:00:07. > :00:16.Good morning and welcome to BBC Parliament's live coverage of the
:00:17. > :00:19.House of commons. And around half past ten, eight Labour member will
:00:20. > :00:24.be asking an urgent question underfunding of adding -- adult
:00:25. > :00:28.social care. Others followed by a second urgent question from Adam
:00:29. > :00:33.Greenwood who will ask a question about the closure of the offices of
:00:34. > :00:36.job centre bus. Leader of the Commons and the Leadsom will answer
:00:37. > :00:39.questions on forthcoming Parliamentary business, followed by
:00:40. > :00:42.a general debate in the chamber on Brexit and International Trade.
:00:43. > :00:46.Don't forget to join me Keith McDougal for a roundup of the day in
:00:47. > :00:51.both Houses of Parliament at 11pm tonight. Before questions to the
:00:52. > :00:58.trade Secretary, the Speaker will deal with an item of housekeeping.
:00:59. > :01:06.James Duddridge. Question one, Mr Speaker. Secretary is a, Liam Fox.
:01:07. > :01:10.With your permission I will answer questions one and seven together.
:01:11. > :01:13.Ministerial colleagues and myself regularly engage with business
:01:14. > :01:17.stakeholders and policymakers in Commonwealth partner countries. In
:01:18. > :01:21.March my noble friend Lord price and I've met over 20 preserving trade
:01:22. > :01:26.ministers at the inaugural trade ministers meeting in London, we
:01:27. > :01:28.discussed strengthening collaboration and deepening intra-
:01:29. > :01:31.Commonwealth trade and investment and we are preparing for the
:01:32. > :01:40.Commonwealth summit in 2018. James Edrich. I thank the Secretary of
:01:41. > :01:45.State for his answer. The Secretary of State refers to intra- African
:01:46. > :01:53.trade, can be be even bolder and encourage a continental free-trade
:01:54. > :01:56.deal, intra- Africa, not only with Commonwealth friends but beyond our
:01:57. > :02:02.Commonwealth brands? We are sympathetic to the concept of an
:02:03. > :02:06.African continental free-trade area. And we are in favour of a range of
:02:07. > :02:12.initiatives to help foster wider, greater intra- Commonwealth trade.
:02:13. > :02:16.There is a great deal to be gained from Commonwealth partners from
:02:17. > :02:19.close Corporation and the government's aim including the
:02:20. > :02:24.development agenda championed by my right honourable friend, the
:02:25. > :02:28.Secretary of State, will help developing countries to be able to
:02:29. > :02:32.trade their way out of poverty and it's an essential and key element of
:02:33. > :02:37.that strategy. Chris Davis. Thank you. Britain and the Commonwealth
:02:38. > :02:41.nations share a great history and over the years are performed many
:02:42. > :02:44.great links across academia, sport, culture and other areas so if I ask
:02:45. > :02:50.my right honourable friend, what steps is he taking to extend this
:02:51. > :02:54.co-operation including a free-trade agreement so we add business and
:02:55. > :02:59.commerce to the long list of Commonwealth cooperative endeavours.
:03:00. > :03:02.As my honourable friend knows the Commonwealth itself is not a trading
:03:03. > :03:05.bloc and contains a number of very spread economies but we are liaising
:03:06. > :03:10.with a number of Commonwealth partners about a lateral agreements
:03:11. > :03:15.with the future and my department is working with stakeholders to develop
:03:16. > :03:18.initiatives that will stimulate UK and intra- Commonwealth trade and
:03:19. > :03:25.investment in the lead up to and beyond, that very vital Commonwealth
:03:26. > :03:30.summit next year. Thank you. The members on the Conservative benches
:03:31. > :03:33.are desperate for the Secretary of State to give us more confidence
:03:34. > :03:39.that we will increase trade in the Commonwealth. I think his voice not
:03:40. > :03:44.to do so. Australia and Canada collectively amount to less than 5%
:03:45. > :03:49.of our experts and research shows the most enduring statistic trade
:03:50. > :03:54.house every time the distance between nations double. Isn't that
:03:55. > :03:58.full party for us to be turning away from our closest trading partners
:03:59. > :04:03.and relying on increasing trade with countries so very far away? This to
:04:04. > :04:08.speaker I am sorry to hear that the lack of understanding of how the
:04:09. > :04:13.modern economy works because in particular, in countries which have
:04:14. > :04:17.a large proportion of their trade in services, services trade does not
:04:18. > :04:22.depend upon distance and in fact, what we need to have is an
:04:23. > :04:27.increasingly close Corporation with countries that are similar to us in
:04:28. > :04:30.terms of their economic status, not necessarily geographically proximate
:04:31. > :04:33.though I entirely understand that in terms of goods, the geographical
:04:34. > :04:39.distance does have a greater bearing. Thank you, Mr Speaker. One
:04:40. > :04:43.country for negotiations on trade had been very well advanced, either
:04:44. > :04:48.discussions between the EU, is Canada and the Canadian trade deal.
