Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of British Trade Envoys in securing economic growth opportunities for the UK.

The Trade Envoy programme was established in 2012 as a network of parliamentarians to provide international support to the UK Government’s strategy to drive economic growth.

DBT Trade Envoys play a valuable role in supporting the UK’s trade and investment agenda via targeted programmes of engagement that unlock opportunities for UK business.

The Department does not specifically attribute trade and investment impacts to Trade Envoys, as they operate as part of a wider ecosystem which includes Ministers, DBT officials, Ambassadors, High Commissioners and His Majesty’s Trade Commissioners.