Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Business and Trade
Bob Blackman
Main Page: Bob Blackman (Conservative - Harrow East)Department Debates - View all Bob Blackman's debates with the Department for Business and Trade
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership
Bob Blackman Excerpts(9 months, 4 weeks ago)
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Nigel Huddleston
I thank the hon. Member for his always gracious and considered comments. He is right that we are committed to ensuring that all nations and regions of the UK benefit from this deal, including Northern Ireland, which is doing great things with export opportunities. In fact, there is a Northern Ireland investment summit coming up and, therefore, many opportunities. We will work constantly with the Administrations to make sure we take full advantage of this and all deals.
Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend and everyone involved in securing this deal. The impact of exporting services across the world is clearly vital. Will he outline the advantages for the services deals available, particularly to London and the digital economy, which can be reached from anywhere in the world?
Nigel Huddleston
My hon. Friend makes a sensible point that is pivotal to our future trading arrangements. We are the second biggest service exporter in the world. Those services are increasingly being transported, and therefore physical distance does not matter—they can be delivered at the press of a button. We have an excellent reputation on those. He makes the point about London; more than 3,000 businesses are owned by CPTPP members, and over 100,000 jobs are reliant on those businesses. That will only increase over time. It is important to stress that London is benefiting from our relationship with CPTPP members, but more than 75% of the benefits are outside London.