Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2017 to Question 115520 on Trade Agreements: Arbitration, whether his Department has plans to recruit additional staff for the trade remedies investigating authority.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We are committed to creating a trade remedies authority that has the appropriate number of people, skills and infrastructure to investigate trade remedies cases and assess injury efficiently and effectively.
To inform this process we have reviewed the structure and resources of several other international systems. We have also worked closely with counterparts in other government departments and existing arms-length bodies which perform similar investigative functions.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2017 to Question 113264, if his Department will undertake an impact assessment of the implications for UK trade in relation to each trade remedy that will potentially be agreed with the WTO after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Trade remedies allow WTO members to operate a safety net and protect domestic industry from injury caused by unfair trading practices, such as dumped or subsidised imports, or unforeseen surges in imports. The Taxation (Cross-Border Trade) Bill and Trade Bill set out the UK’s proposed trade remedies system: that an independent body, Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), will investigate cases and propose measures to tackle injury to UK industry caused by such trading practices.
We have published an impact assessment on the trade remedies framework set out in the Taxation (Cross-Border Trade) Bill, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/taxation-cross-border-trade-bill
The TRA will not conduct an impact assessment on each measure proposed. However, the system will apply an economic interest test as part of each investigation to take into account wider economic considerations alongside the need to correct injury to UK industry. This will consider whether proposed measures might have a disproportionate impact on other economic actors in the UK, such as downstream users and consumers. This is similar to the European Union Interest Test.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2017 to Question 113324, how many departmental staff are involved in the process of establishing a trade remedies framework.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The Department for International Trade has 21 departmental staff who work primarily on the process of establishing a trade remedies framework.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2017 to Question 111497, how many (a) seconded and (b) external staff have been hired by his Department to work as part of the trade remedies investigating authority in the last twelve months.
Answered by Mark Garnier
During the last twelve months, the Department for International Trade has hired 19 new staff and seconded one member of staff on loan from another Government department, to work on establishing a trade remedies framework which includes the Trade Remedies Authority. Seven of those were hired from outside the Civil Service. None have been seconded from outside the Civil Service.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2017 to Question 113324, how many (a) seconded and (b) newly-hired staff were offered employment in his Department to assist in establishing a trade remedies framework during the last twelve months.
Answered by Mark Garnier
During the last twelve months, the Department for International Trade has hired 19 new staff and seconded one member of staff on loan from another Government department, to work on establishing a trade remedies framework which includes the Trade Remedies Authority. Seven of those were hired from outside the Civil Service. None have been seconded from outside the Civil Service.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer 21 November 2017 to Question 110584, on trade agreements: arbitration, what his Department's definition is of invested resources.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The Department for International Trade has dedicated the required number of staff, and the budget, to ensure the legislation, policy and operational plans for the new trade remedies framework are designed and implemented effectively.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2017 to Question 113267, if his Department will include Commonwealth representation at such Trade and Investment Working Groups in future.
Answered by Mark Garnier
I refer the Hon Member for Denton and Reddish to the answer given to him by my Rt Hon Friend the Minister of State for Trade Policy on 21 November, UIN: 113267. This is a bilateral working group and as such involves only the US and the UK.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2017 to Question 113264, if will he establish a contingency plan for the eventuality that the WTO will not allow the UK an Annex on Article II (Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment) for exemptions under GATS.
Answered by Mark Garnier
The UK has been a Member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) since its founding in 1995. Thereby, the UK already has established exemptions to the Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment obligation under the terms of the GATS Annex on Article II Exemptions. As the UK leaves the EU, we intend to set out in a separate list the exemptions that already apply to the UK, under the terms of the Annex on Article II Exemptions.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2017 to Question 110584, on Trade Agreements: Arbitration, what estimate he has made of the cost of the development of the policy, legislative and operational plans for a new trade remedies framework.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for International Trade is still in the process of establishing a trade remedies framework. It will be subject to Parliamentary approval and the final financial implications of this process will depend on the outcome of negotiations with the European Union and on policy decisions yet to be taken. The Department will continue to invest the necessary resources to develop the policy, legislative and operational plans for a new trade remedies framework alongside its wider preparations for EU Exit.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2017 to Question 110584, on Trade Agreements: Arbitration, what estimate he has made of the cost of the establishment of the trade remedies framework, January to August 2017.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
I refer the hon Member for Denton and Reddish to the answer given by my hon Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Investment on 14 November, UIN: 110584.