BritishAmerican Business calls for US-UK Trade and Economic Council
6 December 2021
Contact: Dominic Parker, Senior Communications Manager dparker@babinc.org | 020 7290 9882 | +44 7500 115352
London, 6 December 2021: In light of several top UK Cabinet and Minister visits to the US this week, including by the UK Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan and Minister of State for Trade Policy Penny Mordaunt, BritishAmerican Business (BAB) published its latest white paper calling for a new structure for US-UK trade cooperation. Building on the priorities set out in BAB’s 2021-2022 Policy Agenda and on input from the transatlantic business community, the paper proposes both governments work to establish a US-UK Trade & Economic Council as a new formalised mechanism for trade and investment cooperation.
The paper recommends that six issue-specific workstreams are established under the umbrella of a US-UK Trade & Economic Council. These include technology and digital trade, business mobility, climate and sustainability, Small and Medium-Size Enterprises (SMEs), financial services, and multilateral cooperation. Each workstream has been identified as an area where US-UK cooperation is currently underway or as an area of key interest to the transatlantic business community.
Establishing a formal structure for cooperation is a way to increase the tangible outcomes for both governments and businesses, build on the momentum in ongoing US-UK economic discussions, and lay the foundation for a future US-UK free trade agreement.
BAB CEO Duncan Edwards commented: “The recommendations outlined in this paper offer a pragmatic yet ambitious way forward for the US-UK trade and investment relationship. As both countries look to economically recover from the disruptions caused by Covid-19, it is more important than ever that we see renewed momentum behind the transatlantic trade agenda. We continue to believe that a Free Trade Agreement is both desirable and possible but, in the meantime, a US-UK Trade & Economic Council is a way to continue building on what is already a strong economic relationship and lay the groundwork for new forms of transatlantic cooperation.”
James Sibley, Head of International Affairs at the Federation of Small Business (FSB) said: “A strong UK-US trading relationship is paramount to small businesses achieving their export ambitions, with FSB members consistently identifying the US as the number one individual nation that they want to trade with. We fully support BAB’s calls to strengthen that relationship via a new US-UK Trade & Economic Council, which should provide new momentum and focus at a crucial time for both our nations’ economic recoveries. Looking to the future, agreement of a UK-US FTA can’t come soon enough, as we look to boost small exporters after a tumultuous year of tumbling international sales and supply chain disruption.”
Marjorie Chorlins, Senior Vice President for European Affairs & Executive Director of the U.S.-UK Business Council at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said: “The US-UK Business Council shares BAB’s interest in advancing closer US-UK trade and regulatory ties, and we look forward to exploring their proposals in depth. Any efforts to promote closer engagement must allow for regular stakeholder engagement to ensure they focus on commercially meaningful actions. Deepening connections in the digital economy and sustainable economic development are of particular importance.”
About BritishAmerican Business
BritishAmerican Business is the leading transatlantic trade association incorporating the British-American Chamber of Commerce in the US and the American Chamber of Commerce in the UK.
We are committed to strengthening the economic corridor between the United States and the United Kingdom by supporting policies and actions that protect and enhance the environment for transatlantic trade and investment on behalf of our members.
We convene and serve a growing network of companies and business leaders through networking opportunities, bespoke programming and marketing platforms.
We actively promote trade and investment and support those who make the transatlantic corridor part of their business growth ambition.
For more information, please visit www.babinc.org or contact Dominic Parker, Senior Communications Officer, at dparker@babinc.org or 020 7290 9882 / +44 7500 115352
Click here to read A US-UK Trade & Economic Council – A New Structure for US-UK Trade Cooperation