Britain vows to toughen its trade defences under new strategy
[LONDON] Britain said it would toughen up its trade defences to better protect industries amid a turbulent global outlook of trade wars and US tariffs that has shaped its new trade strategy published on Thursday (Jun 26).
The government said that 'resurgent protectionism' meant it needed to rethink its approach and 'take the earliest opportunity to overhaul Britain's trade remedies system to make it more accessible, assertive and agile.'
'The UK is an open trading nation but we must reconcile this with a new geopolitical reality,' Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said.
'Our trade strategy will sharpen our trade defence so we can ensure British businesses are protected from harm.'
The government will adjust the Trade Remedies Authority's (TRA) policy guidance and operating framework so it can be more assertive in tackling imports from countries with 'unfair market distortions'.
UK Steel has said that the TRA's current approach, under which it proposed to cap how much of certain kinds of steel could be imported, needed to be more robust, and welcomed the trade strategy as a 'critical turning point'.
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Sign Up
Sign Up
The trade strategy is Britain's first since it has had an independent trade policy after leaving the European Union under the Conservatives, who hailed the opportunities of Brexit as it pursued several free trade agreements.
While the Labour government, which came to power a year ago, concluded free trade talks with India and hopes to clinch another deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) soon, it said the new strategy would focus on quicker and more practical deals than the previous government did.
It is already set to partially implement a deal to remove some of US President Donald Trump's tariffs, and has hailed recent deals to smooth trade with the European Union.
A new fund, named after 19th Century free trade economist David Ricardo, will be established to help British regulators tackle trade barriers abroad.
The UK Export Finance (UKEF) export credit agency will also be expanded.
Britain will also join the MPIA temporary arbitration arrangement for resolving World Trade Organization disputes.
The trade strategy also seeks to promote environmental goals, labour rights and human rights. But the Trade Justice Movement advocacy group said those ambitions would be 'severely tested' in negotiations with the GCC.
'Without clear conditions and safeguards that uphold rights... these promises risk remaining purely rhetorical,' said Trade Justice Movement director Tom Wills. REUTERS
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
41 minutes ago
- Straits Times
EU leaders call for Gaza ceasefire, discussion on critical Israel report
FILE PHOTO: A banner depicting an European Union flag is reflected in a window outside the EU Council headquarters in Brussels, Belgium March 18, 2025. REUTERS/Yves Herman/ File Photo BRUSSELS - Leaders from the European Union's 27 member countries called on Thursday for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and said discussions would continue on a report on Israel's compliance with the terms of an agreement with the bloc. "The European Council calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the unconditional release of all hostages, leading to a permanent end to hostilities," the leaders said in written conclusions after a discussion on the Middle East in Brussels. The EU's diplomatic service said last week there were indications that Israel had breached its human rights obligations under the terms of a pact governing its ties with the bloc. "The European Council takes note of the report on Israel's compliance with Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement and invites the Council to continue discussions on a follow-up, as appropriate, in July 2025, taking into account the evolution of the situation on the ground," the leaders wrote REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Congo drops demand for immediate Rwandan troop pullout, sources say
FILE PHOTO: Congolese civilians who fled from Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo following fighting between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), wash their feet after arriving at a reception centre in Rugerero near Gisenyi, in Rubavu district, Rwanda, January 28, 2025. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File Photo Congolese negotiators have dropped a demand that Rwandan troops immediately leave eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, paving the way for a U.S.-brokered peace agreement to be signed between the longtime foes on Friday, four sources told Reuters. Rwanda has sent at least 7,000 soldiers over the border, according to analysts and diplomats, in support of the M23 rebels, who seized eastern Congo's two largest cities and lucrative mining areas in a lightning advance earlier this year. Rwanda has long denied providing arms and troops to M23 and says it is acting in self-defence. Congolese and Rwandan officials are expected to sign a peace deal in Washington on Friday following a diplomatic push by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to end years of conflict with roots in Rwanda's 1994 genocide. The agreement also aims to attract Western investment to the two countries' mining sectors, which boast deposits of tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper and lithium, while giving the U.S. access to critical minerals. Sources told Reuters earlier this month that Washington was pushing for Rwanda to withdraw its troops before the deal's signing, a pre-condition that was also included in a U.S.