Not ‘appropriate’ for UK to publish details of post-Brexit Israel trade deal impact
The government has said it is not “appropriate” to publish full details of a post-Brexit trade deal with Israel.
Details of the agreement which boosts £5bn trade between the countries won’t be made public, the department for international trade (DIT) confirmed today.
The deal has a strong focus on boosting UK services exports to the country by almost £80m, including items such as financial services and advice on building the new Tel Aviv metro.
The UK government said it won’t be issuing information about the impact of the UK-Israel deal on GDP because modelling used for the deal compared to other post-Brexit agreements were different.
A DIT spokesperson said: “A free trade deal with Israel will enhance our £5 billion trade relationship, and boost UK services exports to Israel by up to £78 million.
“As UK-Israel talks are focused on enhancing specific sectors that have rapidly growing demand, such as digital, technology and financial services, it isn’t appropriate to use the same modelling as we do for deals such as Australia and New Zealand.”
The deal was signed earlier this year, with other agreements penned by the UK including with Australia and New Zealand.
The Israeli Embassy in the UK has been asked for comment.
According to figures published by the UK government earlier this month, based on ONS figures, the UK reported a total trade deficit of £155 million with Israel, compared to a trade surplus of £645 million in the four quarters to the end of Q2 2021.
In the four quarters to the end of Q2 2022, the UK had a trade in goods deficit of £596 million with Israel, compared to a trade in goods surplus of £393 million in the four quarters to the end of Q2 2021.
Meanwhile, in the four quarters to the end of Q2 2022 the UK reported a trade in services surplus of £441 million with Israel, compared to a trade in services surplus of £252 million in the four quarters to the end of Q2 2021.