Key Facts

• Mr Speaker has selected the reasoned amendment in the name of Keir Starmer.
• The Secretary of State, Elizabeth Truss, is called to move the Second Reading.
• The Bill aims to enable the UK to join the WTO’s Government Procurement Agreement.
• The GPA is worth £1.3 trillion a year globally.
• The TRA will protect British businesses against unfair trading practices.
• Negotiations for FTAs with the US, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and CPTPP are prioritised.
• Shadow Secretary of State: Emily Thornberry.
• Time allotted for speech: 10 minutes.
• The Trade Bill is described as failing to provide legislative framework for bold vision for decades of trade policy.
• It does not reflect widening objectives like climate change, environmental protection, human rights, workers' rights, sustainable development, and gender equality.
• There are concerns about the membership of the proposed Trade Remedies Authority lacking representation from industry bodies and trade unions.
• UK exports 30% of its GDP.
• Germany exports 48% of its GDP.
• EU exports contracted by 1.8% in Q3 2019 before global trade contraction.
• The World Trade Organisation suggests that global trade might fall by 13% to 32% due to the covid crisis.
• Brexit is expected to cause a substantial loss in UK's global trade.
• There are $1.6 trillion worth of tariffs currently in force.
• Previous Trade Bill had provisions for regulation-making powers in devolved areas which were removed from this Bill but no statutory obligation remains for UK Government to consult with Scottish Ministers.
• 20 continuity agreements have been signed with some 48 countries.
• A further 20 agreements have been negotiated but not signed.
• Canada and Japan are refusing to roll over existing agreements and want to negotiate from scratch.
• The Trade Bill includes a five-year sunset period, previously three years.
• Parliament was promised a new FTA scrutiny regime which has not been put in place.
• The UK's Trade Bill is described as under-delivering compared to EU trade agreements.
• The roll-over of EU-Korea deal cannot be fully replicated by the UK alone.
• Concerns about the scrutiny and preparedness for the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) are raised.
• The USA trade deal will add only 0.2% to the UK's GDP, compared with a potential loss of 6% from Brexit.
• International trade is critical for jobs and prosperity in Lancashire.
• The Trade Bill supports continuity agreements with 48 countries, including Peru and Colombia through Andean trade continuity agreements.
• Double taxation agreements, such as one with Colombia, ensure a smooth transition from EU arrangements.
• UK added only two new export products in the past decade.
• The main new UK export is bovine, sheep and goat fat.
• France has added 10 new projects, creating a $1.9 billion market during the same period.
• The Trade Bill ensures that the UK can carry over existing FTAs from the EU.
• The letter from the UK's trade negotiator to Mr Barnier outlines the UK’s stance on not sacrificing key interests in trade negotiations.
• The speaker supports progress in negotiating free trade deals with countries like the US, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.
• The Trade Bill is being pushed through during the coronavirus pandemic.
• Current continuity trade talks between UK and EU are happening alongside preliminary discussions with the United States.
• The MP does not support an extension of the transitional period for Brexit.
• Technology is vital to the British economy and touches almost all aspects of national life.
• The UK-US trade agreement negotiations are based partially on the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
• Section 230 of the US Communications Decency Act provides broad immunity for internet platforms from civil liability for third-party content.
• Including section 230 in a UK-US trade agreement would limit Parliament's ability to legislate against harmful online content.
• The UK has rolled over 20 continuity trade agreements.
• Trade policy in the UK has not been handled domestically for about 40 years.
• The MP welcomes public commitments from the Minister on maintaining bans on chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-injected beef.
• The Trade Bill denies Parliament the right to debate and hold the Government accountable for trade agreements.
• CRAGA (Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010) is only a rubber stamp under the Bill, with all other layers of scrutiny removed.
• Negative lists of services are impossible to specify in a list of future inventions.
• Rosie Winterton interrupts Robert Courts' speech.
• Paul Girvan and Marco Longhi are mentioned as the next speakers.
• The Trade Bill aims to enable UK service providers to seek out business in Government procurement markets worth £1.3 trillion.
• It allows for the reshoring of protections from the EU under WTO rules through a new trade remedies authority.