:04:49. > :04:53.Obviously the Minister will want to seek to replicate that fairly
:04:54. > :04:58.quickly after exit from the EU but that has been subject to a huge
:04:59. > :05:02.amount of disinformation regarding the costs and benefits of the deal.
:05:03. > :05:07.When is the government actually going to take this issue on and set
:05:08. > :05:14.the record straight? Mr Speaker, what we don't know at the present
:05:15. > :05:17.time is what the state of the EU Canada agreement will be at the
:05:18. > :05:20.point at which we exit the European Union. It may well be that all
:05:21. > :05:25.countries have ratified but as he is well aware as a result of the
:05:26. > :05:27.Singapore judgement, every single parliament and some regional
:05:28. > :05:33.parliaments will have to ratify that he'll now. If the deal is not
:05:34. > :05:36.ratified at the point we leave the EU and has only provisional
:05:37. > :05:39.application that has no basis in UK law in which case we will have to
:05:40. > :05:46.have a fallback position of either using that as the basis for a future
:05:47. > :05:51.UK Canada agreement. Thank you. I think the potential for trade with
:05:52. > :05:55.Commonwealth countries is exciting, growing economies. But every time I
:05:56. > :05:58.open the paper and listen to the radio or TV the story is done very
:05:59. > :06:03.negatively, almost like it's going to be impossible for us to do these
:06:04. > :06:08.trade deals. Does he feel it's wrong and undermines the work he is doing?
:06:09. > :06:10.Mr Speaker does appear that some elements of our media would rather
:06:11. > :06:19.see Britain fail bouncy Brexit succeed. And I cannot recall a
:06:20. > :06:21.single time in recent times than I have seen good economic news that
:06:22. > :06:32.the BBC didn't describe as despite Brexit. Mr Barry Gardiner. The
:06:33. > :06:41.honourable member has decided not to do so. Mr Ian Paisley. The agri-
:06:42. > :06:48.food producers see Brexit as a wonderful new market for a range of
:06:49. > :06:54.issues. Can I ask him to assure us that he is in talks with future
:06:55. > :06:57.markets to encourage and secure our future at home? To underpin the
:06:58. > :07:01.confidence in the agricultural sector they need to know there are
:07:02. > :07:05.increasing market out there and one of the key roles of the government
:07:06. > :07:08.is help the agricultural to have that confidence which it requires
:07:09. > :07:11.for investment and that is to show we can help them into markets. It's
:07:12. > :07:18.worth pointing out according to the EU Commission website 90% of global
:07:19. > :07:21.growth in the next ten news will be outside the European Union, those
:07:22. > :07:25.are the markets we have to help British business get into. Geoffrey
:07:26. > :07:32.Clifton Brown. Number two, Mr Speaker. The Department for
:07:33. > :07:37.International trade provides market access to UK businesses in the UK
:07:38. > :07:40.and 109 countries overseas. Through the great campaign we build a global
:07:41. > :07:44.appetite for British goods and services and give UK companies
:07:45. > :07:49.access to millions of pounds worth of potential business through
:07:50. > :07:52.digital services offered. I thank my honourable friend. It's a great
:07:53. > :07:58.tribute to his department that in its first year of operation ONS
:07:59. > :08:05.reports experts -- exports are up by 7%. Does he agree with this increase
:08:06. > :08:08.in demand for British exports, UK Export Finance with its wide and
:08:09. > :08:14.roll has an important part to play in that? My honourable friend is
:08:15. > :08:18.absolutely right to raise this and can I thank him for the work he does
:08:19. > :08:23.in the old party Parliamentary group for trade and investment but he's
:08:24. > :08:27.right. We need to provide a suite of services and that includes UK Export
:08:28. > :08:30.Finance. It's worth bearing in mind 7000 businesses have been helped by
:08:31. > :08:34.UK Export Finance, the appetite for risk is doubled and we can now
:08:35. > :08:41.increase the number of currencies we can use from ten until 40. This is
