Committees

UK trade negotiations

Inquiry

This inquiry will be accepting submissions on an ongoing basis and will consider the progress of, and issues relating to, trade negotiations led by the Department for International Trade.  

Background

  1. The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020 and is now able to negotiate its own Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). The terms of any agreement cannot come into effect until the end of the transition period. 
  2. The Department for International Trade (DIT) is responsible for negotiations with non-EU countries, and has stated its intention to negotiate FTAs with the US, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. The Department has also indicated that it may seek further trade partnerships, including with Canada, Singapore, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. 
  3. DIT launched online consultations on potential future trade agreements with the US, Australia, New Zealand, and on accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), on 20 July 2018. The consultations closed on 26 October 2018, and a summary of the responses to these consultations was published on 18 July 2019. 
  4. The UK currently benefits from the terms of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), which entered into force in February 2019. DIT was unable to “roll over” this agreement, which would have enabled the UK to continue trading on the same preferential terms following the transition period. As such, it launched a consultation on a future FTA with Japan on 20 September 2019. The consultation closed on 4 November 2019.
  5. DIT published its Outline Approach and Scoping Assessment for a UK-US FTA on 2 March. It has stated its intention to publish similar documents for prospective agreements with Japan, Australia and New Zealand in due course.
  6. The UK will simultaneously be negotiating an FTA with the EU, with negotiations being led by the Cabinet Office. Formal negotiations began on 2 March 2020. The Government has indicated its intention to seek ‘Canada-style’ trade agreement with the EU to allow the UK to fully benefit from future trade agreements with non-EU countries.  

This inquiry is currently accepting evidence

The committee wants to hear your views. We welcome submissions from anyone with answers to the questions in the call for evidence. You can submit evidence until Friday 31 December 2021.

Read the call for evidence before submitting

Reports, special reports and government responses

No reports or special reports published.

Oral evidence transcripts

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22 September 2021
Inquiry UK trade negotiations
Witnesses Henry Dimbleby MBE (Chair at National Food Strategy (NFS)), and Nick von Westenholz (former TAC member and Director of Trade and Businesses Strategy at National Farmers' Union)
Committees International Trade Committee
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Oral Evidence
7 July 2021
Inquiry UK trade negotiations
Witnesses Rt Hon Elizabeth Truss MP (Secretary of State for International Trade at Department for International Trade), and Vivien Life (Chief Negotiator at Department for International Trade)
Committees International Trade Committee
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Oral Evidence
25 March 2021
Inquiry UK trade negotiations
Witnesses Rt Hon Greg Hands (Minister of State for Trade Policy at Department for International Trade), Tim Smith (former Chair at Trade and Agriculture Commission), and Victoria Prentis (Parliamentary Under-Secretary at Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Committees International Trade Committee
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Oral Evidence

Written evidence

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UKT0027 - UK trade negotiations
Witnesses Dr Karen Jackson (Reader in Economics at University of Westminster), and Dr Oleksandr Shepotylo (Senior Lecturer in Economics at Aston University)
Committees International Trade Committee
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147KB
Written Evidence
UKT0026 - UK trade negotiations
Witnesses British Toy and Hobby Association
Committees International Trade Committee
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86KB
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23KB
Written Evidence
UKT0024 - UK trade negotiations
Witnesses Alliance for Intellectual Property
Committees International Trade Committee
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111KB
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47KB
Written Evidence

Other publications

Correspondence
Committees exchange letters with government departments and others, often to request information or follow up on recommendations.
17 published

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