Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what consultation HMRC undertook with industry before removing anti-dumping duty exemptions for certain bike and e-bike lines after the transition period.
The Department for International Trade issued a Call for Evidence to assess whether the EU trade remedy measures on bicycles and electric bicycles should continue to apply after the transition period. Initial evidence provided by producers of bicycles and electric bicycles in the United Kingdom indicated there were not sufficient domestic sales to transition this measure.
However, new evidence provided in December 2020 showed that the criteria for transition had been met. Accordingly, we transitioned definitive EU trade remedy measures on bicycles, electric bicycles, and bicycle parts from China. As part of this, we transitioned any definitive EU business exemptions that were in operation already under the bicycle parts measures. Pending or provisional EU decisions on business exemptions from the bicycle parts measures were not transitioned into our system and ceased to apply from 1st January 2021. We are exploring the possibility of introducing a scheme in the United Kingdom to allow for some further exemptions for parts for the bicycle industry.
HM Government intends to review the trade remedy measures on bicycles, electric bicycles and certain bicycle parts originating in China, as with all transitioned measures. The transition reviews will be initiated by the Trade Remedies Investigations Directorate (or its successor, the Trade Remedies Authority) before expiry of the current measures.