Trade takes centre stage at the CBI

The board will work with the Government as the United Kingdom seeks to strengthen trading relationships across the globe.

The Trade and Investment Council will join other CBI policy boards, such as the Infrastructure Council and the Financial Services Council, as part of the UK’s largest business group’s business “parliament” – small, medium and large firms from across the UK who shape the CBI’s policy.

It will comprise 25 Senior Executives from British companies and key foreign investors of a range of sizes, sectors, and regions. It will be chaired by Katherine Bennett, Senior Vice President of Airbus, the aerospace manufacturer.

The Council’s aim is to set the CBI’s strategic objectives on trade and investment policy, and to bring businesses together to work with Ministers and officials at the Department for International Trade and across the wider government.

The Council will meet twice a year. The Secretary of State for International Trade, Rt. Hon. Dr. Liam Fox, and the Minister for Trade and Export Promotion, Baroness Fairhead, are due to attend the opening of the Council.

Carolyn Fairbairn, CBI Director-General, said:

“Trade between the United Kingdom and international friends and partners is fundamental to creating new jobs, raising productivity and increasing prosperity across the country, and indeed, the world.

“By bringing together practical expertise, on-the-ground knowledge and good policy, the partnership between business and the Government will drive forward a global Britain. Our entrepreneurs, exporters and communities can only reap the rewards of international trade if these two partners work closely together to identify and capitalise upon the opportunities available.

“The establishment of the CBI’s Trade and Investment Council will improve the UK’s export performance and British investment in international markets. It will encourage more companies to take advantage of the growing opportunities for British goods and services in Europe, and around the globe.”

Rt. Hon. Dr. Liam Fox, Secretary of State for International Trade, said:

“The CBI’s launch of the Trade and Investment Council with the Department for International Trade demonstrates our commitment to meaningful, inclusive and transparent engagement with crucial members of the business community as we look at our trading relationships post-Brexit.

“The UK economy is fundamentally strong, and growing: exports have risen by 7.4% to £625 billion in the year to April 2018. As an international economic department, we look forward to working closely with the CBI to make the case for Britain’s role in the global world.”

Our members are our mandate

If you are interested in joining this Council please get in touch with your account manager.