The UK’s trade scrutiny processes should be overhauled to make sure they are open, inclusive and transparent.
The UK is now several years into the establishment of its post-Brexit independent trade policy, and the first wholly new post-Brexit trade agreements with Australia and New Zealand have been ratified and came into force on 31st May 2023. They have been a crucial test of the democratic processes by which Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) are negotiated and ratified, made all the more important by the fact that the UK is also engaged in a raft of other trade negotiations around the world.
This report details the limited opportunities that exist for Parliament, civil society, the devolved administrations and the public to engage in UK trade policy. It calls for a democratic and transparent procedure for the negotiation and ratification of trade deals.
