Ex-PM backs Commonwealth trade deals and relaxed visas
Tony Abbott, the Australian former PM, and other conservative analysts are calling for a Commonwealth focus to post-Brexit trade deals.
Image Courtesy: APEC 2013, Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia | Wikimedia Commons
The share of UK exports to Commonwealth countries is growing
The call for a post-Brexit Britain to concentrate on Commonwealth deals came in a report co-authored by Tory MP James Cleverly and Tim Hewish, director of policy and research at the Royal Commonwealth Society.It said that eight per cent of UK exports already go to Commonwealth countries and that the share that was growing. It added that Britain was also the largest destination in the EU for exports for countries such as Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand and South Africa, giving the Commonwealth nations a strong incentive to strike a deal.Commenting on the report, Mr Abbott said: "The best way to ensure that free trade has few losers, even in the short term, is to begin with much freer trade between like-minded countries with comparable standards of living. Free trade agreements with economically advanced Commonwealth countries are the obvious place for Britain to start."Related news:
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Mr Cleverly added: "The government must a publish a plan to utilise the 'Commonwealth advantage' and build our trade links with the Commonwealth. A market of 2.3 billion people and some of the fastest-growing economies in the world is too big an opportunity to ignore."
Boris Johnson's US trip - UK will be first in line to do a trade deal with the US
Meanwhile, on a trip to the US, Mr Johnson contradicted Barack Obama's warning during the EU referendum campaign that Britain would be at the "back of the queue" for a trading agreement if it voted - as it did - to leave the EU.©2024 Re:locate magazine, published by Profile Locations, Spray Hill, Hastings Road, Lamberhurst, Kent TN3 8JB. All rights reserved. This publication (or any part thereof) may not be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of Profile Locations. Profile Locations accepts no liability for the accuracy of the contents or any opinions expressed herein.