PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Imports: Costs (6 July 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans she has to mitigate a potential increase in costs to the UK consumer of imported goods in the event that a new UK-EU relationship is not agreed by the end of the transition period.

Asked by:
Ms Abena Oppong-Asare (Labour)

Free Trade Agreements (FTA) are just one way in which we can help secure greater choice and lower prices for British shoppers. We intend to achieve a zero tariff and zero quotas FTA with the EU by December 2020, so we do not expect any tariffs to apply to EU imports.

If we do not have an FTA, the “UK Global Tariff” (UKGT) will apply to EU imports, in common with imports from the rest of the world where FTAs have not yet been negotiated. The UKGT almost doubles the number of products coming into the United Kingdom that are tariff free relative to what is currently applied.

The UKGT was developed following a public consultation in which interested parties from across the United Kingdom had the opportunity to help shape the policy. The over 1,300 responses which were received were assessed in a fair and equal manner, and we remain open to feedback from interested parties. To that end, HM Government will publish a Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) alongside the legislation, as is standard practice for all taxes.

Answered by:
Mr Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative)
14 July 2020