The Conservative Government has secured its first major free trade deal as an independent trading nation with Japan. This deal will boost trade between our two countries by £15.2 billion, creating jobs and delivering new opportunities across every part of the United Kingdom.
This is an historic moment for the UK and Japan as our first major post-Brexit trade deal, underscoring the opportunities that exist for our country as we strike out in the world and delivering on our manifesto commitment. The agreement the Government have negotiated goes far beyond the existing EU deal, as it secures new wins for British businesses in our great manufacturing, food and drink, and tech industries.
Sarah Dines MP took the opportunity to raise the many great Derbyshire cheeses with the Secretary of State Liz Truss on the floor of the House of Commons on Monday 14 September.
Sarah Dines MP said, ‘I welcome the new trade deal with Japan. I was delighted that the Secretary of State confirmed that the government has protected our low tariffs for Derbyshire stilton and we will in fact gain wider access to markets when we exceed to CTPTP. It is a great deal for our home produced Derbyshire Dales stilton and other wonderful cheeses produced here. As most of you will know the Hartington Creamery produces excellent stilton and other great cheeses. I have visited the Creamery and regularly support them by buying cheese. We should all do the same in relation to all of our local producers. We already have some exports of our cheese and I am looking forward to seeing these export numbers grow. The more people that get to experience our masterful Derbyshire cheese, the better.’’
Robert Gosling, Director of Hartington Creamery said, ‘This deal creates more opportunities for us to export our stilton to further afield. Using our preferred export partner Coombe Castle International we already export to Australia and other countries, in fact yesterday we sent 480 ceramic stilton pots to Australia in time for Christmas. This deal provides an exciting opportunity for us to explore Japanese markets.’
N.B: Photo of Sarah and Robert Gosling December 2019
