Britain has entered negotiations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for a Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) as it looks for free trade opportunities following its withdrawal from the European Union, trade minister Liz Truss has revealed.
UK Trade minister Liz Truss revealed on Tuesday the UK was formally entering negotiations to enter the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Credit: Ilyas Tayfun Salci / Shutterstock
The UK formally applied for membership in the bloc back in February, but its recent talks with Australia may have given the edge it needs to be formally accepted.
Read more: UK applies for membership of Trans-Pacific free trade group
The Partnership currently consists of 11 member states in the Pacific region, including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, Malaysia and Mexico.
The UK's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is expected to be in negotiations over Britain's entry for at least three days.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the event as an opportunity for Britain to flex its "entrepreneurial spirit and free trading history".
Truss said the UK wishes to forge itself a future of being an exporter of premium goods and services.
In a statement announcing the negotiations, she said: "This part of the world is where Britain’s greatest opportunities lie. We left the EU with the promise of deepening links with old allies and fast-growing consumer markets beyond Europe. It is a glittering post-Brexit prize that I want us to seize."
The government has formally published its approach to entering the CPTPP and what it hopes to get out of the deal.
On the agenda include a push for a competitive trading market, a focus on sustainability and state-to-state settlement disputes.
Truss also took to Twitter to mention the potential for "lower tariffs on items such as whiskey and cars" as well as "increased access for services and tech firms."
The CPTPP is far more focused on trade than the EU. It does not formally impose laws on bloc members and does not seek political integration. It is also far more decentralised.
However, the distance between trading partners could prove to be an issue in the short term, but this could be alleviated through both technological means and through proposals in sustainability, which aim to make transport cheaper and more efficient. It is also unlikely the UK will get everything it desires from the deal, echoing similar issues critics levied at the deal with Australia.
Tariffs appear to be the primary motivator for the UK joining the CPTPP, however.
"CPTPP removes tariffs on 95% of goods traded between members and reduces other barriers to trade across four continents," the government's manifesto states.
"The UK already has free trade agreements with some CPTPP members, but joining the free trade area, which covered almost £9 trillion of GDP in 2019, will improve access to members’ markets for vital UK industries like food and drink and the automotive sector. It will also create new opportunities in forward-leaning areas like digital, data, and across services, ultimately creating high-value jobs across the United Kingdom and helping the country build back better from COVID-19," it added, likely referring to its recent deal with Australia.
Read more: What's on the agenda for the UK-Australia trade deal?
The US pulled out of the original Trans-Pacific Partnership in January 2017 under then-President Donald Trump shortly after his inauguration, which led to its original incarnation not entering into force, causing the CPTPP to be drafted.
He later offered to rejoin the bloc should a "better deal" arise for the nation.
Current US President Joe Biden mentioned on the campaign trail that he would consider "renegotiating" the deal, but has not yet confirmed anything since taking office.
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