:08:42. > :08:50.part of a wide bee happen successful so far. Mr Speaker, this front bench
:08:51. > :08:55.team must know that a silly attack on the BBC cannot be used as an
:08:56. > :08:58.excuse for policy. This is a Secretary of State, Mr Speaker, who
:08:59. > :09:02.has refused to meet the party Manufacturing group but can I tell
:09:03. > :09:05.him from the manufacturers I know, have no confidence in the Secretary
:09:06. > :09:08.of State, he is living in cloud cuckoo land, or think he's not
:09:09. > :09:19.confident and they want his resignation! Either take note of his
:09:20. > :09:23.comments. Doctor Julian Lewis. Can the Minister explained for steps the
:09:24. > :09:26.government is taking to ensure that following our departure from the
:09:27. > :09:34.European Union are export manufacturing businesses don't face
:09:35. > :09:36.high tariffs from other nations? Well, the Department of
:09:37. > :09:40.International trade is embarking on a series of talks both from the
:09:41. > :09:42.World Trade Organisation to individual countries in order to
:09:43. > :09:46.first of all secure that we have continuity of business with those
:09:47. > :09:53.countries we already have agreements with. I speak as a remain vote on
:09:54. > :09:56.the campaign site but this is a fantastic opportunity for us to be
:09:57. > :10:00.able to forge new trade deals going forward and take advantage of
:10:01. > :10:05.opportunities Brexit presents. Thank you. For many British businesses to
:10:06. > :10:09.grow their International Trade they need to be able to call on the best
:10:10. > :10:14.possible members of staff. What is the Minister going to do to ensure
:10:15. > :10:16.freedom of movement for those businesses is retained and what is
:10:17. > :10:21.he going to do to ensure that investment they get through
:10:22. > :10:27.initiatives such as Horizon 2020 is still available to them? It's always
:10:28. > :10:34.been the case the government has had an open policy, eight mature policy
:10:35. > :10:37.for those people who come from outside the EU are concerned and it
:10:38. > :10:40.is the case Britain will be open to the best and brightest in the world
:10:41. > :10:45.who want a common work frankly in one of the best places you can
:10:46. > :10:50.enlarge those skills. Mr Lawrence Robinson. Number three, Mr Speaker.
:10:51. > :10:55.Vista Speaker, Brazil is the UK's largest export market in Latin
:10:56. > :10:59.America representing significant opportunities for the UK. My right
:11:00. > :11:02.honourable friend the Secretary of State attended the UK joint economic
:11:03. > :11:08.and trade committee last December and as I saw for myself in March, in
:11:09. > :11:13.places like Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo, both governments are admitted
:11:14. > :11:16.to deepening UK Trade Investment. Officials continued to work together
:11:17. > :11:21.on proposals for reducing trade barriers for discussion at the next
:11:22. > :11:24.joint committee. I thank the Minister for that response and
:11:25. > :11:29.congratulate him on that work. I was in Brazil last November and have had
:11:30. > :11:33.many meetings with his Excellency the Brazilian ambassador to London
:11:34. > :11:36.and while they've not been able to achieve a trade deal with the
:11:37. > :11:40.European Union they very much look forward to working with the UK. Can
:11:41. > :11:44.he expedite such arrangements as quickly as possible? Mr Speaker I
:11:45. > :11:50.congratulate my honourable friend for his work in the last parliament
:11:51. > :11:54.on Brazil. I think he makes a very good point. That is this, you don't
:11:55. > :11:59.need to have a free-trade agreement to have free trade. Indeed the EU
:12:00. > :12:02.itself as I'm sure my honourable friend knows, has no FTA with the
:12:03. > :12:09.world's largest markets like the US, China, India and in the Brazil. A
:12:10. > :12:12.lot of trade barriers that we can address without having a formal
:12:13. > :12:16.free-trade agreement and this is very much our approach in Brazil as
:12:17. > :12:22.seen by our joint committee talks on my own visit in March.
