Sponsored Content: Export body calls on British PM to head new trade drive

Institute of Export chief calls on government to give international trade ‘greater priority at the heart of policy’.

When COVID-19 struck in 2020, one of the UK’s leading training bodies had just appointed its new director general.

The remit for Marco Forgione, former boss of the British Antique Dealers’ Association, on taking the helm at the Institute of Export & International Trade (IOE&IT) was clear: get the Peterborough-based organisation in shape to help UK firms cope with Brexit’s new trade rules.

Then the pandemic arrived and with it, lockdown, requiring a change in tack for Forgione’s rebuilding plans.

After a quick switch to remote working and online course delivery, Forgione has spent the past 12 months navigating the IOE&IT to become a training partner of choice for UK importers and exporters.

Now, with the IOE&IT poised to call on the UK government to boost its support for those international traders. Forgione argues there’s a lot more to be done to ensure international trade can propel the UK’s economic recovery, as he tells Lloyd’s Loading List.

Q: Can we start with the history of the IOE&IT?

The Institute was set up in 1935 as a charity in a UK economy marked by the Great Depression. The founders – great industrialists of their era – wanted to enhance the UK’s export performance and to professionalise those involved in international trade. That remit hasn’t changed.

Q: One year into your tenure as director general, what’s been achieved?

I started in January 2020, charged with refocusing the organisation on the challenges for international trade as we headed towards Brexit, to boost the Institute as a membership body and develop our voice with the UK government and internationally.

We’ve used lockdown to focus on our fundamental offer, going back to that charitable ambition of professionalising international trade and growing the UK’s export capabilities.

Q: What does that evolution look like in reality?

We have some 4,500 members, more than half of which are manufacturers, a fifth of which are shippers and freight forwarders.

From a team of 15 staff in March 2020, we now have more than 100 staff after recruiting experienced traders to help UK firms develop their potential for trade, and be a catalyst for the UK’s economic and social growth.

We also have a more confident and informed voice with government in the UK and policy makers internationally.

Q: What’s the next goal for the IOE&IT?

Success is when the Institute has helped every business in the UK to treat international trade as second nature.

We have an incredible pool of trainers who have worked in trade, so that learners hear from people who know how to manage the complexities around international trade procedures. Our emphasis is on the practicalities of that as well as the theory – ‘applied learning’ if you like.

Q: What relevance does the IOE&IT have to the shipping sector?

As we move to a rules-based free trade environment, ensuring your business has compliant documentation in place gives competitive advantage.

If you leverage the expertise of the IOE&IT, you mitigate risk and increase compliance in a way that directly links to your bottom line.

Another benefit is professional status for staff – great for recruitment, retention and job satisfaction.

Q: Does the government give imports and exports enough priority?

As International Trade Secretary, Liz Truss has shown herself to be a determined and dynamic leader. There was scepticism that the government would be able to secure the number of free trade agreements that it has managed to do, in a short space of time. Liz Truss and her department have proved the doubters wrong.

More needs to be done to help businesses really seize international trade opportunities. Now, for the first time in two generations, we are in total control of our trade horizons, requiring a change of approach across government that wasn’t needed previously.

Q: What could that new government approach look like?

We’ve articulated this in a document called the Policy Platform. It has 10 recommendations calling for a clear, definite and integrated approach to ensure that trade forms part of all government policies.

This means departments working together with our network of embassies, UK trade ambassadors and trade commissioners – fully interlinked to add value.

Our core recommendation is the establishment of a trade committee chaired by the Prime Minister that ensures international trade is at the heart of policy, linking to wider industrial and regional levelling-up strategies.

Q: What has the government done already, and what more can it do?

The government has already invested to encourage firms in their exporting. It also established the UK Customs Academy – a pioneering online customs academy for students.
SMEs now need to be motivated to engage with international marketplaces. If your firm traded with the EU before 1 January 2021, it wasn’t ‘international trade’ as such – but now it is. We know this as we’re part of the consortium delivering the Trader Support Service, HMRC’s solution to helping firms in Great Britain and Northern Ireland adapt to new post-transition trading rules resulting from the Northern Ireland Protocol.

More EU trade transition support is needed to help traders overcome initial issues around Brexit. The government’s new SME Brexit Support Fund is a great step, providing grants of up to £2000 per company that can be used for training and consultancy.

Source: Lloyd´s