News | BCC welcomes joint statement on UK/US trade dialogues

Statement follows UK International Trade Secretary's meeting with U.S. Trade Representative in Aberdeen, Scotland.

BCC Director General, Shevaun Haviland, who attended the first day of the Dialogues in Aberdeen, said:

“It was great to be involved in the productive conversations with Ambassador Katherine Tai and Secretary of State Anne-Marie Trevelyan, alongside business, political and labour leaders from both sides of the Atlantic. 

“Trade can be a powerful force for good – it drives prosperous local economies which can build strong communities across the UK and US. I’m pleased that the Joint Statement at the conclusion of this second round of the Dialogues has that message at its heart.  

“The BCC has been calling for practical actions to boost UK-US trade in five key areas.  These are front and centre in the work streams announced by the UK and US Governments in today’s statement.

“The Chamber Network looks forward to engaging with both Governments’ teams in the coming weeks to turn these optimistic steps into concrete actions to boost UK-US trade by the end of this year.”  

The five key areas of practical focus recommended by the BCC are:

• Increasing resilience and future-proofing in our supply chains 
• Slashing customs costs and processing times through trade digitalisation 
• Generating sustainable growth through investments in innovation 
• Reaching agreements on mutual recognition on conformity assessment and professional qualifications as well as new accords on UK-US data flows 
• Supporting SMEs to ensure they secure the full value of closer UK-US links through export and other trade facilitation measures 

The joint statement on the Dialogues can be found here