The Public Accounts Committee is conducting inquiries looking at individual Departments’ readiness for Brexit, based on work conducted by the National Audit Office.
The Department for International Trade was created in July 2016 to plan new trade deals for the UK with non-EU countries. This evidence session is the first time the Department will give evidence to the Public Accounts Committee.
The Department has employed 3,745 staff by October 2017, stationed in 108 countries. These countries are grouped into 9 regions, each led by a trade commissioner.
Closer to home, the Department has to deliver several pieces of important legislation including the Taxation (Cross Border Trade) Bill, the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Bill, and parts of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill. It is also planning for the UK’s independent membership of the World Trade Organisation, and for a new Government Procurement Framework outside EU rules.
The Committee will ask both Permanent Secretaries from the Department about their preparedness for the UK’s trading position immediately following EU exit, about how the Department is progressing with informal trade talks across the world, and whether it is confident of delivering its extensive legislative programme.