Facts

Liz Truss was holding out the prospect of British membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

She was quoted in the Daily Express saying: “As Prime Minister I would make accession to the Trans-Pacific Partnership a top priority. I put the UK at the front of the queue as Trade Secretary, and I will double down as Prime Minister to ensure that our economy can continue to benefit from increased trade across the world.

“This will create huge opportunities for our businesses to boost their exports to some of the fastest growing markets on the globe. And it will help keep prices on the shelves low for consumers too, through increased choice and competition.”

Ms Truss added: “Joining the Partnership will put the UK at the centre of a growing partnership of like-minded economies, strengthening our and our allies’ hands against an increasingly assertive China on the world stage. This is a perfect example of the type of benefit that Brexit offers our country and I intend to grasp it with both hands.”

The CPTPP has been signed by Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Ms Truss added that “We could see an £18billion boost in UK exports to CPTPP countries, thanks to tariff-free trade between members.” 

The Government’s own forecast says the “estimated increase in UK GDP in the long run was 0.08%”. 

The report from the  House of Lords International Agreements Committee says that “membership was not expected to bring ‘large-scale’ economic benefits in the short term.” 

Verdict

Liz Truss’ estimates were not born out by the government’s own data. 

We emailed Liz Truss’ office offering her the chance to respond. The email was received, but no reply.