Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what progress has been made in negotiations on free trade agreements covering the automotive sector with (a) the US and (b) Australia.

The third UK-U.S. Free Trade Agreement negotiating round took place from 27 July to 7 August 2020. Positive progress continues to be made.

Further talks will be held between the third and fourth negotiating round, which is expected to take place in early September.

Trade negotiators from the UK and Australia held the first round of negotiations for a UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement from 29 June to 10 July 2020, through virtual means.

Discussions between negotiators were productive and reflected our shared ambition to secure a comprehensive deal to boost trade and investment between our like-minded economies.

Teams discussed their respective objectives and agreed a forward plan for future talks. Our positive discussions in round one have laid the groundwork for the UK and Australia to achieve high-quality outcomes across the agreement.