Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 5
5
Parliament and the public are not being provided with clear and transparent information to understand...
Conclusion
Parliament and the public are not being provided with clear and transparent information to understand the impact of trade agreements. Business associations and consumer groups are concerned that it is unclear how trade policy aligns with other policy objectives, and how any trade-offs required may impact on the groups they represent. The consumer group Which? has found that consumers have limited awareness of the status and implications of trade negotiations. Although the Department says it has found that the public is highly supportive of its trade agenda, we are not convinced that the public has significant knowledge and interest in trade agreements. The Department does recognise that it faces a challenge in how it communicates important information to Parliament and the public on what it is doing on trade agreements and why. In addition, the Department could not explain why, in its impact assessments of the agreement with Australia, the projected value of UK exports to Australia increased by more than 600% between June 2020 and December 2021 (from £900 million to £6.2 billion). It thought that the rise was probably driven by a change in the methodology it uses to forecast economic benefits, but could not be more specific. Recommendation: The Department should improve transparency and communications around trade agreements and their impacts, to aid understanding and inform scrutiny. As part of this exercise, it should: i) explain clearly to Parliament and the public the policy trade-offs, particularly in relation to human rights and environmental priorities, in new FTAs and the potential impact for sectors, businesses and individuals; and ii) set out clearly the factors and underlying assumptions driving any changes in the forecast benefits. 8 Progress with trade negotiations
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
5: PAC conclusion: Parliament and the public are not being provided with clear and transparent information to understand the impact of trade agreements. 5: PAC recommendation: The Department should improve transparency and communications around trade agreements and their impacts, to aid understanding and inform scrutiny. As part of this exercise, it should: • explain clearly to Parliament and the public the policy trade-offs, particularly in relation to human rights and environmental priorities, in new FTAs and the potential impact for sectors, businesses and individuals; and • set out clearly the factors and underlying assumptions driving any changes in the forecast benefits 5.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 5.2 The government is committed to a high level of transparency in relation to trade negotiations. The government publishes materials before negotiations launch and after they conclude and is highly consultative prior to and during negotiations across all aspects of interest to stakeholders. Nevertheless, the government strives for continuous improvement. 5.3 The department sets out a strategic case, objectives, and potential economic impacts for each negotiation, engages an advisory network of over 350 organisations and individuals to ensure impacts, trade-offs, and opportunities are understood. Engagement with the new Trade and Sustainable Development Domestic Advisory Group, alongside DIT’s Trade Union Advisory Group and Civil Society Roundtable garners input on priorities (alongside public consultations) and trade-offs before negotiations, and supports effective implementation of climate, environment, and labour provisions. DIT’s UK and global network undertakes thousands of interactions each month with stakeholders on top of communicating updates regularly during negotiations, alongside the department’s already strong Parliamentary scrutiny, including through relevant committees, as referenced in Recommendation 6. Once negotiations conclude, the department explains to stakeholders what has been agreed and publishes explanatory information on the impact of agreements, e.g. macro-economic impact, sectoral impacts, impacts on UK regions and impact on the environment. 5.4 The department constantly reviews its economic analysis methodologies to reflect global best practice. The referenced GDP increase in the Australia FTA impact analysis reflects updates to the modelling methodology, clearly explained in page 25 of the published impact assessment. The changes were informed by the Modelling Review Expert Panel and the impact assessment has been scrutinised by independent experts at the Regulatory Policy Committee, who gave a green rating. 5.5 The department seeks the views of the public through tools including the Public Attitudes to Trade Tracker, which is designed to be representative of the UK population. In its fourth wave 4,009 members of the UK public were interviewed. Survey findings are used to guide communication to support better understandings of trade and trade policy.