For example, what relationship will the UK have with the dual-use co-ordination group? It is vital that, whatever our exact relationship with the EU, we continue to work with other countries on crucial issues such as this.
I repeat my question about how the Government intend to define human rights violations in the context of export licence applications, given that we will no longer be following the charter of fundamental rights.
Oral Answers to Questions
Judith Cummins Excerpts(5 years ago)
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Dr Fox
I am not quite sure how that relates to the question on healthcare, but it is an important point that the WTO rules provide a baseline, and the way in which countries get preferential treatment beyond that baseline is very often through a free trade agreement. That is why we want to see free trade agreements beyond what we have today.
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
I welcome the assurances that the Secretary of State has given to the House here today, but can he confirm that the principal protections for public services related to the comprehensive economic and trade agreement are in fact to be found in the joint interpretative instrument, which does not have the same legal force as the treaty? Crucially, it cannot alter or override it. If we are to have confidence in the protections for our public services and the NHS in future trade agreements, these must be written into the text of the treaties. Does he agree?
Dr Fox
However we get the assurances, that is what we need to do. In CETA, for example, they are contained in chapters 9 and 28, as well as annexe 2 and the additional national reservation in annexe 2. It is up to this House how we carry out public policy. For example, in the four years from 2006, Labour outsourced 0.5% of the NHS budget to the private sector each year, which of course fell to only half that level under the coalition Government. If Labour wants to increase to its previous levels of outsourcing, it should be able to do so under a policy protection given under the treaties.
Exiting the European Union (Customs)
Judith Cummins Excerpts(5 years ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
The statutory instrument before us today contains extremely important measures to ensure that the United Kingdom has a robust export controls regime in place after Brexit. It is needed to prevent UK exports from being used for torture activities, capital punishment or the suppression of citizens and their human rights in other countries. It is absolutely right that we ensure the continuance of this regime once we leave the European Union. Indeed, such is the seriousness of the matter covered by the draft regulations that we should take every opportunity to review and, where possible, improve our efforts in this area.
The draft regulations are set out in this draft instrument, together with measures voted on a few weeks ago in respect of an additional instrument. The Trade etc. in Dual-Use Items and Firearms etc. (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 were initially integrated into a single draft instrument tabled on 11 February and subsequently withdrawn. I would be grateful if the Minister could confirm why the Government withdrew that initial draft and split the measures contained in it. If there was defective drafting, can he confirm that the Government are satisfied that the revised wording properly remedies the defects?
The draft regulations operate to ensure that goods that could be used for the purposes of torture or capital punishment are banned from export and/or import or, where appropriate, that an authorisation must be sought and granted prior to their export. That is entirely right, and it is welcome that the Government have sought to continue the existing EU regime more or less unchanged in a UK-specific context after Brexit. This is by way of a series of amendments to a recent Council regulation which, as I understand it, has not yet otherwise been incorporated in our domestic statute book. For the most part, as with a number of recent statutory instruments, the draft regulations proposed by the Government seek to ensure that references to the European Union or European Community are replaced by references to the United Kingdom, our customs territory or the Secretary of State.
However, there are amendments whose intent requires clarification, and I will come to those points shortly. Fundamentally, these provisions seek to prevent the trade in goods that may be used for torture or to administer capital punishment. How we treat our citizens, including those who have committed even the most heinous of crimes, reflects the society that we strive to be. In that respect, I am proud that it was a Labour MP who brought about the end of capital punishment in this country. As I have said before, we in the Labour party want to ensure that a robust and rigorous control system is in place in respect of dual-use items, firearms and other sensitive material. That includes any items that may be used for the purposes of torture or capital punishment. Indeed, we have called for a tighter approach to our export controls regime and for the cessation of exports to countries where there is a concern that they will be used to violate international humanitarian law. It is therefore concerning that in 2015 the Government decided to drop explicit references to the Foreign Office’s long-standing commitment to making efforts to encourage the abolition of the death penalty overseas. Although I welcome the Minister’s comments, will he confirm whether the Government have any plans to make subsequent amendments to the draft regulations once the United Kingdom has left the European Union?
