North East businesses call for government action on international trade to create a competitive economy

Businesses and organisations agreed clarity, consistency and ambition are key for international trade success during events held by the North East England Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Heathrow Airport.

Leading voices in the global trade landscape addressed Chamber members at the International Trade Summit, where they discussed current and future challenges as well as opportunities to help businesses be successful when trading abroad and to boost the UK economy. This was followed by a roundtable which formed part of Heathrow Airport’s Exporting Excellence campaign.

Speaking at the summit, Nigel Milton, chief of staff at Heathrow, said: “We are the world’s best connected airport, which is a huge asset for the UK. We need to ensure we can utilise this and that this benefits the whole of the UK. Looking to the rest of the world for global trade has a significant impact on your business. We as a country need to get better at international trade.”

Nigel shared information on the Exporting Excellence campaign, which is about giving regional voices a platform to share their ideas, and calls for action to support exporters across the UK with policies that promote a modern, efficient, and globally competitive economy.

He said: “We’ve focused on three themes. The first is sustainability we are really keen to ensure Heathrow and the UK have a sustainable global supply chain. Chiefly, this means reducing carbon produced by flights leaving the airport.”

The second theme is making the UK a global leader in customs and trade processes through modernisation and digitalisation. Nigel said: “Our lack of competitiveness in this area is hurting UK business.The third theme is supporting an export-first approach. We need to create regional organisations and partnerships which put export growth at their heart, and build on the unique strengths of every region of the UK.”

On working with the Chamber network, Nigel said: “The Chambers can facilitate conversations and guide us to ensure those businesses around the country get the support they need to export more. The Chambers play a key role in this.

“We need an export policy that reflects your strengths and closes the gaps in trading, and we need to play a role in making the UK more effective and productive in trading exports. That’s our responsibility as the UK hub airport, and I’m confident we can deliver policies that will be a step change in this field. It’s a really exciting conversation to be having, this is the time we can really grab attention.”

Godfrey Watt, president of The International Steel Trade Association, discussed the past, present and future of the steel industry and shared insights on shipping, trade flows and the Trade Remedies Authority, which exists to defend the UK against unfair international trade practices.

The summit also featured a panel discussion with the event speakers, as well as Jim Davison, head of international trade at the Chamber, and Stephanie Wilson, import/export manager at Cleveland Cable Company.

When asked about the future of international trade, Nigel said: “I’m confident. There is a growing realisation amongst people in Westminster that the UK’s international trade does matter and there is a role for them to play as policy makers to create the framework that supports the UK to trade internationally. As businesses we need to hold politicians to account.”

Attendees agreed that more, strong voices making affecting representation and clearly articulating the needs of businesses so they can be implemented into sensible, coherent and long-lasting policies will bring about real change. They said it was reassuring to see local businesses benefiting from the Heathrow campaign.

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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