Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to the Prime Minister's speech to the Gulf Cooperation Council on 7 December 2016, what assessment his Department has made of the trading opportunities for UK businesses in the Gulf over the next five years.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region is an important market for British business. The GCC has a combined GDP of $1.4trn. In 2015 UK exports to the region were worth £20.4bn. In 2015 the Department for International Trade (DIT) facilitated over £2.1bn of Gulf investment into the UK. Through UK Export Finance, DIT has provided nearly £16bn in financial support to UK exporters in the GCC market since 2011, and we continue to support new business opportunities in the region in order to promote British exports.