Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of current tariffs on the import of tuna from the Maldives.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The UK currently applies the UK Global Tariff of 20% to imports of tuna from the Maldives. This rate is also applied to imports from all other trading partners where preferential arrangements are not in place.
The Government continues to explore pragmatic opportunities to enhance bilateral trade relations with the Maldives in areas of mutual interest, including fishing.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what meetings officials in her Department have had with officials from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the Energy Charter Treaty in the last six months.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Officials from the Department for International Trade continue to work closely with officials from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the Energy Charter Treaty and have held regular meetings in the last 6 months.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department plans to publish an assessment of the impact on the UK economy of the memorandum of understanding on cooperation and trade relations between Indiana and the United Kingdom.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) seeks to bolster an already strong trading relationship, with £1.0bn of UK goods being imported into the state of Indiana in 2021. It lays the foundation for closer cooperation on government procurement and priority sectors including energy and infrastructure.
The MoU has provided a framework for increased engagement on economic development, trade promotion and academic collaboration. The UK held the first MoU working group with Indiana in December 2022, focused on delivering opportunities in energy transition, sustainability, and government procurement. The Government published an update following the meeting and will continue to monitor MoU activities and outcomes.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, when her Department plans to respond to the report of the Committees on Arms Export Controls entitled UK arms exports in 2019, published on 28 October 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government response to the report of the Committees on Arms Export Controls (CAEC) was laid in Parliament as a Command Paper on 9 January 2023 in line with the deadline set by the CAEC. The paper is a joint response from the Secretaries of State for International Trade, Defence and for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, including contributions from His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. This can be accessed on GOV.UK at the provided link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/caec-report-on-uk-strategic-export-controls-government-response.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, for what purpose was a hotel booking made by her Department at the Clermont Charing Cross costing £1,649.000 on the 14 September 2021; and how many nights did that booking include.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
This spend relates to an internal team-building and planning exercise, funded from a delegated learning and development budget. The total cost includes room hire, equipment hire and light-refreshments for 30 attendees. No hotel rooms were included in this booking. This was an event organised by civil servants for civil servants, the Secretary of State did not attend.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, which Ministers formerly in her Department have received ministerial severance pay since leaving office in 2022.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Details of such payments are published in the departmental annual reports and accounts, and ministerial salaries are published on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-salary-data/salaries-of-members-of-his-majestys-government-april-2022-html
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department has made an assessment of the economic impact of imposing tariffs on the import of tuna into the UK from the Maldives.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government does not make an assessment on the economic impact of imposing tariffs on every product from every trading partner.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment has she made of the potential role of the business events industry in achieving the Government's export strategy objectives.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Through our Export Strategy, the Department for International Trade (DIT) is working in partnership with business to help all UK firms, including those in the events industry, realise the benefits of international trade. Although the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has primary responsibility for the domestic events industry, DIT recognises and applauds the contribution made by the sector to the UK economy. The UK’s creative industries which annually organise numerous business events, exported £50.3 billion in services and goods in 2020, with creative accounting for 14% of total UK global services exports. (source: DCMS Economic Estimates)
DIT support for UK companies at such business events, including arranging inward delegations of buyers and curating B2B meetings onsite, illustrates our commitment to the sector and the pivotal role it plays in our economic growth and global soft power, through the export sales process.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Department plans to publish an assessment of the impact on the UK economy of the memorandum of understanding on cooperation and trade relations between North Carolina and the United Kingdom.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) seeks to bolster an already strong trading relationship, with £1.2bn of UK goods being imported into the state of North Carolina in 2021.
It establishes a working group to monitor and deliver MoU activities and outcomes. Following a successful UK offshore wind delegation to North Carolina in November 2022, which explored trade and investment opportunities, the first working group meeting will take place shortly. The Government will publish an update following the meeting.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many FTE civil servants in her Department worked on trade negotiations on 31 December (a) 2020, (b) 2021 and (c) 2022.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
534 FTE Civil Servants were working on trade negotiations in December 2020, 513 in 2021, and 516 in 2022.