Following a meeting with the Rt Hon Greg Hands, Minister for International Trade, the MTRA wrote to Minister Hands raising concerns in relation to the Trade Bill and other aspects of the newly established UK trade remedy system. In terms of the trade bill, the letter emphasises the importance of ensuring that non-executive members of the TRA board do not have an ideological bias. It also requests more specificity on what should be contained in the TRA’s annual report. Other issues raised included a request for the government to take another look at ways in which UK trade remedies could be strengthened in light of continued support for British manufacturers during the Covid-19 crisis. Particularly highlighted was the issue of using provisions already contained in the UK legislation relating to China and problems caused by significant state distortions and unfair subsidies, the need for a more flexible approach on transition reviews, and the need to take into account of imminent regulatory costs in injury margin calculations.
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