Trade deals, passporting and EU Customs Union discussed at briefing with Mark Garnier

The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Trade (DIT) Mark Garnier MP joined Asia House corporate members for a private briefing and roundtable discussion on Wednesday to discuss priorities for the new department.

Topics discussed at the briefing included countries the UK has already started informal talks with about bilateral trade agreements post-Brexit, the process for drawing up free trade agreements globally, the timetable for exiting the EU, the UK Government’s stance on the European Union Customs Union, the threat to passporting rights, London’s status as the globe’s financial services hub post-Brexit and Japanese investment in the UK automotive sector.

Mr Garnier was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the DIT in July after Theresa May became Prime Minister and created the Department. He leads on high value export and investment campaigns in the financial services, advanced manufacturing and aerospace, automotive, bio-economy, consumer, creative and education.

Prior to this position, he was the Prime Minister’s trade envoy to Myanmar, Brunei and Thailand. He also served on the Treasury Select Committee (2010 – 2016) and the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards (2012 – 2014).

Corporate members represented at the table included Arup, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, ABP London, Jardines, Prudential, BAE Systems, Anglo American, Nikkei, Diageo, Mitsui & Co Europe, Standard Chartered, Aggreko and GSK.

naomi.canton@asiahouse.co.uk

On Friday, 21 October HE Mr Koji Tsuruoka, Ambassador of Japan to the UK, and Sir Alexander Lockwood Smith KNZM, High Commissioner of New Zealand to the UK, will brief Asia House corporate members on the the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), other key developments in trade across the Asia-Pacific region and related opportunities for both the UK and EU. For more information click here.

That event and the Mark Garnier MP event held today are part of the Asia House Brexit Series which is being run to advise and inform corporate members, clients and government officials on how best to navigate the commercial, political and economic uncertainties in the lead up to the UK leaving the EU. To read more about the Asia House Brexit Series click here.

To read all the Asia House stories and interviews on Brexit click here.