SITPRO's consultation with business to identify the regulatory burdens in international trade that impact most on traders has raised over 500 issues, which Government Departments are now assessing with advice from SITPRO. In order to validate these findings, SITPRO invited representatives from the trading community to a specially arranged meeting as part of World Trade Week UK, hosted by law firm Clifford Chance in Canary Wharf.
At the well attended meeting, participants representing a wide range of international trade practices from exporters to port operators were given a preview of the consultation findings. They were concerned that the UK should improve its competitiveness as an international trading hub and supported the findings as laying a foundation for improvements in the border process.
The panel listens to the issues raised by traders
Malcolm McKinnon, Norman Rose and Åke Nilson from SITPRO were joined on the panel by Oliver Bretz from Clifford Chance and Claire Durkin, Director of Trade Policy at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
The consultation that SITPRO has undertaken will inform a cross-government action plan for reducing the compliance burden to business of international trade regulation (due to be announced this Autumn). Ms Durkin was keen to discuss the issues that traders wanted to see tackled. She told delegates, "Trade has made us great and kept us going, and if we are smart enough it will keep us strong."
Return to SITPRO News: Issue 69, Summer 2009
