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Brexit news: Japan trade deal will not be ready by March 29 deadline, Liam Fox confirms

The UK will not be able to roll over an EU trade deal with Japan in time for the scheduled date of Brexit on March 29, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox has said.

Japan was the most significant on a list of 27 EU trade agreements released by Dr Fox's Department of International Trade on which discussions about possible roll-over are still ongoing just 36 days from the date of withdrawal.

The department also confirmed that the EU's customs union agreement with Turkey, which covers 1.39 per cent of UK trade, will not be transitioned on exit day.

Dr Fox predicted in 2017 that the UK would be able to replicate up to 40 EU free trade deals, accounting for around 11 per cent of the UK's trade, for "a second after midnight" on Brexit day.

But so far it has able to finalise "continuity agreements" with just seven of the 69 countries and regions with which the EU has trade deals, Switzerland, Chile, the Faroe Islands, Eastern and Southern Africa, Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

The CBI said confirmation that deals with Japan and Turkey will not be concluded in time would come as "an unwelcome surprise" to businesses.

The organisation's director of international trade and investment Ben Digby said it was "vital" for the Government to rule out a no-deal Brexit, to ensure companies can continue to benefit from EU trade deals during the 21-month transition period included in the Withdrawal Agreement.

The EU's trade agreement with Japan came into force only at the start of February.

It created the world's largest bilateral free trade zone, covering 635 million people, and removed the majority of the one billion euros (£900 million) of duties paid annually by EU companies exporting to the far eastern state.

But unless the UK can finalise a Withdrawal Agreement by March 29 allowing Britain to continue participating in EU trade deals during a 21-month transition period, it will enjoy the benefits of the Japanese agreement for just 57 days.

The DIT statement said: "While a number of these continuity agreements are likely to be concluded by exit day, it is the duty of Government to produce a highly cautious list of those that may not be in place in order that businesses and individuals ensure that they are prepared for every eventuality.

"It remains our priority to conclude trade continuity agreements with these countries by exit day or as soon as possible thereafter."

The department said that mutual recognition agreements signed with the United States of America, Australia and New Zealand should ensure that businesses do not face additional bureaucracy after Brexit.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Dr Fox insisted it would be possible to secure "sufficient access" to the European market "in a way that doesn't tie our hands to increased access to other markets".

He said: "It is possible to both maintain our trade with the European Union and to improve our trade with the rest of the world.

"In fact, Britain will have to do so if we want to generate the sort of incomes we require for the provision of our public services."

The EU trade deals offer UK companies benefits like reduced tariffs on goods, enhanced access to markets for services, relaxed place-of-origin rules and common standards on intellectual property.

In the event of a no-deal Brexit, all trade with these countries, including South Korea, Canada and South Africa, will be conducted under World Trade Organisation rules, which require tariffs on many products.

Reporting by Press Association.