Regulation 2(24) amends article 24 of the existing regulations to allow the Secretary of State, by negative resolution, to vary our schedules to add or remove items and procedures, so it is crucial that we understand the Government’s policy intention in this regard. The use of the negative resolution procedure to lift restrictions currently in place is extremely concerning. Will the Minister therefore confirm whether he is satisfied that these measures are sufficient to prevent the UK’s participation in the trade in torture goods or in drugs administered for the purposes of capital punishment, including the transfer of intellectual property within international corporate structures, such that UK-developed products might be reproduced or R&D transferred intragroup for such purposes?
Paragraphs (12) and (17) of regulation 2 remove the requirement to refer decisions made in the past three years by other EU member states in respect of these regulations. It seems entirely sensible to refer to precedents established by other countries, particularly where those countries ostensibly operate the same regime as our own. Perhaps the Minister can clarify whether the Government intend to continue to refer to any such precedents in any future decisions made by the Secretary of State. Indeed, paragraph (12) removes the EU from the list of competent bodies whose findings should be referenced, so I would be grateful if the Minister clarified the Government’s intention in that regard.
Paragraph (17) of regulation 2 removes the obligation of the Commission and member states to develop best practice approaches, alongside paragraph (31), which clearly ends the UK’s participation in the anti-torture co-ordination group. Although the Government might consider that to be necessary once we have withdrawn from the EU, it would be helpful if he set out how the Government intend to continue dialogue with our international partners, particularly in the EU, on common approaches to controlling torture goods.
Furthermore, paragraphs (14) and (15) of regulation 2 seek to remove references to the national treatment provisions in respect of the trade in leg irons, gang chains and portable electric shock devices. Again, I ask the Minister to put on the record what the Government’s intended approach to these measures will be.
Paragraph (32) of regulation 2 omits article 32 of the European regulations, which requires the Commission to publish a periodic report on the impact of these measures every five years and to include proposals for improvement. How do the Government intend to report on these measures in a UK-specific context?
Finally, paragraph (33) of regulation 2 removes the national determination of appropriate penalties provisions. I would be grateful if the Minister also put on the record what the Government’s proposed penalties for breaches of these regulations will be.
Draft Trade etc. in Dual-Use items and Firearms etc. (amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019
Judith Cummins Excerpts(5 years, 1 month ago)
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Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. The sifting Committee has drawn the draft regulations to the special attention of both Houses on the basis that their drafting is defective and that particular points require further elucidation. The Department has acknowledged the legislation’s flaws, but we are still considering the defective draft, as the Government have not withdrawn it or laid before the House a draft with the defective wording amended, so the wording of the draft before the Committee may not be the wording of the final statutory instrument. Can the Minister confirm whether the Government intend to amend the regulations in the light of the sifting Committee’s comments?
That Committee referred specifically to regulation 3(5)(f), which amends the final paragraph of article 4 of the dual-use regulation so that it reads: “This Regulation is without prejudice to the right of Member States to take national measures under Article 10 of Regulation (EU) 2015/479”. In its minutes, the sifting Committee noted that it was
“puzzled as to how domestic UK legislation could, after exit day, prejudice the right of member States to take national measures under EU law”,
and that
“the Department acknowledges that this is an error and undertakes to correct it.”
Regulation 3(22) amends annex I of the dual-use regulation, which lists dual-use items for which export authorisation is required. Category 9 lists items related to aerospace and propulsion, including assemblies and components that incorporate technologies for turbine engines
“whose design or production origins are either non-EU Member States or Wassenaar Arrangement Participating States; or unknown to the manufacturer.”
Regulation 3(22)(h)(ii) amends that provision by removing
“either non-EU Member states or”.
The sifting Committee noted that that amendment would require authorisation only when the design or publication of those items originated from such places as Norway, Canada, Japan, Australia or EU member states, or when their origin was unknown. The Department acknowledged that that was an error, and gave the Committee assurances that it would seek to amend the drafting.
The sifting Committee also asked the Department to explain why the words
“This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States”
had not been omitted by regulations 3 or 4. Can the Minister clarify what steps have been taken to amend the defective drafting of this legislation to correct those errors?
The regulations are intended to ensure that the existing approach to export controls applied to dual-use items and firearms is continued once we have withdrawn from the European Union. For the most part, the draft regulations proposed by the Government seek to ensure that references to “the European Union” or “the Community” are replaced, where appropriate, by references to the United Kingdom, our customs territory or the Secretary of State. To that end, we recognise that the United Kingdom must seek to ensure that we maintain an export control regime that is effective immediately after we leave the EU. That must happen with minimal disruption to ensure that the regime is operable and that controlled goods are not inadvertently exported inappropriately.