:12:23. > :12:30.The Minister will be aware that the barriers to trade are not simply
:12:31. > :12:36.those that would be covered in the trade deal, it is the unfamiliarity
:12:37. > :12:39.with local customs etc. If we are to encourage small and medium-sized
:12:40. > :12:44.enterprises to export, what practical facilities can be given to
:12:45. > :12:49.open up markets like Brazil, potentially enormous, but at the
:12:50. > :12:53.moment very difficult for the SMEs to access. I sank his question and
:12:54. > :12:56.welcome him back to his place, I have fond memories of working
:12:57. > :12:59.closely with him in previous departments on trade and other
:13:00. > :13:04.issues. I would say two things, he is quite right that the removal of
:13:05. > :13:09.nontariff barriers, the grit in the system, is one of the key parts of
:13:10. > :13:11.our department, and he is quite right to emphasise that, that it is
:13:12. > :13:17.not just about free trade agreements in the future, it is about removing
:13:18. > :13:20.practical barriers, which is why my right honourable friend have those
:13:21. > :13:26.talks back in December. In terms of supporting SMEs, the Government
:13:27. > :13:30.portal is very good, there is very good access to Brazilian deals that
:13:31. > :13:38.are coming up, and I would urge all SMEs to go to that or portal to be
:13:39. > :13:44.able to access that. The Minister could have pointed out that a trade
:13:45. > :13:48.agreement could only take brace with Merga saw because Brazil is part of
:13:49. > :13:53.that block, but should a UK agreement take place prior to our
:13:54. > :13:58.leaving the EU, it would become one of the agreements the EU currently
:13:59. > :14:01.has with some 50 countries. How does the Secretary of State opposed to
:14:02. > :14:09.carry out his manifesto commitment to replicate all of those existing
:14:10. > :14:15.agreements after Brexit, and, and what does he propose to implement
:14:16. > :14:21.about end? A lot of these matters will form part of the trade bill
:14:22. > :14:27.which will be during this session, as you well know. The most important
:14:28. > :14:38.thing is that we seek a smooth and orderly exit from the European
:14:39. > :14:42.Union, that we seek to replicate all of those FTAs, and provide stability
:14:43. > :14:49.as we seek to access existing and future markets. With your
:14:50. > :14:54.permission, I will answer questions four, nine at ten together. The food
:14:55. > :15:00.and drink sector makes an important contribution to export. In 2016, UK
:15:01. > :15:03.food and treat exports reached 20.1 billion, an increase of 9% on the
:15:04. > :15:09.previous year. This represents some 6.6% of our total goods exports. For
:15:10. > :15:15.the first quarter of this year, they reached 4.9 billion, up 8.6% on the
:15:16. > :15:20.previous year. The Speaker: I gently say to the
:15:21. > :15:26.Minister that the grouping is one of numbers ten and 12. There was a
:15:27. > :15:30.question that was withdrawn, and the briefing may not have kept up with
:15:31. > :15:33.the evolution of events. The honourable member for Huddersfield
:15:34. > :15:37.doesn't seem easily satisfied this morning, but that will have to do. I
:15:38. > :15:43.know my noble friend understands the food and drinks sector's importance
:15:44. > :15:48.to the south-west, so can I ask what he is don't promote growth and trade
:15:49. > :15:52.the south-west? The answer is exemplified the type of tailored
:15:53. > :15:56.help the Department of International trade can give. Working with our
:15:57. > :15:59.officials in the south-west of local producers and businesses, we have
:16:00. > :16:03.created the great British food row grab, which is designed -- food
:16:04. > :16:09.programme more which is designed specifically to allow us to work
