UK Export Finance: Mandate

Peter Kyle Excerpts

Thursday 9th July 2026 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Peter Kyle)]

The Government are taking decisive action to strengthen the UK’s economic security and deliver growth in an increasingly contested and uncertain global economy.

As the UK’s export credit agency, UK Export Finance drives growth by helping businesses across the country win contracts overseas, expand into new markets, and sustain high-value jobs. It plays a central role in mobilising capital in support of the Government’s economic objectives. UKEF’s 2025-26 impact report shows that last year UKEF provided £11 billion of support, which supported up to 85,000 jobs across the UK. Over the last 5 years, UKEF has supported 330,000 UK jobs, unlocking £23 billion of GDP growth.

Export credit agencies in peer and competitor countries are moving quickly to support a broader range of trade and investment activity, providing their firms with a wider and deeper range of financing to compete internationally. UKEF must be similarly equipped to match this ambition. However, its current statutory framework is primarily focused on supporting exports and does not provide sufficient flexibility to support the full range of modern trade, investment and supply chain activity.

As part of its modern industrial strategy, the Government committed to reviewing UKEF’s mandate, with a view to establishing a wider trade and investment remit to drive growth across the eight growth sectors. Delivering this commitment is a key part of the Government plan for growth.

I am therefore announcing the Government’s intention to bring forward legislation, when parliamentary time allows, to modernise the Export and Investment Guarantees Act 1991 and expand UKEF’s statutory powers, enabling it to operate as a more flexible, globally deployable financing instrument in support of UK prosperity.

The Government’s ambition is for UKEF to be able to support a broader range of international trade and investment activities, in order to support the UK economy, strengthen vulnerable supply chains and secure the UK’s economic resilience. The ambition includes:

Supporting UK firms who trade, invest and operate overseas;

Strengthening the UK’s economic security, including by facilitating the supply of critical goods into the UK;

Building investment partnerships overseas to mobilise finance flows into the UK.

These measures will enable UKEF to deploy its finance more strategically, so that it can build economic partnerships globally, support UK firms in internationalising, and strengthen supply chains in support of the UK’s economic security.

These changes will build on UKEF’s existing capabilities and expertise, while maintaining its robust control framework, which includes Treasury consent and parliamentary oversight.

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