• Northern Ireland exports 17% of all sales, amounting to £6.2 billion in 2018-19, with machinery and transport contributing £3.2 billion.
• The Trade Bill supports UK exporters.
• It includes provisions for government procurement and the Trade Remedies Agency.
• The Bill is part of a strategy to expand trade with allies such as Singapore, Canada, and Japan.
• The Trade Bill fails to uphold basic principles of scrutiny and oversight.
• There are concerns about protecting the NHS from future trade deals.
• The Bill lacks binding high environmental standards and non-regression provisions.
• Farmers in Northern Ireland fear competition from products with lower or unknown standards.
• 74 current trade arrangements need to be rolled over within months.
• The Trade Bill offers a glimpse of life post-Brexit, potentially opening global markets for Truro, Falmouth, Cornwall, and the entire United Kingdom.
• A free trade agreement with the US could boost the south-west economy by £284 million in the long term.
• Tariffs on key exports such as dairy could be reduced under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
• The average tariff on Cornish cheese is around 17%, which currently prices it out of the US market.
• The Agriculture Bill's progress through Parliament has been supported, but there are concerns about food standards and fair competition for farmers.
• Burnley has major employers from France and the United States.
• Lancashire is the fourth largest manufacturing cluster for aerospace globally.
• The Bill proposes a Trade Remedies Authority.
• 48 trade agreements are ready to be rolled over, securing more than £110 billion-worth of trade.
• The Liberal Democrats will vote against the Second Reading of the Trade Bill.
• The Bill denies British people rights they had as EU members, such as scrutinising and debating trade terms.
• Counterparts in trade negotiations need their deals endorsed by their legislatures (e.g., US deal needs Congress ratification).
• Tariff barriers are declining in significance compared to non-tariff barriers.
• Free trade has reduced absolute poverty by more than half since 1990.
• Free trade contributed to the economic growth of countries like South Korea and Germany after World War II.
• The Trade Bill seeks to roll over existing deals and enhance them where possible.
• Public concern over lack of parliamentary scrutiny for future trade agreements.
• Bill does not protect the NHS from potential privatisation due to trade deals.
• Health and Social Care Act 2012 undermined public sector ethos of NHS.
• British Medical Association wants health and social care sectors excluded from all future trade agreements.
• National Farmers Union highlights absence of provisions for high farming production standards.
• Compassion in World Farming advocates against undermining UK animal welfare, food safety or environmental protections.
• EU handles trade remedies during transition period; new authority needed post-transition.
• The Bill supports free and fair trade, crucial for fighting the pandemic.
• Trade remedies will be retained against dumping practices, especially concerning ceramic goods from China.
• Stoke-on-Trent-based firms like Portmeirion and Emma Bridgewater are well-positioned to compete in global markets.
• There is potential for a positive trade deal with America for British ceramics.
• Over 250,000 UK businesses have tradeable goods and services but do not currently trade internationally.
• The Commonwealth Heads of Government summit in Kigali has been postponed from June.
• Two-way trade between Africa and Britain was worth £35.1 billion of goods and services in 2018.
• Ghana’s cocoa industry faces a $1 billion shortfall due to the impact of coronavirus.
• The UK's top 25 export and import markets include countries with poor human rights records like China, Russia, and India.
• Chinese Uyghur Muslims face mass detention, torture, and mistreatment.
• Indian Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act grants immunity to security forces committing abuses in Kashmir.
• The Bill addresses constituents' concerns about privatisation of the NHS under the Government procurement agreement.
• The MP supports farmers in her constituency and their high-quality produce.
• A new independent body, the trade remedies authority, is being created to provide a safety net for UK industries.
• International trade agreements can undermine public services and workers’ rights.
• Trade agreements can prevent action on climate change and damage food safety standards.
• The Trade Bill needs to be properly scrutinised by Parliament, devolved nations, and civil society.
• The Bill will enable implementation of obligations under 20 trade agreements signed by the UK.
• £207 billion worth of UK trade is with countries covered in continuity agreements.
• There are 20 continuity agreements already rolled over from EU agreements.
• The Division resulted in Ayes 355, Noes 254.
• The remote voting period for the Trade Bill has concluded.
• There was a provisional determination that a remote Division would not take place on questions relating to the programme motion and money resolution.