:16:10. > :16:15.with overseas buyers, and Saint April 2016 we have won over ?19
:16:16. > :16:22.million of business across more than 30 areas. Food and drink
:16:23. > :16:25.manufacturing is an enormous market particular to my Bury St Edmunds
:16:26. > :16:31.constituency. Issues overregulation, sampling and tariffs are of concern
:16:32. > :16:36.to exporters. Would he agree to meet with me and them to discuss these
:16:37. > :16:39.issues further? My honourable friend has had a number of meetings of such
:16:40. > :16:45.and she brought down her local chamber of, is, but she is
:16:46. > :16:48.absolutely right. Regulation and tariffs are unimportant part of
:16:49. > :16:52.trade deals, and it is important that we maintain the standards
:16:53. > :16:54.ourselves, that it is the job of the Department of International trade to
:16:55. > :16:59.interact with those people who need help at any level, and I would be
:17:00. > :17:03.very happy to come to her constituency and meet with her and
:17:04. > :17:08.any businesses. Lincolnshire has a proud tradition of producing food,
:17:09. > :17:13.and the food and drink industry is very important to my constituents.
:17:14. > :17:16.Can I ask him what he is doing to help the food and drink
:17:17. > :17:21.manufacturers in Lincolnshire with that exporting, please. Again, the
:17:22. > :17:26.Department of International trade is across the whole of the country, and
:17:27. > :17:41.when it comes to specific areas, we look at specific needs. We a look at
:17:42. > :17:49.a trade fair in Cologne as being a leading example of this, and I hope
:17:50. > :17:53.that her constituents can take their goods to that fair. There are
:17:54. > :18:00.concerns over the increase of import costs, increase in production costs
:18:01. > :18:03.and concerns over Labour, and for us all, concerns over the environment,
:18:04. > :18:08.so can the Minister tells the food Manufacturing sector what new
:18:09. > :18:16.opportunities he has secured for the tractor to trade, and also the value
:18:17. > :18:24.of that to the economy. The value to the, near the food, -- of the
:18:25. > :18:31.economy of the food and tank manufacturing sector is known. We
:18:32. > :18:36.have seen the trade figures are up some 7%, and we can certainly give a
:18:37. > :18:43.breakdown of the actual data. But without a shadow of a doubt, the
:18:44. > :18:46.Department of International Trade is good at what it does, we have seen
:18:47. > :18:55.an increase across all sectors, and record numbers. Why have the
:18:56. > :18:57.Government done nothing to stop Nestle from moving production from
:18:58. > :19:01.the United Kingdom to Poland with the loss of 300 jobs? The Government
:19:02. > :19:06.confirmed this week in a written answer that Ministers met Nestle in
:19:07. > :19:16.April, and Nestle say it would take an investment of ?1 million to save
:19:17. > :19:21.production in the UK. ?1 billion to save one job in Downing Street, but
:19:22. > :19:26.they can't find ?1 million to save 300 here. Unbelievable. There are a
:19:27. > :19:29.number of issues. The Member for York Central has been working hard
:19:30. > :19:34.on behalf of her constituents in trying to stem the redundancies at
:19:35. > :19:41.Nestle, as indeed has the Department of Work and Pensions which is put in
:19:42. > :19:50.the rapid response service. I am happy to meet them again. Scottish
:19:51. > :19:54.food and drink exports have doubled since the SNP Government came to
:19:55. > :19:58.power in 2007, and this has been key in the development of the Scottish
:19:59. > :20:05.economy. What does the Secretary of State think about Michel Barnier's
:20:06. > :20:13.comments that these trades are not possible outside the customs union.
