Trade experts and businesses are expected to explain why the new ‘Single Trade Window’ border system is critical to the UK’s growth plans on a free webinar on Monday (24 October).
The government has committed £180 million to building the new portal, which is defined by the UN as a “facility that allows parties involved in trade and transport to lodge standardised information and documents with a single entry point to fulfil all import, export, and transit-related regulatory requirements”.
It is hoped that the programme will reduce barriers to trade in the UK following a period in which UK exports have been impacted by Covid, Brexit and various global supply chain crises.
Growth role
Kevin Shakespeare, the director of special projects and international development at the Institute of Export & International Trade, says the Single Trade Window could reboot UK trade, which he says should be a key part of the government’s plans to generate wider economic growth.
He said:
“Getting British businesses to trade more internationally will be a significant driver of economic growth.
“If businesses only need to provide the required data for their goods once, and through one portal rather than into multiple government systems, that will save a huge amount of time and remove significant existing barriers to trade.
“The Single Trade Window system is key to this and I’m looking forward to talking to experts and businesses about why this is the case on Monday’s webinar.”
Expert panels
The free webinar, which the IOE&IT is hosting at 3pm on Monday 24 October, will feature two panels – one providing insights from trade experts and another providing the view of businesses.
Shakespeare will be joined on the experts’ panel by Jon Walden, the principal consultant for customs, trade facilitation and export competitiveness at Crown Agents, and Tiago Barbosa, the manager of Brazil’s Single Trade Window and a UN/CEFACT expert.
On the second panel, Shakespeare will be asking questions to representatives from three businesses:
- Sylwia Nowak, senior customs & foreign trade compliance officer at Brose Ltd
- David Box, manager – advocacy & duty optimisation at GSK
- Jane Smith, managing director at Jointine Products (Lincoln) Ltd
Individuals can sign up to the event here and may ask questions through the registration form.
Have your say
Acting as an interlocutor between businesses and government, the IOE&IT has introduced the Single Trade Window concept to traders through webinars and events throughout the year.
It is also currently inviting traders to input their views about the new programme through a 10-minute survey, which can be completed here either in advance or following the event.
The IOE&IT will present the anonymized responses to Cabinet Office as part of an ongoing dialogue.