Trade experts to give evidence to Peers on trade instruments

Tomorrow the House of Lords International Agreements Committee will hear evidence from industry representatives as part of its inquiry into how the UK should deploy its trade instruments.  

The session will take place on Tuesday 28 April 2026 at 2pm and can be followed live on Parliament TV. 

Giving evidence will be: 

• Sabina Ciofu, International Policy and Strategy Lead, TechUK (in person)  

• John Cooke, Co-Chair, Liberalisation of Trade in Services (LOTIS) Expert Advisory Group, TheCityUK (in person)  

• William Bain, Head of Trade Policy, British Chambers of Commerce (virtual) 

Questions the committee is likely to ask include: 

• For businesses, what are the relative value of different types of trade instruments (sectoral agreements, FTAs, or non-binding arrangements) in practice?  

• How has growing tariff volatility globally, and the proliferation of ‘mini-deals' and selective sectoral arrangements affected UK firms? 

• How do businesses weigh the benefits of agreements establishing regulatory cooperation, shared standards or mutual recognition against concerns about compliance costs, or uncertainty about future rule changes? 

• How important is the WTO and the wider rules-based trading system? Are businesses still engaging with, or relying on, multilateral rules, or are they adapting to a more fragmented trade landscape?