Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) the UK's accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and (b) tariff liberalisation for palm oil imports on (i) deforestation and (ii) loss of habitats in palm oil supplying countries.

The Department’s Impact Assessment, published in July 2023, shows that the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) could boost UK GDP by around £2.0 billion each and every year when compared to projected GDP in 2040. The Impact Assessment also includes assessments made relating to palm oil, deforestation and loss of habitats. The UK is committed to tackling illegal deforestation within our supply chains, and our agreement to join the CPTPP does not change that.

The report of the independent Trade and Agriculture Commission, published in December 2023, concluded that “it is unlikely that CPTPP will lead to an increase in palm oil being grown on deforested land”.