Statement
As the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) is a broad Agreement that touches on the lives of people across the UK, the Government ran a public consultation on Government engagement with business and civil society groups on implementation of the TCA. The consultation was open for seven weeks from 9 August 2021 to 21 September 2021.
It focused on how to best use the Domestic Advisory Group and Civil Society Forum, the two formal engagement channels provided for in the TCA.
Today, after considering comments received from various stakeholders, including business associations and civil society groups, the Government is publishing its official response to the consultation in Parliament and on GOV.UK.
The Government has also launched an Expression of Interest campaign to determine membership of the Domestic Advisory Group and Civil Society Forum. The Expression of Interest, published today on GOV.UK, will run until 9 November.
We are preparing for the Domestic Advisory Group to meet for the first time this year, shortly after the closure of the Expression of Interest campaign. The Government is in discussions with the European Commission to finalise the date for the first Civil Society Forum. We are prepared for the Forum to meet at the end of this year but acknowledge that it can take place in February 2022 if both parties agree.