Israel: Trade
Co-operation
(Blackpool South) (Con)
1. What progress she has made in discussions with her Israeli
counterpart on an agreement for further trade co-operation beyond
the trade continuity deal.
The Secretary of State for International Trade ()
I welcome the right hon. Member for Torfaen () to his place. It is a
pleasure to be working with him, and I look forward to discussing
some of the many exciting things that will be going on in the
Department for International Trade in the months ahead.
As my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool South () is aware, on Monday the
Prime Minister announced plans to enhance our trade and
investment relationship with Israel. Last week, I held productive
talks with the Israeli ambassador on the matter, and I look
forward to strengthening that important trading relationship.
As the Prime Minister rightly said on Monday, our close
co-operation with Israel on security, science and technology
benefits not only our two respective nations, but the entire
world. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the new strategic
agreement signed between the UK and Israel will further enhance
those ties over the next decade, and will she update the House on
when we can expect the consultation period for the new bilateral
free trade deal to begin?
The strategic agreement signed with Israel is the starting post
for a series of activities that will deepen our trading
relationship. We will be opening a public consultation on our
enhanced bilateral free trade agreement in January, and we look
forward to hearing the views of businesses and stakeholders
across the UK on their priorities for that deal. We will also be
hosting a joint innovation summit with our Israeli friends in
March next year, in order to support new technology ideas.
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
Is the Secretary of State aware of the huge dynamic in Israeli
universities? Will she make every effort, including with
resources, to encourage partnerships between UK and Israeli
universities, in terms of research, development and
innovation?
As I said, we will be hosting a joint innovation summit in March
with our Israeli friends in those areas of research and
development, as mentioned by the hon. Gentleman. How we can work
together between our universities is very much on our list of
priorities, and I am also working closely with the Secretary of
State for Education to ensure that we link in the international
relationships that we want to grow with Israel.
