Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent estimate his Department has made of the potential impact of trade deals negotiated since 2020 on economic growth in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department of Business and Trade (DBT) does not hold an aggregated value for the impact of the signed trade deals on the UK’s nations and regions. Instead, the Department publishes individual Impact Assessments (IAs) for new free trade agreements (FTAs) which set out the potential economic impacts on the UKs nations and regions. These show that all English regions and UK nations are expected to benefit from the new FTAs signed with Japan, Australia, New Zealand and CPTPP.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of (a) eBay and (b) other sellers based in Great Britain turning off their seller accounts to Northern Ireland because of the costs of compliance with the General Product Safety Regulations 2023 on consumers in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Our assessment of the impact of the updated GPSR remains that it largely formalises how businesses are operating in the UK and that where businesses need to make changes, in most cases, they will be adapting to continue trading with the EU. The measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. We are providing guidance which we will keep under review as we continue to engage businesses – including online marketplaces – to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with (a) eBay and (b) other online sellers on the potential impact of the General Product Safety Regulations 2023 on the ability of consumers in Northern Ireland to continue to buy goods from Great Britain.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
My fellow ministers and I undertake regular engagement with businesses, including online marketplaces and those who sell products online, to listen to their concerns.
In addition, officials in my Department have regular discussions with business representatives, including online marketplaces and businesses that sell products online, on a range of issues, including the impact of the EU’s new General Product Safety Regulations. This engagement allows businesses to raise specific issues directly with the Government.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) eBay and (b) other sellers based in England, Wales and Scotland turning off their seller accounts to Northern Ireland because of the costs of having to comply with the General Product Safety Regulations 2023 on (i) the supply of goods and (ii) price levels in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Our assessment of the impact of the updated GPSR remains that it largely formalises how businesses are operating in the UK and that where businesses need to make changes, in most cases, they will be adapting to continue trading with the EU. The measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. We are providing guidance which we will keep under review as we continue to engage businesses – including online marketplaces – to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of (a) eBay and (b) other sellers based in England, Wales and Scotland turning off their seller accounts to Northern Ireland because of the costs for compliance with the General Product Safety Regulations 2023.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Our assessment of the impact of the updated GPSR remains that it largely formalises how businesses are operating in the UK and that where businesses need to make changes, in most cases, they will be adapting to continue trading with the EU. The measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. We are providing guidance which we will keep under review as we continue to engage businesses – including online marketplaces – to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will make an estimate of the potential (a) direct cost to (i) producers, (ii) retailers and (iii) consumers in Northern Ireland and (b) economic impact to Great Britain of compliance with the General Product Safety Regulations 2023.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Our assessment of the impact of the updated GPSR remains that it largely formalises how businesses are operating in the UK and that where businesses need to make changes, in most cases, they will be adapting to continue trading with the EU. The measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. We are providing guidance which we will keep under review as we continue to engage businesses – including online marketplaces – to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the tariff level applied to imported electric buses on local production; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of raising that tariff.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In setting tariffs, the Government takes into account the interests of UK consumers, producers, productivity, competitiveness, and external trade, as well as wider considerations such as strategic trade objectives.
As with all policy, the Government welcomes feedback and monitors these requests closely. Feedback can be submitted on specific tariff lines via the UKGT feedback form available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tariffs-on-goods-imported-into-the-uk.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what trade remedy measures to promote domestic manufacturing industries are in place in respect of electric bus manufacturing in the UK.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK does not have a trade remedy measure in place against imports of electric buses.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the introduction of the updated General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) on SMEs shipping from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The updated GPSR largely formalises the reality of how businesses are already operating in the UK and the measures are therefore likely to have limited impact in practice. Where businesses need to make changes, we expect that they will be adapting anyway to be compliant with the new Regulation to continue trading with the EU. However, we are providing more guidance in this area, will keep this under review and continue to engage businesses directly to ensure we are supporting them to trade freely across the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Jim Allister (Traditional Unionist Voice - North Antrim)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the (a) Northern Ireland Protocol and (b) Windsor Framework on trends in the level of the supply of (i) goods and (ii) other materials to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In 2023, the value of goods associated with full declarations cleared by HMRC on GB to NI movements was £17.8bn, increasing by £3.6bn (26%) from 2022. More detail can be found here.
The Department for Business and Trade continues to work closely with the Northern Ireland devolved government and all other stakeholders to ensure the Windsor Framework delivers positive outcomes for the people and businesses of Northern Ireland.