Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 11th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

7. What recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in the US Administration on trade and investment between the UK and the US; and if he will make a statement.

[The Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade (Dr Liam Fox)]

Over the past three years, the DIT has laid the groundwork for an ambitious free trade agreement with the US once we have left the EU, including through the UK-US trade and investment working group, which met for the sixth time in London yesterday. This week, I have been in Washington to discuss the progress of these preparations with my American counterparts and make sure we are ready to grasp this golden opportunity once we have left the EU.

[Michael Fabricant]

Is it not the case that, notwithstanding the little local difficulty—or even large local difficulty—in Washington DC at the moment, the underlying facts remain that the United Kingdom is the biggest investor in the United States and vice versa, that military and intelligence integration between the United Kingdom and the United States is bigger than any other in the rest of the world and that our strength remains with the United States?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 6th June 2019 Commons Chamber

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

4. What steps he is taking to strengthen UK trading relations with Israel in medical research and development; and if he will make a statement.

[The Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade (Dr Liam Fox)]

Before I answer that question, on the 75th anniversary of D-day it is worth our reflecting that we in this House are able to ask and answer questions in a free and democratic Parliament because of the sacrifices made by those who went before us.

Our dedicated team at the UK embassy in Tel Aviv actively promotes UK-Israel trade, and there is extensive collaboration on medical research between the UK and Israel. The UK-Israel Tech Hub, which is based at the embassy, helps to create tech and innovation partnerships across several sectors, including healthcare.

[Michael Fabricant]

That is very good to hear. My right hon. Friend knows the state of Israeli technology—for example, all our chips, including the Intel fifth, sixth and seventh core chips, are developed in Israel for Intel in America. Magen David Adom, the equivalent of the Israeli Red Cross, has an app that provides live streaming, medical history and the location of people who use it, and that sort of innovation could be of great benefit to the UK. When we leave the European Union, what will be the advantages of doing business with Israel for both our nations?

[Dr Fox]

There are huge advantages to our collaboration in or outside the European Union. To enable us to shine a light on the excellence that my hon. Friend mentions, on my recent trip to Israel I agreed with Prime Minister Netanyahu that we will jointly sponsor a Government high-level trade and investment conference that will enable us to show the world the best of what both countries have to offer in the sector mentioned by my hon. Friend.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 25th April 2019 Commons Chamber

[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.

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

2. What steps he is taking to enable service businesses to access overseas markets; and if he will make a statement.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 13th September 2018 Commons Chamber

[Dr Fox]

Thank you, Mr Speaker; I was wondering whether there was going to be even a tentative link to the question. The tech hub is there to help British businesses to get access to the innovations that come out of Israel across a range of sectors. It is worth pointing out that Israel is an extraordinarily innovative country and has more start-ups per capita than any other country on the planet. Where we can get UK businesses across a range of sectors to get access to such innovation, it is always a positive outcome.

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

The latest computers used in the House of Commons use Intel 7 and Intel 8 cores and above, and Shazam, Skype and FaceTime all use technology developed in Israel. What more are we doing to encourage that sort of co-operation, particularly in relation to computer technology?

[Dr Fox]

As I have already said, the key to that is the UK-Israel tech hub. This relates not only to the area of computers, which my hon. Friend has mentioned, but to FinTech, cyber-security, biomed, retail technology and the creative industries. These are all prime areas for co-operation between the United Kingdom and Israel, and we should celebrate that relationship and the benefits that it brings to both our populations.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 11th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

10. Two of the countries in the TPP are Australia and New Zealand. Will the Secretary of State look closely at their closer economic relationship agreement, which allows free trade of goods and services between those two countries, and will he prioritise an agreement between the United Kingdom and those two countries?

[Dr Fox]

I have made it clear on a number of occasions, including in this House, that when it comes to future free trade agreements, Australia and New Zealand would be two of our top three priorities. If we are able, by another means, to achieve the sort of liberalisation in trade that we would all like to see, then that would be fine.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Michael Fabricant and Liam Fox

Thursday 3rd November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Dr Fox]

We are a founding and full member of the WTO—there is no dispute about that. I think what the hon. Lady is referring to are the trading schedules under which we operate under the WTO, and, obviously, we will be in full discussions on those.

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

As my right hon. Friend has already said, to do a bilateral trade deal we need to be out of the European Union. Does he therefore deplore, as I do, the High Court’s decision this morning to rule against the Government and say that the will of the people in the EU referendum on 23 June is still subject to parliamentary approval?

[Dr Fox]

The Government are disappointed by the Court’s judgment. The country voted to leave the European Union in a referendum approved by Act of Parliament. The Government are determined to respect the result of the referendum. This judgment raises important and complex matters of law, and it is right that we consider it carefully before deciding how to proceed.