U.K. expected to request to join trans-pacific bloc

LONDON • Britain will submit a request to join a trans-pacific trading bloc grouping 11 countries before it has published an assessment of the benefits of membership, British officials told reuters.

The move is likely to increase opposition fears that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government is using Britain’s exit from the European union to drive through policy and will rush into trade deals, with unintended consequences.

Since leaving the Eu, Britain has made clear its desire to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which removes most tariffs between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

The analysis of the economic impact of joining the CPTPP will now be published after a formal accession request, contrary to an earlier promise by the government to publish it before application. The documents will be made public before formal negotiations begin.

An official with knowledge of the schedule confirmed the publication plan but said the government viewed the formal start of the talks, not application, as most important.

“It goes without saying we’re not going to do a deal that crosses any red lines, or goes contrary to our negotiating objectives,” the official, who declined to be named, said. “Parliament will get full scrutiny.”

The main opposition Labour Party said the decision to join the bloc was too important to be pushed through without voters’ knowledge or consent.

“The government is rushing into the process of joining the CPTPP with no public mandate, and barely any proper discussion with business or civil society,” Labour’s trade policy chief, Emily Thornberry, told reuters.