It’s been a priority for the UK to ensure that its trade internationally does not suffer now that the country has exited the European Union.
UK’s International trade minister Liz Truss has signed agreements with a number of countries, one of which is a rollover services agreement with the Swiss government that will ensure UK companies and professionals can work in Switzerland for up to 90 days a year.
The deal will benefit industries such as financial services, legal services, consultancy, the tech sector and the creative industries.
The deal is the same that the UK had while it was in the EU and came into force on 1 January, after the Brexit transition period ended. Truss said she wanted the UK to build on its current relationship with Switzerland by brokering an improved trade agreement in the future.
“This deal between two services powerhouses is an important part of our mission to be a global hub for services and technology trade,” Truss said. “It supports a services relationship that is worth over £17 billion and provides much needed certainty for thousands of UK businesses and professionals.”
She added: “It will enhance the UK’s status as a global leader in services, supporting trade in vital sectors and benefitting businesses of all sizes, from big firms to small start-ups and self-employed professionals.”
Truss has now signed rollover trade deals with a swathe of non-EU countries that will ensure the UK can trade with these nations on the same terms as it did pre-Brexit.
Countries that have signed continuity trade deals include Canada, South Korea, Ukraine, Switzerland, Israel and North Macedonia.
The rollover deals signed so far are with countries that make up more than 90 per cent of the UK’s current non-EU trade.
A continuity trade deal between the UK and Mexico has also been signed which ensures trade between the two countries will not be disrupted now with the end of the Brexit transition period.
The deal will see the two countries continue to trade on the same terms as under the EU-Mexico trade deal, however both sides have now committed to start negotiations on a new trade agreement this year.
The UK-Mexico trade partnership is currently worth £5bn, with the automotive, pharmaceutical, textiles, agriculture, food and drink sectors the largest contributors.
Liz Truss said the deal is a step toward joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) of which Mexico is a member. The partnership also includes countries such as Australia, Canada, Japan and Singapore.
The UK will be applying to join the trade bloc.
“This is the seventh trade deal we’ve secured with a member of CPTPP, the grouping of 11 dynamic economies around the Pacific,” Truss said.
“So, it’s another really important stepping stone toward the UK joining CPTPP, and I look forward to making our application to do just that.”
In addition, a rollover trade deal has also been signed in London between the UK and Norway as well as UK and Iceland.
The agreement covers trade in goods, and ensures 95 per cent of goods trade with Norway and over 90 per cent with Iceland will remain tariff-free, providing businesses with certainty again that they can continue to operate on the same terms as they did before the transition period with the EU ended.
“We have secured continuity for businesses trading goods with Norway and Iceland, worth over £20bn in 2019,” Truss said. Adding: “We’re looking forward to a more comprehensive FTA (Free Trade Agreement) with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein that will come into force in this year.” (The writer is our foreign correspondent based in the UK)
Andy Jalil
andyjalil@aol.com
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