Trade Policy

Catherine McKinnell Excerpts

Monday 16th July 2018 Commons Chamber

[Dr Fox]

The arrangements that I have set out today must stand alone and have to apply whatever final agreement we come to with the European Union. They are about the scrutiny of our future trade agreements. There are no pre-conditions attached to how we have devised the mechanism itself.

[Catherine McKinnell (Newcastle upon Tyne North) (Lab)]

Appreciating that the scope of this question is about our future trade agreements, a business from my constituency said to me:

“We already work with and export to places like the US, Australia and South Africa, and I fail to see how leaving the single market and the customs union would enhance our ability to do any more of this.”

Will the Secretary of State therefore please clarify how that business can contribute to the consultation to ensure that it can actually make something of this new free trade world?

[Dr Fox]

The whole point of free trade agreements is to gain market access where we do not have it today for the benefit of our businesses that want to export. I hope that businesses will outline their level of ambition as each trade agreement is set out so that the Government understand just what they think they could do if markets were more open than they are today.