To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many significant interventions UK Trade and Investment are expected to make in 2008. (180262)

UK Trade and Investment’s 2007 comprehensive spending review settlement set high level targets for UKTI. These include annual targets for high value foreign direct investment successes; helping businesses to exploit overseas business opportunities; and increasing the quantity of R and D in the UK through business internationalisation. The targets are set out in full in UKTI’s 2007 autumn performance report (Cm 7284, December 2007). Business plans are being put in place to deliver these targets.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) what changes have been made to the overseas network of UK Trade and Industry to deliver the increase in the UK profile in (a) China, (b) India, (c) Brazil, (d) Indonesia, (e) Mexico, (f) Russia, (g) Saudi Arabia, (h) South Africa, (i) Turkey and (j) the United Arab Emirates as set out in the July 2005 five year strategy on prosperity in a changing world; and if he will make a statement; (180817)

As part of UK Trade and Investment’s (UKTI) Strategy, “Prosperity in a Changing World”, £5.6 million of resources has been redeployed to help achieve a step change in the UK’s profile in emerging markets. As a direct result of this exercise, UKTI staff resources (full-time equivalents (FTEs) of UK based civil servants and locally employed staff (local)) have now been reinforced in the following markets, which include China, India, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and the UAE: