Tag: Business and Trade Department

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 20 April 2023.

The Department for Business and Trade launches new independent Critical Minerals Taskforce.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 18 April 2023.

Nigel Huddleston is in Washington to deepen UK-US trade ties and secure two wins that will boost jobs, investment and exports across the Atlantic.

Trade Minister Nigel Huddleston is in Washington to deepen UK-US trade ties and secure two wins that will boost jobs, investment and exports across the Atlantic.

He will open his visit by signing a state-level trade Memorandum of Understanding with Oklahoma, the fourth such agreement between the UK and a US state, before welcoming a Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) between UK and US architect regulators.

The MoU with Oklahoma will unlock opportunities for UK businesses to export more and encourage inward investment, which will in turn drive economic growth and create jobs in the UK, contributing to the government’s priority to grow the economy.

It aims to boost the £174.4m worth of goods UK companies exported to the UK in 2022 and generate more jobs for exporters in the UK. Nearly 3,000 jobs in Oklahoma are supported by exports to the UK and nearly 10,000 people in the state are employed by British companies.

Top goods exports from UK to Oklahoma in 2022 included nuclear equipment, precious stones and metals and photographic equipment, including medical and navigational.

The Minister will attend an event on 19 April with industry bodies to welcome the ground-breaking architect MRA. This is the first of its kind signed by the UK’s Architects Registration Board (ARB) and will ensure UK architects can take advantage of new opportunities in several states across the United States.

Practising architecture in the US requires licensing, typically at state level, which makes it harder for UK architects to work in the country. Under the agreement, eligible UK architects and businesses will face significantly less testing and a shorter process to get a licence in participating jurisdictions.

British architects have made significant contributions to the US landscape, having designed several well-known buildings including the African-American Museum in Washington DC and JFK Airport in New York by Sir David Adjaye and Andrew Whalley respectively. Architecture and engineering services in the UK is worth £22bn, with architectural services employing around 70,000 people across the country.

The MRA could increase UK services exports to the US by around £40 million per annum.

Business and Trade Minister Nigel Huddleston said:

I’m thrilled to be in America building on our strong trading relationship with the US through our innovative programme of state-level MoUs and a trailblazing agreement between US and UK architect regulators.

Both these agreements will benefit British businesses, unlock huge opportunities in clean energy and technology through our MoU with Oklahoma and make it easier for our world-leading British architects to export their services across the Atlantic.

The US is our largest trading partner, and these wins reflect our successful twin-track approach to trade with the US, strengthening links with individual states in parallel with work with the federal government.

The Oklahoma MoU will focus on decarbonisation, particularly through boosting collaboration and investment in areas such as carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS). The Government has identified CCUS as an area of economic opportunity for the UK – expected to create up to 50,000 British jobs by the end of this decade.

The UK already has MoUs in place with Indiana, North Carolina and South Carolina, which are helping UK businesses meet new buyers and secure new contracts. We are currently discussing future agreements with states including Utah, Texas and California.

BritishAmerican Business CEO Duncan Edwards said:

The UK government’s state-level engagement makes good business sense. We welcome today’s signing and look forward to helping transatlantic companies develop new business ties in the state of Oklahoma.

While these MoUs foster further trade and investment opportunities at a local level, our hope is that their success can help put trade talks at a federal level back on the agenda.

The architect MRA is the most accepted agreement ever signed by NCARB and covers three of the five largest US states by GDP; California, Illinois and Texas.

Minister for Building Safety Lee Rowley said:

This agreement will help increase the presence of UK architects and architectural sector in the United States and on the global stage.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities developed the legislation to enable the Architects Registration Board to sign these types of agreements and has supported them throughout their negotiations with NCARB.

This agreement, and others like it with partners across the world, create more international opportunities for architectural firms based all around the UK and increase the talent and breadth of architects here.

ARB Chief Executive and Registrar Hugh Simpson said:

This landmark agreement that ARB has signed with our US counterparts means that from 25 April, UK architects and their firms can take advantage of a much simpler licensing process for UK qualified architects in the United States, with fewer tests and a streamlined application process. US qualified and licenced architects will also benefit from a quicker and simpler process to join the UK register in a way which maintains standards and upholds confidence.

Foster + Partners is a British studio for architecture, urbanism and design founded in 1967. It is the largest architectural firm in the UK with offices established across the world.

Foster + Partners Senior Partner and Global Head of HR Charlotte Sword said:

We welcome the recent ARB-NCARB mutual recognition agreement, which will make it easier for our UK qualified architects to gain licensure in the participating US states and for our US architects to work here in the UK.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 17 April 2023.

New Smart Data project aimed at cutting bills for consumers.

• The Council will look at how to cut the current loyalty penalty of £1,114
• The next step in cementing the UK’s position as a global fintech leader

A new Smart Data Council has been set up to help lower bills for consumers and small firms by making it easier to switch utility providers, the Department for Business and Trade has announced today.

The loyalty penalty, the difference between what loyal and new consumers pay for the same service, currently sits at £1,114 a year for households across mobile, mortgages and broadband.

The Council find ways to extend the benefits of Smart Data to new sectors, allowing consumers and businesses to find essential tariffs best suited to their needs, or reduce the loyalty penalty that customers face when trying to change providers.

Smart Data involves the secure sharing of customer data with authorised third parties to help improve services for consumers. A wider adoption of Smart Data will make it easier for more consumers and small businesses to switch providers of some utilities, therefore supporting families to save money.

The Council, featuring representatives from Citizen’s Advice, Innovate Finance and other stakeholders will be tasked with leading, developing and co-ordinating on new and innovative schemes that utilise the power of Smart Data.

Business and Trade Minister Kevin Hollinrake said:

Smart Data can be a real game changer for consumers across the UK, potentially saving people hundreds or even thousands of pounds a year.

Our new Smart Data Council will build on the success of Open Banking and spearhead measures in sectors like SME finance, energy and telecoms, increasing competition and putting more money in the pockets of consumers and small firms.

The newly formed council will aim to replicate the success of Open Banking in other sectors which could include telecoms and energy.

Launched in 2018, Open Banking has been one of the early champions of Smart Data, and now supports over 7 million customers. In that time the data sharing services have boosted customer knowledge of their finances and enabled increased savings.

The Council will be comprised of key government departments, regulators, industry, and consumer groups. The Council will direct coordination and drive collaboration and knowledge-sharing across the key decision makers and stakeholders.

The inaugural meeting will take place on Tuesday 25th April 2023.

Council Members:

• The Department for Business and Trade
• HM Treasury
• The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
• The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
• The Information Commissioner’s Office
• Ofcom
• Ofgem
• The Financial Conduct Authority
• The Competition and Markets Authority
• TechUK
• Innovate Finance
• Icebreaker One
• Citizens Advice
• The Coalition for a Digital Economy (COADEC)
• Open Data Institute
• Ctrl-Shift
• Open Banking Implementation Entity (OBIE)
• The Investing and Saving Alliance (TISA)

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 5 April 2023.

The bloc is home to over 500 million people and will have a total GDP of £11 trillion once the UK joins.

The Welsh economy is expected to benefit after the UK Government today (31 March) announced the conclusion of trade talks with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a vast free trade area spanning the Indo-Pacific.

The bloc is home to over 500 million people and will have a total GDP of £11 trillion once the UK joins. Joining the bloc could boost the Welsh economy by improving businesses’ access to some of the world’s largest markets.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said:

We are at our heart an open and free-trading nation, and this deal demonstrates the real economic benefits of our post-Brexit freedoms. As part of CPTPP, the UK is now in a prime position in the global economy to seize opportunities for new jobs, growth and innovation.

Joining the CPTPP trade bloc puts the UK at the centre of a dynamic and growing group of Pacific economies, as the first new nation and first European country to join. British businesses will now enjoy unparalleled access to markets from Europe to the south Pacific.

There are numerous opportunities for Welsh businesses to benefit from joining CPTPP, with more than 450 businesses in Wales exporting over £900m worth of goods to CPTPP countries in 2021.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said:

This is an important moment for the UK. Our accession to CPTPP sends a powerful signal that the UK is open for business and using our post-Brexit freedoms to reach out to new markets around the world and grow our economy.

Joining CPTPP will support jobs and create opportunities for companies of all sizes and in all parts of the UK. It is also about giving Welsh businesses improved access to the countries that will be gateway to the wider Indo-Pacific region which is projected to make up the majority of global growth in the future.

Joining the trade bloc will mean more than 99 percent of UK goods exports to CPTPP members will be eligible for zero tariffs. In the long run, it could boost the UK economy by £1.8 billion and lead to a £1.7 billion increase in UK exports to CPTPP countries as result of the reduction of barriers across goods and services according to the Government’s published scoping assessment. Key Welsh exports such as machinery and power generators could benefit from the removal of tariffs as a result of the agreement.

