Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the Government has done to ensure in negotiations with the European Commission that conformity assessments on products conducted by a UK body continue to be sufficient for the product to be sold on the EU market after the UK leaves the EU; and if he will make a statement.

The Government recognises the valuable work undertaken by UK bodies in ensuring that products placed on the market have been through suitable conformity assessment. As part of negotiations on the Withdrawal Agreement, we have agreed with the EU that goods placed on the market before the end of the implementation period may freely circulate on both UK and EU markets and that compliance activity for these goods, such as conformity assessment, is recognised by both parties.

On 12^th July the Government published a White Paper, which sets out a clear proposal for our future relationship with the EU. This includes a proposal for a free trade area between the UK and the EU and the maintenance of a common rulebook for goods, supported by arrangements covering all relevant compliance activity, such as conformity assessment. This would provide for frictionless trade at the border. Negotiations are ongoing, and we will continue to engage with UK stakeholders to understand and represent their concerns as we develop our negotiating position.