-prepared draft authenticated by diplomats. But that timeline was certain to face resistance from Rwanda. Kigali considers Congo-based armed groups an existential threat, particularly the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which includes remnants of Rwanda's former army and militias that carried out the genocide. Three sources told Reuters that the new version of the agreement aims to obtain the withdrawal of Rwandan troops from eastern Congo over several months, while two of them said the withdrawal would be conditioned on operations against the FDLR. The sources - three diplomats and a Congolese official - asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the talks. Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo told Reuters on Thursday that under the agreement the "lifting of defensive measures in our border area" would be contingent upon the FDLR's "neutralisation". Congo's government did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A State Department spokesperson said it did not comment on ongoing diplomatic negotiations. It remains unclear how far the agreement to be signed on Friday will advance beyond a declaration of principles agreed in April. Technical experts from the two countries initialed a draft peace agreement last week, saying it addressed issues related to territorial integrity, "a prohibition of hostilities" and the disengagement, disarmament and conditional integration of non-state armed groups. It also referred to a mechanism agreed as part of an earlier Angolan-backed peace effort to monitor and verify the withdrawal of Rwandan soldiers and Congolese military operations targeting the FDLR. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
No known intelligence that Iran moved uranium, US defense chief says
WASHINGTON: US defence secretary Pete Hegseth insisted on Thursday (Jun 26) that American strikes on Iranian nuclear sites were a success, backing President Donald Trump and berating the media for questioning the results of the operation. American B-2 bombers hit two Iranian nuclear sites with massive GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs last weekend, while a guided missile submarine struck a third site with Tomahawk cruise missiles. "President Trump created the conditions to end the war, decimating - choose your word - obliterating, destroying Iran's nuclear capabilities," Hegseth told journalists at the Pentagon, referring to a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran. Trump has called the strikes a "spectacular military success" and repeatedly said they "obliterated" the nuclear sites. On Thursday, he insisted that Iran did not manage to move nuclear materials - including enriched uranium - ahead of the US military action. "Nothing was taken out of facility. Would take too long, too dangerous, and very heavy and hard to move!" Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform. This was echoed by Hegseth. "I'm not aware of any intelligence that I've reviewed that says things were not where they were supposed to be, moved or otherwise," he said. However, US media revealed a preliminary American intelligence assessment earlier this week that said the strikes only set back Iran's nuclear program by months - coverage sharply criticised by Hegseth. "Whether it's fake news CNN, MSNBC or the New York Times, there's been fawning coverage of a preliminary assessment." The document was "leaked because someone had an agenda to try to muddy the waters and make it look like this historic strike wasn't successful", Hegseth said. Trump has also lashed out at coverage of the intelligence report, calling for journalists to lose their jobs. Hegseth did not definitively state that the enriched uranium and enriching centrifuges at the heart of Iran's controversial nuclear program had been wiped out, but cited intelligence officials - although giving little detail - as saying the nuclear facilities were destroyed. "If you want to know what's going on at Fordow, you better go there and get a big shovel, because no one's under there right now," Hegseth said, referring to the deep-underground nuclear site. After the strikes, several experts also cautioned that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of Fordow before the strike early Sunday morning and could be hiding it and other nuclear components in locations unknown to Israel, the US and UN nuclear inspectors. They noted satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies showing "unusual activity" at Fordow on Thursday and Friday, with a long line of vehicles waiting outside an entrance to the facility. A senior Iranian source told Reuters on Sunday that most of the near weapons-grade 60 per cent highly enriched uranium had been moved to an undisclosed location before the US attack. Israel launched an unprecedented air campaign targeting Iranian nuclear sites, scientists and top military brass on Jun 13 in a bid to end the nuclear program, which Tehran says has only civilian purposes but Washington and other powers say is pursuing atomic weapons. Trump had spent weeks pursuing a diplomatic path to replace the nuclear deal with Tehran that he tore up during his first term in 2018, but he ultimately decided to take military action.