Welsh Secretary David TC Davies said:

This trade deal is great news for Welsh business. CPTPP countries are already an important sector in the Welsh export market. Over 450 companies, including Halen Môn and Fifth Wheel, will benefit from less red tape and better opportunities. These growing markets will help businesses in Wales increase export opportunities and boost the global appetite for Welsh goods and services.

Fifth Wheel Company are a multi-award winning business specialising in the design and manufacturing of luxury tourers. All of their vehicles are assembled in-house at their factory in Rhuallt in North Wales, and they’re excited about the exporting opportunities that will be created by the UK joining CPTPP.

Gethin Whiteley at Fifth Wheel, commented:

We’ve been exporting our luxury caravans to Australia and New Zealand customers for the last five years. The leisure and camping market within these countries is growing, and our products offer the size and space of a motorhome and the practicality of a car and caravan so are perfectly suited to explore.

We have already embarked on a trade mission to strengthen our position in these markets, and we believe that joining CPTPP, along with the bilateral deals, will further assist us in our search to increase exports of our products to markets of growing importance.

Wales-based company Halen Môn produce ANGLESEY Sea Salt, which can be found in over 100 of the UK’s best delicatessens, as well as in retailers such as Marks and Spencer, Waitrose and Harvey Nichols.

They already export to more than 22 countries across the globe, including several CPTPP members, and are looking forward to exploring the further exporting potential created by the UK’s accession to the trading bloc.

Alison Lea-Wilson at Halen Môn said:

Anything the UK government can do to help realise the huge potential of trading with CPTPP member states is to be welcomed. We already export to Japan and Singapore and see opportunities in Australia too.

We are delighted to be supplying a Japanese bakery ingredients company with our innovative oak smoked water. There is already a great relationship between Wales and Japan forged in part by rugby, seaweed and even leeks, and we look forward to building on it.

Membership is a gateway to the wider Indo-Pacific region, which has 60% of the world’s population and is set to account for the majority (54%) of global economic growth and around half of the world’s billion middle-class consumers in the decades ahead.

As a member of CPTPP, the UK will help influence and shape global rules for industries of the future like digital, data and services, and secure our place as a global leader in a network of countries committed to free trade.

The UK and CPTPP members will now take the final steps required for the UK to formally sign in 2023.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 31 March 2023.

Prime Minister announces deal to join CPTPP – a huge trade bloc in the Indo-Pacific which will now have a total GDP of £11 trillion.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 27 March 2023.

The government has launched a review of the whistleblowing framework.

• The review will gather evidence on the effectiveness of the current regime in enabling workers to speak up about wrongdoing and protect those who do so.
• The evidence gathering stage of the review will conclude in Autumn 2023.

A review of the whistleblowing framework – the laws that support workers who blow the whistle on wrongdoing in the workplace – has been launched by the Government today.

The review will seek views and evidence from whistleblowers, key charities, employers and regulators.

Whistleblowing refers to when a worker makes a disclosure of information which they reasonably believe shows wrongdoing or someone covering up wrongdoing.  Workers who blow the whistle are entitled to protections, which were introduced through the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA). Successive governments have taken steps to strengthen whistleblowing policy and practice.

For authorities tackling corruption, fraud and other economic crime, whistleblowing is a crucial source of evidence, as these activities and their perpetrators can only be exposed by insiders.

It also provides a route for employees to report unsafe working conditions and wrongdoing across all sectors.

This was keenly felt during the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic, when the Care Quality Commission and Health and Safety Executive recorded sharp increases in the number of whistleblowing disclosures they received.

Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake said:

Whistleblowing is a vital tool in tackling economic crime and unsafe working conditions, and the UK was one of the first countries in the world to develop a whistleblowing framework.

This review has been a priority for me since joining government, and it will take stock of whether the whistleblowing framework is operating effectively and protects those who call out wrongdoing in the workplace.

This review will cover central topics, key to the whistleblowing framework:

• who is covered by whistleblowing protections.
• the availability of information and guidance for whistleblowing purposes (both on gov.uk and that provided by employers).
• how employers and prescribed persons respond to whistleblowing disclosures, including best practice.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 26 March 2023.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has knocked down barriers to markets worth more than £2.2 billion to UK businesses in her first 200 days in the job – equivalent to over £11 million every day.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has knocked down barriers to markets worth more than £2.2 billion to UK businesses in her first 200 days in the job – equivalent to over £11 million every day.

