Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he will assess the potential merits of inviting the Foreign Affairs Committee to undertake pre-appointment scrutiny of all political appointees to special trade envoy roles.

Trade Envoys are political appointees. The Department for Business and Trade conducts scrutiny and due diligence as part of the process for appointing Trade Envoys.

There are currently no plans for the Foreign Affairs Committee to undertake any pre-appointment checks for Trade Envoys.