To ask Her Majesty's Government where each of Her Majesty's Trade Commissioners are based; for which countries each has responsibility; what are the priority countries within each region; and what is the annual budget being applied to each region.

To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the specific responsibilities of Her Majesty's Trade Commissioners.

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the regional strategy of each of Her Majesty's Trade Commissioners.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) has organised its overseas teams into nine regions, which are led by the nine HM Trade Commissioners (HMTCs). This provides a highly engaged overseas leadership team to drive forward DIT’s future trade strategy and priorities overseas. The responsibilities of the HMTCs are:

• To work with partners in DIT headquarters and overseas to develop a Regional Trade Plan encompassing export promotion, investment and trade policy.

• To set a clear vision and provide direction to the Department’s operations in the region.

• To take responsibility for the UK’s commercial relationship with all the markets in their region, working closely with Heads of Mission, DIT Heads of Trade, and a wide range of stakeholders.

HM Trade Commissioners are based in cities across the nine regions as follows:

• New York (HMTC for North America)

• Sao Paulo (HMTC for Latin America and Caribbean)

• Johannesburg (HMTC for Africa)

• Dubai (HMTC for Middle East)

• Istanbul (HMTC for Eastern Europe and Central Asia Network)

• Mumbai (HMTC for South Asia)

• Beijing (HMTC for China & Hong Kong)

• Singapore (HMTC for Asia Pacific)

• Milan (HMTC for Europe)

The budgets delegated at the start of 2018-19 to each HMTC are set below. Wider DIT budgets also support the delivery of HMTC objectives but are not set at a regional level:

The priorities and objectives for each HMTC are outlined in Regional Trade Plans (RTPs). These RTPs are currently in development.