:20:14. > :20:20.Will he consider an interim agreement? The Scottish, the total
:20:21. > :20:24.value of Scottish exports are some ?62 billion a year, of which 50
:20:25. > :20:27.billion is exported to the rest of the United Kingdom. I think that is
:20:28. > :20:32.as good a statement as to why Scotland should remain within the
:20:33. > :20:42.union of the United Kingdom rather than the European Union. More than
:20:43. > :20:46.80% of the fish caught around our coast and 30% of our love is
:20:47. > :20:52.exported to the rest of the EU, yet under these rules that produce would
:20:53. > :20:58.face high tariffs. What guarantees can he give that our fishermen and
:20:59. > :21:01.farmers will not face tariffs if we leave the European Union? This is
:21:02. > :21:06.all part of the ongoing negotiations with the European Union and we will
:21:07. > :21:10.hopefully reach this at the end of March 20 19. It is absolutely the
:21:11. > :21:18.case that the United Kingdom Government is very keen to secure a
:21:19. > :21:20.deal with the European Union sees no change whatsoever to businesses. We
:21:21. > :21:26.want to have as smooth the transition into independence from
:21:27. > :21:29.the European Union as we can, and the interest of fishermen in the
:21:30. > :21:35.south-west is incredibly important, as is everybody else. Millions of
:21:36. > :21:38.pounds of fish were sold through Brixham fish market last year, the
:21:39. > :21:42.most valuable catch in the south of England. Will he meet with me to
:21:43. > :21:45.discuss the opportunities of spending the markets after we leave
:21:46. > :21:52.the European Union and also the issues around frictionless trade and
:21:53. > :21:55.smooth transfer across the border? The Secretary of State as a member
:21:56. > :22:01.of Parliament for the south-west is very welcome to come and meet, so
:22:02. > :22:06.you may get twice as many meetings as you are anticipating, but we look
:22:07. > :22:14.forward to coming to help! The Speaker: Order, Topical
:22:15. > :22:22.Questions. Promoting goods and services over overseas, and
:22:23. > :22:26.benefiting our citizens across the whole of the UK, and to that end, I
:22:27. > :22:29.was delighted to welcome our new permanent secretary and the
:22:30. > :22:33.announcement of Crawford Faulkner as our new chief trade negotiation
:22:34. > :22:41.adviser. Both bring excellence and expertise to the Department at this
:22:42. > :22:44.crucial time. Fisheries and agriculture, the environment and
:22:45. > :22:47.transport are all key competencies of the National Assembly which could
:22:48. > :22:50.be affected by a future trade deal. With the Minister concede that the
:22:51. > :22:53.National Assembly must have the powers to end all is or reject any
:22:54. > :22:59.trade deal would would affect so profoundly it's basic duties? We
:23:00. > :23:03.have made it very clear all along that we intend to have maximal
:23:04. > :23:08.consultation and collaboration in this area, but to emphasise the
:23:09. > :23:13.point, in our manifesto we set out plans to create a new board of trade
:23:14. > :23:17.which will ensure that new trade and investment across the United Kingdom
:23:18. > :23:19.is equally spread as far as we can across all parts of the United
:23:20. > :23:25.Kingdom, the devolved administrations as well as the
:23:26. > :23:29.English regions. As well as an economic opportunity, there is a
:23:30. > :23:31.moral opportunity with trade in the developing world. Could the
:23:32. > :23:33.Secretary of State please tell the House what steps he is taking to
:23:34. > :23:39.support trade with developing countries? First of all we have made
:23:40. > :23:42.it very clear that post Brexit we will continue with duty-free access
:23:43. > :23:46.for the least developing countries, but we do need to look to see
:23:47. > :23:50.whether we can go further than that and whether we can actually reduce
:23:51. > :23:54.some of the burdens, particularly as we leave the customs union and are
:23:55. > :23:57.outside the common external tariff in a way in which we can stop the
:23:58. > :24:05.distortions on value added, which diminish the chance of investment in