British exporters regularly encounter obstacles of all kinds – including bureaucracy, red tape, and bans – which stop them from selling abroad. The Department for Business and Trade has a global network of specialists working to get rid of them by engaging governments around the world to find and resolve the issues.

Earlier this year, Badenoch made the removal of these trade barriers one of her top five priorities, committing to lifting 100 of the most significant hurdles.

Those successfully targeted in the last 200 days include:

• Removing a ban on importing luxury products including toys, diamonds and colour TVs to Nepal.
• Reducing registration requirements for pharmaceutical products to Vietnam.
• Relaxing the foreign ownership cap on renewable energy projects in the Philippines, allowing UK companies to invest in the development of solar, hydro, tidal and wind energy.
• Ensuring the recognition of British education qualifications for UK teachers to teach in Thailand.
• Lifting the ban on certain pork products to South Korea, including bacon, ham and pork sausages.
• Allowing the export of pet food to Chile.
• Allowing teachers from West Java, Indonesia to complete maritime training programmes in the UK, after acceptance of UK maritime qualification standards benefitting the City of Glasgow College.
• Supporting companies to access financial products in Mauritius and supporting further development of the local financial market.
• Review of regulations such as the price threshold for the sale of refurbished mobile phones to Turkey.
• Allowing certification companies to access the Brazilian market and speeding up approval processes in the automotive sector.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said:

I have made it a priority to knock down the barriers holding back British businesses and that prevent them from selling more of their goods and services around the world, creating new jobs, and paying higher wages.

As an independent trading nation Britain can now get to grips with these blockages. So I’m very proud that since becoming Trade Secretary we’ve been able to unlock billions for the UK economy, and I look forward to smashing even more barriers to ensure our businesses thrive.

Alongside new trade deals, the UK is taking a targeted approach to getting rid of trade barriers that are most detrimental to British exports and investment. Removing these barriers can help to increase trade, inject billions into the UK economy, and build closer trading relationships with the largest and fastest growing economies in the world.

British businesses have welcomed the removal of barriers to trading overseas. The Renewables Consulting Group, a specialised expert services firm focused solely on the global renewable energy industry, and Environmental Resources Management (ERM) welcomed the lifting of the ban on foreign investment in renewable energy in the Philippines, saying it had already generated interest from potential investors which could boost the country’s transition to clean energy sources like wind and solar.

Raimond Dasalla, Associate and Philippines Co-Lead added: “The is great news for the Philippines. Lifting the restrictions will enable knowledge transfer on emerging renewable energy technologies, help create jobs and ultimately unlock the country’s sustainable economic development.”

Vegeco Ltd, a specialist vegan company supplying quality ethical, eco-friendly and vegan products, with a specialism in pet food and goods, welcomed the new opportunity to export pet food to Chile.

Darrell de Vries, Director of Vegeco Ltd said: “As the pet food market becomes more and more saturated in the UK, Vegeco is continually looking for new ground. Often it’s not an easy path if no one has walked it before, so knowing that barriers to access the Chilean market are being removed, is half the battle won. Vegeco is excited about the potential of the market for our product range.”

The Department for Business and Trade has also led the way in lifting the ban on British beef and lamb in Japan, securing approval for UK pork exports to Taiwan, ensuring the export of pet supplements to India, and agreeing a new certification system with China to allow the export of cruelty-free cosmetics for the first time.

UK businesses facing a blockage that stops them exporting abroad should contact DBT’s specialists via https://www.great.gov.uk/report-trade-barrier/

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 23 March 2023.

Postmasters who first took High Court legal action against Post Office over the Horizon IT system and exposed the scandal can now apply to a new compensation scheme.

• New scheme will make sure these postmasters receive full and fair compensation.

A new scheme to compensate the postmasters who exposed the Post Office Horizon Scandal from the 1990s is now open.

The postmasters who took the first High Court legal action against the Post Office agreed a settlement worth £43 million plus legal costs in 2019. The case marked a turning point in the Post Office Horizon scandal and led to the Government setting up the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry we see today.

However, much of the money from the settlement was taken up by the associated costs of funding their landmark case. They were also ineligible for the Historical Shortfall Scheme that was created to compensate others who were affected by Post Office and Horizon.

The scheme opening today recognises the unique position of these postmasters and will make sure they will have access to compensation on the same basis as other postmasters who were so badly wronged by the actions of Post Office and the Horizon system.

Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake said:

The trailblazing postmasters who exposed the Horizon scandal were instrumental in securing justice for all of those affected.

We will keep fighting for the postmasters and their families, and it is right that they will now receive full and fair compensation for the pain and suffering caused by this scandal.

Starting in the late 1990s, the Post Office began installing Horizon accounting software, but faults in the software led to shortfalls in branches’ accounts. The Post Office demanded sub-postmasters cover the shortfalls, and in many cases wrongfully prosecuted them between 1999 and 2015 for false accounting or theft.

In December 2022, government announced an Independent Advisory Board to guide ministers on the scheme chaired by Professor Chris Hodges. Members of the advisory board include Lord Arbuthnot, Kevan Jones MP and Professor Richard Moorhead.

Professor Chris Hodges, Chair of Independent Advisory Board, said:

The advisory board welcomes the creation of this GLO compensation scheme. Whilst compensation cannot truly deal with the injustices faced by the victims of the post office scandal, we do believe it can help. Critical to that is a process independent of the post office, fair in its handling of the issues and evidence, and as speedy as possible.

Today’s announcement comes following significant progress on compensation for other postmasters affected by the Horizon scandal.

On the Overturned Historical Convictions Compensation, as of Tuesday 7 March, Post Office has paid out over £17.5 million in compensation to those with overturned historical convictions. 79 of the 84 postmasters and former postmasters with overturned historical convictions had received interim payments, totalling over £10.2 million.

On the Historical Shortfall Scheme, as of Friday 3 March, 96% of eligible claimants to the Historical Shortfall Scheme have now received offers of compensation, totalling £82.9 million. Post Office are working to issue offers to remaining claimants as soon as possible.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 6 March 2023.

The UK and Canada have agreed a landmark agreement to co-operate on critical minerals such as cobalt and lithium that are essential to the economy.

• UK and Canada to sign agreement to bolster vital technologies such as smart phones, solar panels and electric vehicles.
• Agree to work together on critical minerals research and make supply chains more resilient as demand for some minerals expected to rise 500% by 2040.
• Agreement signed on Minister Nus Ghani’s five-day visit to Canada to meet counterparts and attend the International Mines Ministers Summit and the closing of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The UK and Canada have agreed a landmark agreement to co-operate on critical minerals such as cobalt and lithium that are essential to the economy and used in almost all modern and green technologies, from solar panels to electric vehicles.

The partnership, to be launched today [Monday 6 March] by Business and Trade Minister Nusrat Ghani MP and Canadian Minister of Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson, will help make UK manufacturers of cutting-edge technologies more resilient to global shocks by promoting research and development between UK and Canadian businesses, driving innovation and growth.

The announcement comes on a five-day visit to Canada, during which time Minister Ghani will also meet Canadian government counterparts to discuss critical minerals and attend the International Mines Ministers Summit and the closing of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Minister for Business and Trade, Nusrat Ghani MP, said:

Every single one of us depend on critical minerals to make the technology we use in our everyday lives. With a dash for minerals to meet national business needs, it is essential we work to build more resilient supply chains for critical minerals.

Through this Dialogue, we will work with one of our closest global allies in Canada to build and strengthen our supply chains and boost innovation, securing jobs and growing the UK economy in the process.

Canadian Minister of Natural Resources, The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, said:

Canada and the United Kingdom share similar goals and values.

By collaborating on the development of the critical mineral supply chains that we need to achieve our net-zero future, we can reinforce global energy security, advance the fight against climate change and ensure significant economic opportunity and support good jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.

Today’s announcement is a step forward toward a sustainable and secure clean energy ecosystem.

Canada is the UK’s 13th largest export partner, with UK companies last year exporting £14.1 billion worth of products to Canada.  Canada represents a large opportunity for UK mining and engineering firms, with the country currently producing 60 minerals and metals at 200 mines and 6,500 quarries.

The Critical Minerals Statement of Intent and Dialogue will be launched by Minister Ghani at the 2023 Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada Convention. They also commit Canada and the UK to high environmental, social and governance standards in critical minerals supply chains.

Demand for certain critical minerals is expected to rise by as much as 500% by 2040, and the Statement and Dialogue are a part of the UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy to secure supply chains for these minerals and therefore the UK’s position in the growing markets for green technologies, such as hydrogen production and nuclear energy. A refreshed approach for delivering the Strategy is due to be published later this year.

The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 6 March 2023.

Round seven of negotiations for a free trade agreement between the United Kingdom and the Republic of India.