East Midlands Chamber has welcomed the government’s free trade deal with India, said to be worth £4.8bn to the UK economy a year, which will cut the average tariff on UK goods to 3%.
Director of Policy and Insight Richard Blackmore said: “With the significant administrative burden and costs firms have to trawl through to trade internationally, every deal achieved in easing the burden on businesses exporting goods and services is a step forward and can only be good for economic growth, especially if it attracts inward investment too.
“Reducing reams of paperwork and associated costs is something businesses really need and while free trade deals are something I’d like to see more of, it’s also important firms are given guidance on how to use them. The government’s recently published Trade Strategy included plans to support SMEs that export but the detail on how that might look and the extent was light.
“The Chamber’s International Trade department can advise businesses importing or exporting goods on how best to proceed.”
