Andy Burnham’s speech at Labour Party Annual Conference continues to shape the week’s trade agenda, with Nigel Farace set to today enter the national debate on Brexit that the prime minister reopened on Tuesday.
Of more immediate concern for business will be unresolved US threats to ban diesel exports, while the UK’s new Vaping Products Duty enters force today.
Vaping duty now in effect
A new duty on vaping products takes effect in the UK today (1 October), with a new levy of £2.20 per 10ml refill of e-liquid, or 44p per 2ml pod, now in place, as the government seeks to reduce the appeal of vapes, particularly among young people. The duty applies regardless of whether the products contain nicotine.
However, the BBC reports that the impact won’t be immediately noticeable to consumers, as sellers have six months to sell old stocks at pre-duty prices.
As part of the changes, manufacturers must also produce vaping products in premises that have been registered, checked and approved by HMRC.
Health minister Karin Smyth said:
"These measures are an important step in our ambition to tackle youth vaping by reducing the affordability of vaping products, which goes hand-in-hand with the work we are already doing to tackle the appeal and availability of vapes on our high streets."
However, critics have said the tax will put a significant financial strain on retailers.
John Dunne, director general of the UK Vaping Industry Association, told the BBC that vapes have helped “millions of adults cut down on or stop smoking” and while “protecting young people is essential” the duty was not the right way of succeeding in this.
"Protecting young people is essential. But that means stronger enforcement against illegal and rogue traders, not making legal vaping more expensive for adults trying to stay away from cigarettes."
Chartered Institute members can access exclusive guidance on how to comply with the new vaping duty.
Farage enters Burnham’s Brexit debate
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage will make a major speech in Doncaster – a Brexit-voting Labour heartland – today in which he will enter the national debate on the UK’s relationship with the EU that Burnham said he wanted to reopen at this week’s Labour Party Conference.
Burnham said, following his speech, that the government wanted to explore all “options”, including entering the single market, customs union or even rejoining the EU.
A Reform official told Politico that Farage will argue that Burnham wants the UK to re-enter the bloc and even adopt the Euro in place of the Pound. Burnham, when laying out some of the options the government could look at, said his government could “go all the way”.
“He will talk about Burnham wanting to take us into the Euro, return us to freedom of movement with 500 million people and losing the ability to nationalize key industries,” the official predicted.
The FT notes that Burnham will use the much-anticipated UK-EU leaders’ summit, now predicted for mid-November, to fully launch the national debate on the “long-term relationship”.
The contentious debate over UK participation in Brussels’ proposed ‘Made in Europe’ procurement scheme has been pushed into next year to allow for a fruitful summit this year. An outline of a deal on sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls, youth mobility and energy markets is thought to be close.
The Guardian reports that Downing Street officials are now reaching out to thinktanks and pollsters to gauge the public’s appetite for rejoining the EU.
Trump’s diesel export ban threat
US President Donald Trump said yesterday that he hadn’t yet decided on whether to go through with his threats of a ban on diesel exports.
Trump is under pressure to address rising prices ahead of the midterms, but his cabinet and senior industry officials are trying to convince him that a diesel export ban would be counterproductive in this effort.
“I’m thinking about it,” Politico reports him as saying.
“I speak to [energy secretary] Chris [Wright] and [interior secretary] Doug [Burgum] about it a lot — they sort of think it’ll help diesel, but it might raise the price of other things.”
Reuters adds that the Trump administration has told Germany and France to draw down on its emergency diesel inventories to help address global prices.
Also in the trade news
- The Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity has been extended by three years, with the Trump administration also securing agreement from 28 countries to adopt a framework countering excess steel production
- US Trade Representative Jamie Greer welcomed G20 trade ministers to a conference in Milwaukee, calling on counterparts to focus on the weaponisation of food, structural excess capacity, most favoured nation rules, and forced labour
- The Export Control Joint Unit issued a Notice to Exporters with information on updates to the end-user and stockist undertaking (EUSU) form
Yesterday in trade
- Andy Burnham confirmed all “options” are on the table for the future of the UK-EU relationship
- Trump’s tariffs were back in the courts, with the US Court of International Trade hearing arguments against his use of Section 301 of the Trade Act 1974
