Source:
https://scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2008000/uk-looks-hong-kong-china-post-brexit-trade-talks
Hong Kong/ Politics

Britain looks to Hong Kong and mainland China for post-Brexit trade talks

British MP and head of parliamentary committee on China relations Richard Graham says negotiations on new trade agreement should begin immediately

Richard Graham is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on China. Photo: Sam Tsang

China and Hong Kong will be prioritised in Britain’s post-Brexit trade talks, Richard Graham, the head of a British parliamentary committee on China relations, told the Post.

During talks with Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying on Monday, Graham said it was a priority to strengthen UK-Hong Kong links and to take advantage of opportunities from both sides with a potential free-trade agreement and the One Belt, One Road initiative.

“This is our opportunity now to decide what we and our partners really want to have in a free-trade agreement and that might be slightly different from what the European Union wants,” he said.

“I would prioritise the whole of Asia and I would prioritise Hong Kong and China within that, and then the Asean countries.”

Graham said he wanted to see Hong Kong sign a free-trade deal as soon as Britain formally exits the European Union, and included Beijing as part of the first wave of countries he would recommend to the Department for International Trade to seal commercial agreements.

He said he saw no reason why informal talks could not begin and added that an agreement would symbolise the closeness of London and the SAR.He claimed the Hong Kong government had given off “good vibes”, and that it was keen to do a deal soon.

Graham said a deal with Hong Kong was not likely to be complex, with few taxes imposed on imported goods and services.

The British MP is also visiting the Philippines and Indonesia for trade talks as the prime minister’s Asean envoy.

London hopes informal talks with Hong Kong can begin as soon as Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is scheduled to visit London towards the end of September.

Britain ranks as Hong Kong’s 12th largest trading partner and the second largest among the 28 EU member states. Total trade between the two was valued at ­HK$100 billion in 2015.

“The UK-Hong Kong relationship, it is special, it has been going on for a long time. It’s going to continue to increase and expand,” Graham said.