Plans ‘within weeks’ for the UK to join trans-Pacific trading club

Ministers will unveil plans ‘within weeks’ for the UK to join trans-Pacific trading club including Australia, Canada and Japan

  • Liz Truss says plans to join trans-Pacific trading group unveiled ‘within weeks’
  • The CPTPP has formally agreed to start accession negotiation with the UK
  • The free trade area includes Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand 

Ministers will unveil plans to join a trans-Pacific trading group ‘within weeks’, Liz Truss said today.

Ms Truss hailed a step towards accession to the club – which includes Australia, Canada and Japan – after the members gave the go-ahead for negotiations to start.

The government is pushing to forge a new ‘Global Britain’ after the Brexit transition period ended this year.

Ministers will unveil plans to join a trans-Pacific trading group ‘within weeks’, Liz Truss said today

Intensive work has been going on over bilateral trade deals with Australia and Canada, while a pact with Japan came into effect in January. 

But joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which has a combined GDP of more than £13trillion, could offer significant new markets for British firms.

The UK would be the second biggest economy in the partnership after Japan. 

Ms Truss tweeted today: ‘Excellent news that #CPTPP nations have agreed (Britain’s) accession process will commence to join this dynamic free trade area of 11 countries.

‘We’ll present our plans to Parliament in the coming weeks before starting negotiations.’

The signatories of the CPTPP are Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.   

The group was launched in 2018, after Donald Trump dropped out of the planned Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) saying the terms were not good for the US.   

Ms Truss (pictured in Westminster last month) hailed a step towards accession to the club - which includes Australia, Canada and Japan - after the members gave the go-ahead for negotiations to start

Ms Truss (pictured in Westminster last month) hailed a step towards accession to the club – which includes Australia, Canada and Japan – after the members gave the go-ahead for negotiations to start