Amar Breckenridge recently took part in a podcast on the UK and its role in the World Trade Organisation, and international trade more generally.

Amar pointed out that the UK was a founding member of the WTO and even prior to Brexit had played an active role, both in its own right and via the EU.

After Brexit, the UK will need to deal with the fact that it will be a smaller player relative to other larger members.

There are various technical and legal issues that need to be addressed to certify the UK’s position in the WTO. But, the UK also has certain assets as a G-7 country, and a reputation for being a leader on trade liberalisation.  

The WTO’s governance also offers possibilities for smaller members to punch above their weight. The UK has the opportunity to lead on matters like digital trade, development, clean growth and dispute settlement.

In order to so it will need to work out its domestic policy priorities, and how it will balance its aims on preferential free trade agreements with countries like the US, and its multilateral aims.

Frontier partners with the UKTPO and other institutions as part of the Trade Knowledge Exchange initiative.

For more information, please contact media@frontier-economics.com or call +44 (0) 20 7031 7000.

Listen to the podcast here