We recognise the considerable contribution that a responsible, world-leading defence and security industry makes to the UK economy. We believe that strong export controls have a vital role to play in sustaining a legitimate trade in arms while protecting UK jobs and research and development. We want to ensure that a robust and rigorous control system is in place for dual-use items, firearms and other sensitive material. We have called for a tighter approach to our export controls regime and for the cessation of exports to countries where there is a concern that they will be used to violate international humanitarian law. Will the Minister set out how the Government intend to ensure that export restrictions can be imposed when the ultimate user may be applying that item to or in a jurisdiction where there are concerns about public security or human rights?
Regulation 3(8) provides for the deletion of article 8 of Council regulation (EC) No. 428/2009. That article covers member states of the European Union where they impose restrictions on exports not otherwise included on the EU’s military list. Although it may be necessary to omit that article given that we will no longer be members of the EU, we would welcome clarity on whether the Government believe that such measures are covered in the revised regulations.
The Minister will perhaps also clarify what the basis will be for determining what constitutes a human rights violation for these purposes, given that regulation 3(27)(d)(iv) amends Annex IIe of the European regulation to omit the reference to the charter of fundamental rights of the European Union. How, then, do the Government intend to define such a violation?
Will existing licences that have been granted under the current EU regime continue to apply once the UK has left the EU, or will exporters be required to seek new licences under the UK’s stand-alone regime?
The draft regulations will impose obligations on British exporters to obtain licences and demonstrate import permission in respect of goods or services to be exported to the EU27 once we leave the EU. Can the Minister tell us whether the Government have conducted any analysis of the impact on British businesses? It is quite possible that there will be a substantial increase in the administrative burden on the British companies that service customers in those markets and the European suppliers that feed into the supply chain of those businesses—let alone the re-papering exercise that may be required for compliance with the UK’s regime.
I would also be grateful if the Minister clarified the intent of regulation 3(3)(d), which will amend the definition of “broker” to include
“any United Kingdom person who carries out brokering services from a country within the European Union into the territory of another third country”,
and will place an obligation on
“any European Union national who carries out brokering services from the United Kingdom”.
How will that provision interact with obligations that might be imposed on those people by the EU? How do the Government intend to work with European counterparts in administering such licences?
Regulation 3(7) will omit the article of the European regulation that relates to the transit through the EU customs territory of a non-Community good that would otherwise constitute a controlled good. Omitting that article leaves a question about the UK’s handling of controlled goods that are transported through the UK and intended for a destination outside the UK. I would be grateful if the Minister confirmed how the draft regulations will capture such goods.
Finally, the underlying EU regulation makes numerous provisions for procedural harmonisation, dialogue and co-operation between EU member states, including a dual-use co-ordination group chaired by a representative of the European Commission. The draft regulations would omit those obligations, which are set out under articles 11, 14, 16, 19, 22 and 23, among others. I would be grateful if the Minister advised us whether the Government intend to continue a formal dialogue with our European counterparts to ensure a common approach to restricted exports.
Oral Answers to Questions
Judith Cummins Excerpts(5 years, 1 month ago)
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Dr Fox
We will look to replicate the success we have already had in bilateral investment treaties. UK investors have successfully brought around 70 cases against other Governments. No private company has ever brought a successful case against the United Kingdom in respect of our bilateral investment treaties.
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
The British public are clear that they do not want our national health service to be bargained away as part of trade negotiations, and they do not want foreign companies to have the right to sue our Government for decisions taken in the interests of public health, yet that is exactly what could happen if we accept ISDS and the negative-list approaches in the future agreements that the Government are proposing. Will the Secretary of State now rule out agreeing to a single clause of a single trade deal that could threaten our NHS?
Dr Fox
There are days when I genuinely have to thank God that the Labour party is the Opposition and not the Government of this country. We have £1.3 trillion of outward stock invested, including things like pension funds that British people will depend on for their prosperity. Were we to abandon the concept of investor-state dispute resolutions, what would happen to the protections for our investment overseas? The Labour party needs to start to think about the wider interests of this country.