Simon Kirby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Kirby on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent assessment he has made of the Government’s progress in encouraging exports to emerging markets; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon

UK exports of goods and services to Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRICs) reached £34.9 billion in 2013, their highest level since records began in 1999. In the Budget, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Chancellor highlighted rising exports, with combined goods exports to Brazil, India and China rising faster than those of the UK’s competitors (France, Germany, Italy) in 2013, but said there was more to do.

UK Trade & Investment’s Britain Open for Business: The Next Phase (January 2014) underlined that: ‘To deliver our ambitious trade and investment targets we are continuing vigorously to pursue opportunities in developed markets while strengthening our efforts in high growth markets’. The Chancellor has given UKTI additional funding to strengthen its support for high growth markets.

Additionally, UK Export Finance (UKEF) is devoting additional resources to supporting High Value Opportunities. UKEF also has cover available for over 200 overseas markets and is increasing its product range to provide more effective support to Mid-Size Businesses (MSBs) and smaller companies.