New Trade Commissioner for LATAC announced

As the UK announces its intention to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), International Trade Secretary Liz Truss, appoints Jonathan Knott as the new HMTC for Latin America and the Caribbean region, to champion British trade with important economic partners in the region.

As HMTC for the LATAC region and Consul General São Paulo, Jonathan will look to grow trade and investment between the UK and Latin America and the Caribbean, as the UK moves forward with its new independent trade policy. Joining CPTPP would see the UK deepen its access to fast-growing markets and major economies including Mexico, Chile and Peru.

Jonathan joins the Department for International Trade (DIT) from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), where he was most recently British Ambassador to Poland and Director of the UK government’s Central Europe Network. Jonathan speaks 5 languages including Spanish, Portuguese and French.

Secretary of State for International Trade Liz Truss said:

I am delighted to welcome Jonathan to his new role, he brings a wealth of experience and expertise working with international partners and promoting the UK overseas.

The LATAC region has enormous opportunities for UK businesses and is home to some of the largest economies in the world.

HMTC Jonathan Knott said:

I am thrilled to be appointed as Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Latin America and the Caribbean. We already enjoy a strong relationship with the region, and I look forward to building on this. My focus in this new role will be to create more opportunities for our countries to forge deeper trading ties and helping our businesses recover from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The UK will be taking a leading role in promoting the benefits of free and fair trade, including at the WTO, our potential future membership of CPTPP, and pushing the global climate agenda through our COP26 Presidency this year. I look forward to working closely with our friends and partners across the LATAC region.

The UK enjoys a thriving trade and investment relationship with countries across the Caribbean and Latin America. Total trade between the UK and LATAC was £26.3 billion in the year to Q3 2020.