:24:06. > :24:09.some of those developing countries. In his recent talks in the United
:24:10. > :24:13.States, did the Secretary of State discuss President Trump's initiation
:24:14. > :24:17.of a section 232 investigation into the effects of steel imports on
:24:18. > :24:22.their national security? What concerns does he have for the impact
:24:23. > :24:27.such a protectionist ruling might have on the UK's steel sector, and
:24:28. > :24:34.jobs in our steel industry due to lost exports and trade deflection of
:24:35. > :24:39.dumped goods on our markets? Mr Speaker, we are all concerned about
:24:40. > :24:43.the overproduction of steel, largely coming from China. And what we have
:24:44. > :24:48.seen is possibly an acceptable subsidies into that sector. But
:24:49. > :24:51.anyway in which that is going to be addressed needs to be done in a way
:24:52. > :24:57.that is compliant with the ability of rules -based system, and I raised
:24:58. > :25:04.the issue with Secretary Ross, and with the trade wrap on the impact it
:25:05. > :25:08.could have on the United Kingdom, and I think it's fair to say that
:25:09. > :25:11.our views were landed. We now await the publication of the report, which
:25:12. > :25:19.has up to 90 days for the president to act upon it. My area is full of
:25:20. > :25:24.excellent small business owners looking to trade with the rest of
:25:25. > :25:30.the world. Many are concerned that the UK looks to make trade deals
:25:31. > :25:36.that will be focused on big rather than small businesses. What can
:25:37. > :25:42.assurances can my honourable friend give to small businesses? My
:25:43. > :25:46.honourable friend makes an extremely small point. Over 99% of businesses
:25:47. > :25:53.in this country in the non-financial business economy are SMEs. Last year
:25:54. > :25:59.we helped over 1200 Welsh companies, most of which were SMEs. We make
:26:00. > :26:05.sure on a regular basis that we have SME focused round tables, and they
:26:06. > :26:15.can always access our portal, great .gov .uk which can help them to
:26:16. > :26:22.improve their exports. Why is he happy for that UK to trade under WTO
:26:23. > :26:27.rules rather than the European Union, when the WTO is more
:26:28. > :26:30.unaccountable and undemocratic? The two things are not analogy is. We
:26:31. > :26:35.operate with the WTO because we believe there needs to be a rules
:26:36. > :26:40.-based system for global trade, and if the WTO didn't exist, we would
:26:41. > :26:45.have to invent it today. The Yeovil constituency has one of the largest
:26:46. > :26:49.export clusters in the south-west, and at its focused on the rest of
:26:50. > :26:53.the world as much as it is on the EU. What assurances can he give me
:26:54. > :26:59.that we will focus on doing global trade deals with not just the EU? My
:27:00. > :27:03.honourable friend makes a very valid point, but it is not just about
:27:04. > :27:06.exports, it is also about inward investment, and so I can bring as
:27:07. > :27:10.up-to-date that at 9:30am we published figures that show a
:27:11. > :27:21.record-breaking number of foreign direct investment projects came into
:27:22. > :27:26.the UK in 2016/17, 2206 D5, and that safeguarding thousands of jobs. No
:27:27. > :27:31.doubt the usual subjects will describe it as despite Brexit.
:27:32. > :27:39.Kerry McCarthy. I thank the ministers or the written answers
:27:40. > :27:42.they have given me, they are keen to assure me that existing animal
:27:43. > :27:45.welfare and environmental standards with a maintained but can they give
:27:46. > :27:51.me for the reassurance that we will address with Japan Marshall wailing
:27:52. > :27:55.and the illegal timber trade? We engage with these issues on an
:27:56. > :28:00.ongoing basis with Japan but can assure -- assure the honourable lady
:28:01. > :28:04.that the government shares a lot of her concerns to protect animal
:28:05. > :28:09.welfare in free-trade agreements. The UK has one of the very best
:28:10. > :28:13.scores on the world animal protection index, in the top four
:28:14. > :28:16.and it's important we maintain animal welfare standards in this
:28:17. > :28:22.country and I have every confidence that we will in future agreements.
:28:23. > :28:26.Ten and a half thousand UK businesses export to Canada, quarter
:28:27. > :28:29.of a million jobs in the UK rely on trade with Canada and we are likely
:28:30. > :28:33.to be one of the biggest winners from the EU Canada trade trade to
:28:34. > :28:37.but it isn't perfect so far to be going to do post Brexit to ensure we
:28:38. > :28:41.do even better in our trading relationship with Canada? As to
:28:42. > :28:47.Speaker I think it's a very appropriate question in this week of
:28:48. > :28:50.the 150th anniversary of the Canadian Confederation. My
:28:51. > :28:54.honourable friend will know only too well the UK exported more than 7
:28:55. > :28:58.billion worth of goods and services to Canada in 2050 we have five
:28:59. > :29:03.offices throughout Canada, we remain strongly supportive of Sita but we
:29:04. > :29:11.will look to have a future agreement with Canada at an appropriate time.
:29:12. > :29:14.Emma Little Pengelly. You will be aware that there are very particular
:29:15. > :29:17.opportunities but also some challenges for each of the double
:29:18. > :29:20.regions across the United Kingdom in the next number of years in
:29:21. > :29:25.particular. Can you are applying fight plans you have what intentions
:29:26. > :29:28.you have to fully integrate the interests of the devolved regions
:29:29. > :29:31.within your strategy and would you commit to an early meeting of
:29:32. > :29:36.delegations from the devolved regions to outline your engagement
:29:37. > :29:40.moving forward? It's a great pleasure to welcome the honourable
:29:41. > :29:44.lady to the chamber again and she's already a prodigious and assiduous
:29:45. > :29:50.contributor. But she mustn't if I break politely asocial, she mustn't
:29:51. > :29:54.inherently bad traitor who are noble friend the Member for Strangford,
:29:55. > :29:59.repairing to the Minister as you, the word used in this chamber refers
:30:00. > :30:03.to the chair and I have no plans to adopt any policies on these matters!
:30:04. > :30:09.She should refer to the Minister. I am still trying to train the
:30:10. > :30:12.honourable gentleman the Member for Strangford, I think his
:30:13. > :30:16.apprenticeship at some distance to travel excavation work Secretary of
:30:17. > :30:20.State. The phrase tricks and all dogs definitely comes to mind are
:30:21. > :30:24.not one. Can I say to the honourable lady, she makes a very good point,
:30:25. > :30:29.there are challenges but also great opportunities and it is essential
:30:30. > :30:32.that we look at trade and investment programmes across the United
:30:33. > :30:36.Kingdom. As I said in answer to an earlier question it's why we bring
:30:37. > :30:40.in the new board of trade to help ensure we have that balance but I
:30:41. > :30:45.can tell her in the figures we announced to date Northern Ireland
:30:46. > :30:50.secured 34 new projects totalling 1122 new jobs, a big game, the sort
:30:51. > :30:54.of programme we want to encourage to ensure investment goes to all parts
:30:55. > :30:59.of the United Kingdom, ensuring we create an economy that works for
:31:00. > :31:04.everyone. Mr Peter Bone. Thank you. You will be delighted to learn that
:31:05. > :31:11.the British high manufacturers export millions of pounds. Could the
:31:12. > :31:19.Secretary of State suggest how this has could help promote the wearing
:31:20. > :31:22.of ties to increase exports? Mr Speaker, I have to say I didn't
:31:23. > :31:26.check with my fellow ministers before I came to answer this
:31:27. > :31:32.question but I suggest we can lead by example and I can say this was
:31:33. > :31:37.made in England! I can't claim mine was, I'm not sure! But I'm sure if
:31:38. > :31:41.they are so popular it will be necessary to compel people to wear
:31:42. > :31:45.them! Very good. We shall move on, questions to the Minister or women
:31:46. > :32:00.and the qualities. Mr Kristian Matheson. Question one, sir. The
:32:01. > :32:04.Minister for women. Minister Justine Greening. Thank you, Mr Speaker you
:32:05. > :32:08.and with your permission I will greet the answer to this question
:32:09. > :32:10.was question it. The UK has a proud record of promoting equality and we
:32:11. > :32:12.have some laws