Graham Zebedee

Dad, @SouthamptonFC fan, Director in UK Department for Business and Trade, trade negotiator, former UK Ambassador (to DRC, CAR, Rep. of Congo)

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Félicitations aux Léopards! Première Coupe Mondiale en 52 ans! Wish I was back in Kinshasa to celebrate. https://t.co/KJbmEaqpji

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

@biztradegovuk So proud to see this happen, after doing the accession negotiations. Congrats to my former team for handling the ratification phase so well

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Special thanks to @AmandaBrooksDBT @JohnAlty1 and Crawford Falconer for all the support & encouragement.

I’ll now be studying international relations at the Royal College of Defence Studies until next summer. 4/4

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Some personal news - I finish my current job on trade policy & negotiations today

I most enjoyed:
-Leading the programme to ‘roll over’ EU FTAs, the biggest ever set of trade talks, and entering them all into force on New Year’s Eve 2020 (it was a quiet night in that year) 1/4

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

-Leading the talks which got the UK into CPTPP this year. I’ll really miss the engagement with our new Pacific partners; the midnight-to-3am zoom calls, not so much.

It’s been a pleasure to work with hundreds of really talented and committed civil servants on all of these. 3/4

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Very nice to swing by (if that’s the right verb) Seoul on the way back home from New Zealand to talk about our #CPTPP accession experience, the coming upgrade of our bilateral free trade agreement and the state of the world with the Korean govt, academics and the private sector

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Thanks a lot David!

[David Frost @DavidGHFrost]

From one chief negotiator to another, congratulations @GrahamZebedee! All the hard work has paid off.

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

We’ll now:
-send our CPTPP docs to Parliament, starting scrutiny
-work up proposals for implementing laws
-encourage CPTPP members to ratify our accession quickly
-help UK companies benefit from CPTPP
-play an active role on widening & deepening CPTPP

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

@KemiBadenoch has just signed UK accession to CPTPP here in New Zealand.   We are now a member. I’ve worked on this as chief negotiator since early 2021, so it’s a great feeling! A short thread on what it means and what happens next

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

As a member, we have already taken part in discussions about: the possible expansion of CPTPP, given 6 economies have already applied to join (widening); and how to ensure the agreement stays up to date, including on digital, customs and the green economy (deepening)

[UK Mission to the EU 🇬🇧🇪🇺 @UKMisBrussels]

📹 As the UK prepares to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and as part of our #OpenTradeProject, 🇬🇧#CPTPP chief negotiator @GrahamZebedee tells us about the importance of the group and what UK membership means.

@biztradegovuk

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

It was great to meet with fellow #CPTPP chief negotiators here in Auckland tonight, before Ministers arrive here tomorrow for meetings over the weekend. And Brunei have today become a full CPTPP party, meaning that now all 11 members have fully ratified. #justintimedelivery

[Damien O'Connor @DamienOConnorMP]

Looking forward to welcoming Trade Ministers at the 7th Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Commission (CPTPP) meeting in Auckland next weekend 🇦🇺 🇨🇦 🇨🇱 🇯🇵 🇲🇾 🇲🇽 🇵🇪 🇸🇬 🇻🇳👉 https://t.co/3P53LFyQDS #CPTPP2023 #TradeforAll

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

I’m massively proud of my team for having created the Developing Country Trading Scheme. It’ll benefit developing country exporters and UK consumers and improve our trade relationships with some really important countries.

[Nigel Huddleston MP @HuddlestonNigel]

📢 I’m excited to see the UK take a major step forward in easing trade with 65 developing countries today ✅

It’s a huge win for the UK as an independent trading nation and will boost growth, create jobs, and diversify the UK’s supply chains. 🇬🇧🤝🌎

https://t.co/DciprT1UcJ

[Graham Zebedee @GrahamZebedee]

Great news Brunei has just ratified #CPTPP. That’ll take effect about 12 July, so they’ll be a ratified Party before the UK’s accession is signed (working hard to make that happen asap)

They follow Chile, Peru and Malaysia, making a full team of 11/11 original signatories