Commonwealth countries will be given help by the UK to meet international standards as Theresa May set out plans to boost trade within the organisation.
Brexiteers have championed the idea of boosting trade links with the Commonwealth after leaving the European Union and the Prime Minister’s move sought to make it easier for businesses to operate more freely within the 53-nation group.
READ MORE: You guys have the answers: Prince Harry rallies youth of Commonwealth
But as leaders gathered in London for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm), Mrs May did not address a mounting controversy over the status of Windrush generation immigrants in the UK.
In a speech at the Guildhall in the City of London, the Prime Minister called for the Commonwealth to become a beacon of free trade at a time of fragile international growth and continued protectionism.
Trade within the Commonwealth is valued at £393 billion and estimated to rise to £492 billion by 2020, according to the Government.
READ MORE: You guys have the answers: Prince Harry rallies youth of Commonwealth
Mrs May promised British help for developing countries to meet existing standards for their products.
“Shared standards have huge potential to stimulate trade,” she said.
“They create a common language for trading partners across the globe, enhance trust in supply chains and stimulate innovation.
“Greater use of these international standards across the Commonwealth will reduce the costs of trade between members, as well as with partners beyond the Commonwealth, for greater global benefit.
“That is why the UK will be funding an all-new Commonwealth Standards Network, which will support developing countries in particular to better meet existing international standards.”
The Prime Minister also announced that the UK will support a programme of technical assistance to Commonwealth countries to implement the terms of the World Trade Organisation agreement on trade facilitation.
Full implementation is estimated to reduce trade costs by as much as 16% for less-developed countries, while cutting the average time needed for goods imports by 47% and exports by up to 91%, she said.
READ MORE: You guys have the answers: Prince Harry rallies youth of Commonwealth
But she warned: “No amount of action on these fronts will truly be successful if half the Commonwealth citizens continue to face significant barriers to participation in the economy.
“If our family of nations is to realise its full potential, then we must take action to boost women’s access to economic opportunity and empower them to create and to build their own businesses.”
Announcing plans for the UK to work with the International Trade Centre on a new She Trades Commonwealth initiative to break down gender barriers, Mrs May said: “Boosting women’s participation is the right thing to do, but business equality is not just about doing what is right, there are real economic benefits.”
She cited estimates that global GDP could be increased by up to 28 trillion US dollars (£20 trillion) if women played the same role as men in the labour market.
Ahead of her speech, Mrs May attended a Commonwealth Youth Forum event with Prince Harry.
Chogm gathers every two years to discuss shared interests and challenges.
As this year’s summit began, the PM was under pressure to address the concerns of long-term British residents from the so-called Windrush generation over their immigration status.
The move follows concern that people are facing deportation and being denied access to healthcare due to UK paperwork issues and anomalies affecting some immigrants who arrived from Commonwealth countries between the late 1940s and early 1970s.
READ MORE: You guys have the answers: Prince Harry rallies youth of Commonwealth
Meanwhile, Labour called for Mrs May to use the summit to apologise for past failures by the British Government.
Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry said Margaret Thatcher had ignored efforts by every other Commonwealth member to bring apartheid to an end in South Africa in the 1980s.
She also urged Mrs May to support other Commonwealth members in their efforts to right the “historic wrong” of the Chagos Islands.
The Indian Ocean territory has been a contentious issue for years, with most of the island’s 1,500 inhabitants deported so that the largest island, Diego Garcia, could be leased to the US for a strategic air base in 1971.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel