Free Trade Agreements – what next?

Drawing on member experiences and expertise, we have fed into the Department for International Trade (DIT) the steps they can take during the whole Free Trade Agreement (FTA) process to support greater utilisation.

This very much ties into the wider growth agenda, as trade is a key route to growth and increasing it will help to provide growth to all regions and nations of the UK. The utilisation of FTAs is a key priority for DIT and has been spoken about multiple times by the Secretary of State.

Now is the time to build a collective strategy between business and government to drive growth – FTA utilisation should be a key part of this mission.

The recommendations sit in three phases of pre, during and post negotiation, but the consistent theme is that for maximum impact, industry and government need to work in partnership throughout the process and once an FTA is signed there needs to be a continuous campaign to drive utilisation.

Pre: A partnership approach between business and government from the start will provide the best trade deals for the UK in the long-term. This increased awareness will also result in more firms taking advantage once it has been signed.

• Develop a genuine two-way dialogue between business and government once the consultation is launched.
• Gain a deeper understanding of the business position on negotiating priorities before setting the mandate and red lines, including through TAGs/TWGs and conversations with key industry stakeholders.

During: In the negotiation phase business can provide vital insights, including on live negotiating text, to ultimately fulfil the economic potential following the signing of a deal.

• Enable business to better understand trade-offs and be brought into the process in a more constructive way to prevent concern from spreading.
• Prioritise testing offers and trade-offs with business during negotiation rounds.

Post: To promote the use of FTAs a continuous campaign is needed, building on the Export Strategy, and adopting a more strategic approach with the private sector.

• Help businesses of all sizes understand where new opportunities or trade facilitation measures have been secured by translating the FTA into practical information.
• Focus on practical advice and guidance, not only on what the opportunities are but how to access them for both goods and services firms, with Business Representative Organisations and Trade Associations used as key partners.
• Develop a close partnership with private sector stakeholders and other government departments, helping to build an effective feedback loop with businesses using trade deals.
• Champion the UK globally with a proactive approach to trade shows and missions.

Find our full submission to government.

So, what’s the CBI doing now?

We will continue to work on this topic, so keep feeding in your business anecdotes, experiences and thoughts. We will continue to champion the needs of our members throughout this process, as we do with all our policy work, so please do keep talking to us, either directly or through your account manager as your insights are very valuable and the government are keen to get the input of business in this process.

For more information on anything in this article get in touch with Helena.