Visits

The UK Trade and Business Commission began its ‘seeing is believing’ programme in March 2022, as part of a dedicated commitment to visiting all parts and areas across the country.

These visits gives our parliamentarians and business leaders the opportunities to see things in action, whether that’s how a small business operates on a day to day basis, through to how trade associations communicate and collaborate with their members.

You can find more about the visits the Commission has done so far, and see some of the outputs from those visits below.

If you are interested in the UK Trade and Business Commission visiting your business, organisation or area, please do contact our secretariat by email.

Visit to Maidstone and Dover

16th May 2022

Cover page for a report titled 'Maidstone & Dover Visit May 2022' by the UK Trade & Business Commission, featuring an aerial view of a port with docks, shipping containers, and cliffs in the background.

Outputs

  • Co-Convenors of the UK Trade and Business Commission Hilary Benn MP and Peter Norris led a delegation to Kent on Monday 16th May.

    This was the Commission’s second ‘seeing is believing’ style visit, following on from their previous trip to Northern Ireland.

    During the morning, the delegation visited Winterwood Farms, a soft fruit farm in Maidstone who grow, export and import a range of fruits such as blueberries, raspberries and strawberries.

    Then in the afternoon, the delegation visited the Port of Dover which involved a walk up the cliffs to see an aerial view of the facility before then getting an up-close look at the Port.

  • As a result of the site visits to both Winterwood Farms and the Port of Dover, the Co-Convenors of the Commission have sent two letters to the UK Government. You can read them below.

  • The video attached below includes on the day footage from the Commission’s visits to both the farm and the Port of Dover.

Letter to The Rt Hon Priti Patel MP
Letter to The Rt Hon George Eustice MP

Visit to Northern Ireland

3rd March 2022

Letter from the UK Trade and Business Commission, dated March 9, 2022, addressed to the Vice President of the European Commission, discussing trade negotiations between the UK and EU, Brexit issues, and the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Outputs

  • Led by Peter Norris and Hilary Benn, the UK Trade and Business Commission’s delegation landed early on the morning of Thursday 3rd March 2021.

    The first site visit was SD Bells on the Newtownards Road in East Belfast to hear how this tea and coffee importer is being affected.

    After SD Bells, the delegation went to a major distribution centre in the Port of Larne.

    After Larne the delegation travelled back to Belfast city centre to meet the Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer and a host of other businesses from dairy farmers to supermarkets. This was then followed by a live evidence session of the Commission.

  • The letter attached (left) was sent by the Commission’s co-convenors following the trip to Northern Ireland and was addressed to the UK Foreign Secretary (Rt Hon Liz Truss MP) and Vice President of the European Commission (Maroš Šefčovič).

  • The video attached below includes on the day footage from the Commission’s visits to both the farm and the Port of Dover.

  • The UK Trade and Business Commission held a live evidence session during the trip to Northern Ireland. You can watch the session back here.

Letter to the Vice President / Foreign Secretary
Reply from Vice President Maroš Šefčovič