The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is responsible for promoting British trade across the world. This is an exciting time to join DBT’s Economic Security and Trade Relations Directorate General, where you will have the opportunity to shape the UK’s international trade agenda for years to come.
The Goods and Tariffs team leads on several high-profile policy areas, including determining the import tariffs the UK should apply, establishing the UK as a leader at the World Trade Organisation and other multilateral fora and wider goods trade policies including suspensions and export restrictions. The team is therefore vital in supporting the UK’s independent trade policy, and the UK’s international reputation and position in institutions on the world stage. This is a challenging and rewarding role working at the intersection of policy and diplomacy, involving both technical and strategic work.
We are recruiting for a role as head of our market access pillar of work. This role involves leading the UK’s contributions to the World Trade Organisation Committee for Market Access, the goods forum where UK offensive and defensive market access issues are discussed, where UK commitments to transparency are fulfilled and where the UK pursues a broad thematic agenda aligned with trade objectives, stretching from supply chains to environmental goods. This role also involves maintaining a database of market access barriers that UK traders face in overseas markets and working with an HEO to challenge other WTO members in pursuit of solutions.
This is a stretching role that will require leadership in driving forward a programme of work with multiple work strands, continually building capability and understanding of tariff policy, and will potentially involve representing the department externally, and the UK Government, publicly and internationally.
The opportunity may be taken to offer roles to successful candidates in other parts of the team.
The Goods and Tariffs team embraces the Civil Service’s commitment to diversity and inclusion. We work on challenging issues but in a supportive and learning environment. We champion DIT’s policies on flexible ways of working to accommodate a wide range of personal situations.
The responsibilities of the role may include:
* Leading the UK’s input at the World Trade Organisation Committee for Market Access, shaping strategy as well as specific interventions across the broad agenda of global goods market access
* Directly representing the UK at World Trade Organisation, including with occasional travel to the WTO in Geneva
* Shaping the UK’s multilateral market access programme, identifying barriers to trade and working closely with post to engage other WTO members in order to resolve issues
* Working in close collaboration with teams spread across the department, building knowledge and capability around multilateral levers and building long term strategy to address specific market access issues
* Supporting DBT’s Ministers and senior management, providing briefing and written advice where needed
* Working collaboratively across government, including with post, and building working networks to understand and craft well-evidenced policy positions across sectors
* Helping to develop a large evidence base to inform strategy and complex positions, through working with analysts and using stakeholder intelligence
* Engaging with domestic stakeholders to gather evidence and to deliver DBT positions and policy with confidence
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