Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many meetings have there been of the CPTPP UK Accession Working Group; how many of those meetings Ministers have (a) been invited to and (b) attended; and if she will make a statement.

The first CPTPP UK Accession Working Group meeting which the UK attended took place on 28^th September 2021. This was a senior official level meeting attended by Chief Negotiators, without ministerial invitation. There have been no further CPTPP UK Accession Working Group meetings to date but further technical written and oral discussions are continuing in a range of areas to ensure accession takes place smoothly.