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International Trade Secretary Rt Hon Liam Fox MP announces plans to open 3 new offices in the United States.

• government will open 3 new offices in Minneapolis, Raleigh and San Diego
• each office will focus on promoting UK business and building new economic ties
• the 3 offices will extend a tried-and-tested model already seeing success in Denver and Seattle

The UK government plans to open 3 new offices in the United States, International Trade Secretary Rt Hon Liam Fox MP announced yesterday (26 July 2016).

Speaking to a business audience in Chicago, Dr Fox outlined plans for the 3 offices in Minneapolis, Raleigh and San Diego. The new locations will complement existing posts in the US network, extending the UK’s reach into new and potentially lucrative areas.

Chosen because of their economic productivity and well-established research and development institutions, the 3 cities offer exciting opportunities to boost trade and investment. The offices will be ideally placed to build relationships with key companies, politicians and educational centres and to support wider goals on economic reform, market access, innovation and climate change.

Each office will be staffed by one officer, recruited locally in the US on behalf of HMG. They will work to promote UK business, economic and political ties in support of the Consulate General in the region. This model has been proven to work well in Denver and Seattle, with the Seattle office supporting delivery of approximately £8 million in capital investment and 1,000 UK jobs in the past year.

International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said yesterday:

I am pleased to announce today that the UK government plans to open 3 new offices right here in the United States, in Minneapolis, Raleigh and San Diego.

Our ambitious vision for an open and outward-looking UK economy includes growing our footprint in the most important markets around the world and these 3 cities offer exciting opportunities to boost trade and investment.

On his first overseas trip since becoming International Trade Secretary, Dr Fox visited Washington, where he held a series of productive meetings including with Trade Representative Michael Froman, before travelling to Chicago to speak at the Sage Summit for small and medium sized businesses. He then went to Los Angeles, where he spoke at a British American Business Council (BABC) event.

Notes to editors

1. For more information, please contact the Department for International Trade press office on +44 (0)20 7215 5078.

2. The UK has existing offices in: New York, LA, Chicago, Houston, Washington DC, San Francisco, Boston, Atlanta, Seattle, Miami, Denver. We also have a number of Honorary Consuls in the US network.