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FTA applauds government trade stance

[ July 21, 2017   //   Chris ]

The Freight Transport Association said it took heart from international trade secretary Liam Fox’s acknowledgement that the country “does not want a no deal” situation from the Brexit negotiations.

Speaking on Radio 4’s Today programme on 20 July, Mr Fox insisted that the country needs a “full and comprehensive deal”. However, FTA has urged caution over his position that a free-trade agreement with the EU “should be one of the easiest in human history” to achieve as the UK currently has “zero tariffs and maximum regulatory equivalence”, since this would assume that the EU negotiation team would not consider introducing new legislation on the departure of the UK.

FTA also applauded Mr Fox for his commitment to international trade after Brexit  in his speech to the Graduate Institute in Geneva on the same day. “Mr Fox is to be applauded for his positive attitude towards international trade after Brexit,” said FTA deputy chief executive, James Hookham. “Our members have been keen to see the UK taking agile steps to adopt a portfolio of methods to help trade, such as mutual recognition agreements, ministerial dialogues, trade working groups and greater cross-border facilitation.

“FTA has strongly supported the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), which helps to reduce the bureaucracy faced by companies at borders, saving them crucial money and time.”

Tags: FTA