A Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy is a position in British foreign policy, within the

Department for International Trade The Department for International Trade (DIT) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's Government responsible for striking and extending trade agreements between the U ...

since 2016, and formerly with the

UK Trade & Investment , type = Non-ministerial government department , nativename = , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = UKtrade.svg , logo_width = 190px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = Department for Business, Enter ...

government department Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." Энцикло� ...

from 2003 to 2016. Trade Envoys are appointed by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

in order to promote British business and trade interests abroad. The

Special Representative for International Trade and Investment The Special Representative for International Trade and Investment was a member of the British royal family who represented the Sovereign for UK Trade & Investment which reports jointly to the Foreign Office and the Department for Business, Innova ...

is a currently dormant position previously held by a member of the British Royal Family, who had the responsibility of representing the Sovereign for trade purposes. Following the 2012 Cabinet reshuffle,

Ken Clarke Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham, (born 2 July 1940), often known as Ken Clarke, is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997 as well as serving as de ...

was made a roving trade envoy, focusing on promoting British expertise to emerging economies, in particular

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Between September 2012 and November 2013,

Lord Marland Jonathan Peter Marland, Baron Marland (born 14 August 1956) is a British businessman and politician, having served as Prime Minister's Trade Envoy, Minister for Energy and Climate Change and Business, Innovation and Skills, and Treasurer of the ...

served as the Prime Minister's trade envoy. Upon his suggestion, and in collaboration with the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

, the post was expanded in November 2012, when

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...

announced the creation of eight new trade envoys to selected high-growth and developing markets. Additional representatives of the British government were appointed in March 2014 following the success of the initial programme. On 23 August 2021 a further set of envoys were announced, including prominent Brexiteers Lord Botham and

Kate Hoey Catharine Letitia Hoey, Baroness Hoey (born 21 June 1946), better known as Kate Hoey, is a Northern Irish politician and life peer who served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Home Affairs from 1998 to 1999 and Minister for Sport from 1999 ...

. The appointment of Ian Botham as a Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy was viewed by some people as unexpected, as he has no experience of economic or trade matters. When he was first appointed to the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

, Botham had said that he would join discussions "“when they are debating something I know about – like sport or the countryside", but that there was " t much point if it’s a trade deal with Japan.” In April 2017 there were 21 trade envoys, covering approximately 50 markets.

Current Prime Ministerial Trade Envoys

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy Foreign relations of the United Kingdom Trade in the United Kingdom