POLITICS THE YEAR FEBRUARY
MAGGIE THROUP - MP FOR EREWASH, DERBYSHIRE “Quite a significant proportion of the vast array of products manufactured in Erewash are exported to all corners of the world – Dubai, China, USA to name just three. We can quite rightly be proud of businesses and their productivity and ingenuity not just in Erewash, but across the whole of the East Midlands.”
MARCH She warned that punitive tariffs, for example,
could result in the UK adjusting its tax rates, once it was no longer constrained by EU regulations, to ensure it was more appealing to investors than its neighbour. And while acceding that the EU is the UK’s
largest trading partner, she said that most UK exports are to non-EU countries, with America the biggest single market after the EU. To that end, it comes as little surprise that
nine countries, including America, Australia, Canada, China and India have entered exploratory trade talks with the UK. America’s new President, Donald Trump, who described Brexit as a “great thing”, has promised that Britain will be at the head of the queue when it comes to a trans-Atlantic trade deal. The promise could take some time to deliver,
though. Negotiations between America and the EU for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership should have completed in 2014 but are now expected to conclude in either 2019 or 2020. The UK would have been part of that
agreement but its implementation is now not expected before Brexit. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade
Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU is due to come into effect this spring. Talks started in 2009 and took five years to
complete, with a further three years before provisional implementation. Full implementation is unlikely before Britain leaves the EU. While still in the EU, the UK is party to CETA. To help regional businesses understand the
agreement and the opportunities it presents, the Chamber, in conjunction with the Ontario Government and the High Commission of Canada, held a roundtable discussion at De Montfort University, Leicester, last month. Canada is a significant market for East Midlands companies, with £400m worth of goods being exported in 2015 and positive forecasts for continued trade in coming years. CETA promises to remove 98% of tariffs,
making Canada an accessible market for all internationally-minded companies.
KEITH VAZ – MP FOR LEICESTER EAST “From the discovery of the remains Richard III in Leicester to the outstanding season that Leicester City Football Club are having, that places them at the top of Premier League, the region is thriving and in my near-30-years as an MP, I have never been prouder to represent my constituency of Leicester East.”
APRIL
ANDREW BRIDGEN – MP FOR NORTH WEST LEICESTERSHIRE “It is widely accepted that joining the Euro would have been an economic disaster for this Country… yet the same people who said our economy could not survive if we didn’t join the Euro are now saying a vote for exit would be a disaster. They were wrong then and they are wrong now.”
MAY
NICKY MORGAN – MP FOR LOUGHBOROUGH “This is a pivotal moment for thousands of businesses in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire and I believe that our continued membership of the EU is vital to your future prosperity. For smaller businesses in particular… I believe leaving the EU would be a leap in the dark.”
JUNE
TINA STOWELL – BARONESS STOWELL OF BEESTON “It is only by supporting business and continuing to strengthen the economy that we can deliver security for working people, increase life chances for the most disadvantaged and pay for the public services we rely on.”
JULY/AUGUST
PATRICK MCLOUGHLIN - MP FOR DERBYSHIRE DALES “In this Parliament alone, the Government will increase capital spending on transport by 50%. This is just the start of a sustained, long-term infrastructure programme for the UK and an unprecedented opportunity to modernise transport across the East and West Midlands.”
SEPTEMBER
ANNA SOUBRY - MP FOR BROXTOWE “My friend sees Britain's future as an exciting adventure, offering new opportunities that Britain is more than capable of seizing and exploiting. While I struggle to match her optimism I agree we have entered new territory and while we have neither a map nor a compass, I believe we will find our way.”
OCTOBER
ANDREW BINGHAM - MP FOR THE HIGH PEAK “People are asking whether we should have an ‘off-the-shelf’ solution but I believe we should have our own bespoke arrangement. To try to shoehorn ourselves into a template arrangement would be wrong and not necessarily the best deal for Britain.”
NOVEMBER
TOBY PERKINS - MP FOR CHESTERFIELD “Britain has a great deal on its side and we should be approaching this next phase of our existence with confidence, but that doesn’t mean there is any excuse for a lack of preparation ahead of the most important negotiations our country has faced since the war.”
DECEMBER/JANUARY
GLORIA DE PIERO - MP FOR ASHFIELD AND EASTWOOD “It is important that we choose the right path for our economy. This path should make the most of what we have to offer outside of the bubble surrounding London and the South East, that establishes us as a world leader in key industries and that means the UK is somewhere that countries all around the world want to trade with.”
business network February 2017 21
INSIDE WESTMINSTER
Ahead of a new year of INSIDE WESTMINSTER, Business Network takes a snapshot looks back at the contributions made by MPs to last year’s feature.
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