London (VNA) - “I am hugely excited that the two ambassadors arefinalising this trade agreement by signing it today (December 29), cementingour historic ties and ushering in a bright future. I can’t wait to visit again”,Heather Wheeler, MP and Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy for Cambodia, Laos,Vietnam said in an interview with Vietnam News Agency correspondents.

Following here is a full text of the interview:

The UK - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) was officially signed in London on December 29, on this occasion,what message do you want to send to British and Vietnamese businesses?

On this historic day I want to wish all existing exporters and importers ofUK-Vietnamese goods and services a huge pat on the back. If it wasn’t for theirhard work, especially over the last ten years when trade has doubled, theimportance of the negotiations means that 65 percent of all tariffs have beeneliminated and this will increase to 99 percent over the seven year transitionperiod. Both our Governments have realised how crucial trade is between us,providing jobs and steady access to great food, clothing and other products andservices for our two nations.

As a Trade Envoy of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to Vietnam, what willyou do to promote the trade ties between Vietnam and the UK?

It is an honour to be made the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Vietnam andhaving visited the country I will build on my contacts at government and industrylevel to promote tariff free and trade barrier free exchange of goods andservices.

The UK’s expertise in sustainable development and technology will form earlyparts of our conversations. Sadly with Coronavirus many new opportunities willhave to be worked on remotely but I have already made appointments and spokento leading businesses in the education, financial and insurance, delivery and legalservices fields of business who have existing companies in Vietnam and see theopportunities this trade agreement gives them to expand. As soon as I cantravel to Vietnam I intend to. Equally, I will be delighted, with the supportof the Department for International Trade, to welcome Vietnamese business hereto assist them to expand their exports here in the UK.

How do you see the potential trade development between the two countries inthe post-Brexit period?

In the post-Brexit era I see the expansion of exports from, first, Vietnam toinclude an expansion of their hi-tech industries being a new growth area. Thetalent that the young people of Vietnam have I see tech services having realpotential. I also see future potential for new factories to be built,expanding the semi-conductor business for export too. For the UK, I can see ourservice industries, particularly professional services whether they be architecturalor legal or accountancy growing.

Our two countries have great educational tie ups, especially at universitylevel where I visited accountancy students on my last visit. This trade agreementwidens government procurement opportunities to 50 percent of all contracts andI can see huge growth there for UK businesses./.