News story

Russia's accession to the WTO - Vince Cable statement

Business Secretary, Vince Cable, said: “The UK welcomes President Putin’s signing of the Russian Federation’s Protocol of Accession to the…

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Business Secretary, Vince Cable, said:

“The UK welcomes President Putin’s signing of the Russian Federation’s Protocol of Accession to the WTO which completes their ratification process to join the WTO.

“Russian membership is a big vote of confidence in the WTO as a truly global organisation. We are confident that membership will be good for both Russia and for the WTO. It will also be good for the UK and global economy by making it easier for firms to do business in Russia and by bringing Russia fully into the ambit of the WTO’s mechanisms for ensuring openness and predictability in world trade. Improving the business climate in Russia will be key to its prospects for attracting foreign investment

“The UK is keen to strengthen our existing trade relationship. UK exports to Russia were £4.78bn in 2011, an increase of 39% on 2010. We look forward to working closely with Russia in the context of the WTO with the goal of supporting further trade liberalisation to our mutual benefit. “

**Notes to editors

**1. The Government’s economic policy objective is to achieve ‘strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries.’ It set four ambitions in the ‘Plan for Growth’ (PDF 1.7MB), published at Budget 2011:

  • To create the most competitive tax system in the G20

  • To make the UK the best place in Europe to start, finance and grow a business

  • To encourage investment and exports as a route to a more balanced economy

  • To create a more educated workforce that is the most flexible in Europe.

Work is underway across Government to achieve these ambitions, including progress on more than 250 measures as part of the Growth Review. Developing an Industrial Strategy gives new impetus to this work by providing businesses, investors and the public with more clarity about the long-term direction in which the Government wants the economy to travel.

  1. BIS’s online newsroom contains the latest press notices and speeches, as well as video and images for download. It also features an up to date list of BIS press office contacts. See http://www.bis.gov.uk/newsroom for more information.

Notes to Editors

Contact Information

Name BIS Press Office Job Title

Division Department for Business, Innovation & Skills Phone

Fax

Mobile

Email bispress.releases@bis.gsi.gov.uk

Name Nic Fearon-Low Job Title

Division Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Phone 020 7215 5078 Fax

Mobile

Email nic.fearonlow@bis.gsi.gov.uk

Published 23 July 2012