U.K. Approved to Rejoin $1.7 Trillion WTO Procurement Deal

02/27/2019

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Bryce Baschuk | Bloomberg

  • Accord ensures Brexit continuity for U.K. public contractors
  •  GPA parties will retain access to Britain’s $89 billion market

The United Kingdom won approval to remain in a key World Trade Organization agreement that governs $1.7 trillion worth of annual public procurement opportunities.

A group of 46 nations, including the U.S. and Japan, agreed on Wednesday to let Britain stay in the Government Procurement Agreement, according to a WTO statement.
 
Maintaining membership ensures that U.K.-based contractors will retain their preferential access to foreign public procurement opportunities if Britain leaves the European Union without a withdrawal accord. It also ensures that the GPA’s signatories will continue to have access to the U.K.’s 67 billion-pound ($89 billion) public procurement marketplace in the case of a no-deal Brexit.
 
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