Hundred days since the government established the Ministry of Economy and Trade

A hundred days have passed since the establishment of the Department for Business and Trade, which is a central part of the Darlington Economic Campus and has signaled such a profound shift in the government’s leveling-up agenda.

Over the next decade, as part of the Leveling Up agenda, DBT will significantly expand its presence in the UK regions and countries with the establishment of a new major site in Darlington and new trading and investment offices in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. By 2030, DBT wants to place more than 750 jobs at these four locations.

In Darlington, DBT staff are stationed with other government departments at the Darlington Economic Campus, allowing for cross-government collaboration. By 2030 we aim to employ 500 colleagues in Darlington. Staff based here work in a variety of roles with business and industry to deliver services across the UK.

Established by the Prime Minister on 7 February, DBT combines the previously existing Departments of Government Affairs (BEIS) and International Trade (DIT) into a single entity that supports UK businesses at home and abroad, encourages investment and champions free trade.

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The Department has already had several achievements, notably the UK’s entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in April, which will have a total GDP of £11 trillion once the UK joins.

Just this week, Foreign Secretary Kemi Badenoch also started negotiations on a new UK-Switzerland Free Trade Agreement to boost trade and lower tariffs on British exports to Switzerland, cutting annual tariffs on British companies by around £7.4million could be lowered.

The Darlington campus (Image: Newsquest)

In March, the foreign minister also signed a crucial digital trade deal with Ukraine that will support Ukraine’s economy and significantly enhance our bilateral trade and investment ties. This means that by facilitating the flow of data across borders, Ukraine will have guaranteed access to financial services crucial to recovery. Ukrainian companies will also be able to trade more efficiently and cheaply with the UK through e-transactions, e-signatures and e-contracts.

On the business side, the Department has launched the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act, which ensures businesses and consumers are protected from fraud and subscription traps and can take full advantage of the digital economy. Also, starting April 1, national living wages and minimum wages were raised, putting more money into the pockets of the 2.9 million lowest-paid workers across the country.

Kemi Badenoch (Image: PA)

Kemi Badenoch, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, said: “I am proud of the great work the department has done in such a short time. I want DBT to be an economic growth bureau, working with companies to ensure they seize the opportunities we are creating at home and abroad.

“In line with the Prime Minister’s economic priorities, we will continue to contribute to economic growth and enable businesses to create better paying jobs across the country by removing barriers to business, boosting UK exports to £1 trillion a year by 2030 and… “ Promoting the UK as the number one investment destination in Europe.”

Darlington Economic Campus (Image: Newsquest)

The Foreign Secretary also showed her support for Britain’s steel industry by visiting British Steel in Scunthorpe and the Port Talbot steelworks as steelmakers across the country make changes to reduce their carbon emissions.

On the investment front, DBT support helped Airbus and Rolls-Royce secure one of the largest deals in aviation history with Air India, worth billions of pounds for the UK and creating 450 new manufacturing jobs in Wales.

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And in support of UK exporters, Trade Secretary Nigel Huddleston signed a federal trade memorandum with Oklahoma aimed at boosting Oklahoma’s £174 million worth of goods imports from the UK in 2022 and creating more jobs for exporters, following similar deals with North Carolina and indiana.

DBT also plans to expand its regional footprint through the Places for Growth program to increase the number of civil servant positions outside of London and the South East.