Oral Answers to Questions

Rob Butler Excerpts

Thursday 10th June 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jayawardena]

I am delighted to hear what the shadow Minister says, but what he is asking for, which is the imposition of measures against the independent recommendation of the TRA, is not within the Secretary of State’s powers today. In fact, his party argued that the Secretary of State should have fewer powers when the legislation was going through the House under the last Government. It wanted to curtail her powers further, and it was robust on that. We will not hesitate to defend British industry; that is our policy. The world has changed since 2018, when these powers were put in place, and the Trade Secretary is exploring what else might be needed in Britain’s toolkit to defend British industry.

[Rob Butler (Aylesbury) (Con)]

What assessment she has made of the potential benefits of a free trade agreement with Australia for Buckinghamshire.

[The Minister for Trade Policy (Greg Hands) [V]]

There will be opportunities for businesses across Buckinghamshire as part of the 2,600 businesses in the south-east that were already exporting goods to Australia last year. They are set to benefit from action on tariffs in areas such as cars, food and drink, and machinery, and there will be benefits in services, including digital, data and innovation provisions that will future-proof the FTA for businesses in Buckinghamshire and across the United Kingdom.

[Rob Butler]

Many happy returns, Mr Speaker. I thank the Minister for his answer. Buckinghamshire has more microbusinesses than any other county in the country, so now that we are a free sovereign trading nation once again, what help can my right hon. Friend give to those very small businesses that want to export to Australia but might not yet have the expertise and experience to do so?

[Greg Hands]

I am well aware of the situation in Buckinghamshire; my father set up a microbusiness in Buckinghamshire 40-odd years ago. I can tell my hon. Friend that our refreshed export strategy will raise the exporting culture of the UK, taking advantage of our new independent trade policy by providing SMEs and micro-businesses across Buckinghamshire with new opportunities to build their exporting capability in both goods and services, to enhance support, to strengthen one-to-many digital services and to improve access to finance.

--- Later in debate ---

[Elizabeth Truss]

We welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza last month. We are committed to a durable ceasefire. As the Under-Secretary of State for International Trade, my hon. Friend the Member for Beverley and Holderness (Graham Stuart) mentioned, we have one of the most robust export control regimes in the world and we take these issues very seriously.

[Rob Butler (Aylesbury) (Con)]

I know that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is currently working on a possible trade deal with the Gulf, which would be of great benefit to all concerned. For trade to be successful, we need to ensure easy mobility for business people, but currently Emiratis wanting to visit the UK on the visa waiver scheme are permitted only a single entry in a period of six months. Will the Minister work with colleagues in the Home Office to allow multiple entries so that the UK is never at a disadvantage compared with other European countries?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Trade (Mr Ranil Jayawardena)]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right to recognise the importance of the Gulf given that the six countries in the Gulf Co-operation Council are our third-largest non-EU export market, at over £30 billion last year. I am very pleased that we have a strong visa offer for our partners there, including the electronic visa waiver programme, and that the introduction of Britain’s new points-based immigration system creates a level playing field for the first time in many years. I will continue to work closely with fellow Ministers at the Home Office to make sure that the visa system contributes to Britain rightly being recognised as a world leader with which to trade and invest.