ISLAMABAD
Pakistan has been reassured by its biggest trading partner in Europe, that its exports will retain the concessional tariff for entering the United Kingdom even after Brexit.
An official source said the reassurance was provided by the British government through diplomatic channels to the ministry of commerce, as many of the officials and exporters have sought clarity on the continuation of concessions after Brexit.
UK had assured that not only the concessions would be retained but their scope would be enhanced to provide more support to Pakistan as well as to other developing countries, mainly its former colonies, the source said.
Pakistan was given a concessional package by the 27 member block European Union in 2014. The program will be implemented for a decade provided Pakistan implements 27 UN Conventions related to human rights. Under the GSP Plus scheme many of the Pakistan’s non-traditional exports were given preferential tariff for entry into the EU states.
After Brexit, there were fears in the export circles that Pakistani exports to EU will decline as major exports were going to UK. EU has also assured Pakistan that the GSP Plus status for Pakistan would be retained even after Brexit. UK had played a key role for getting GSP Plus status for its former colony.
