WA reconnecting in the UK

Western Australia’s re-opening was at the heart of a celebratory event held in the United Kingdom at the magnificent Australia High Commission in London in early March.

Hosted by the Western Australian Government’s European trade and investment office, in partnership with the Australia-United Kingdom Chamber of Commerce, the breakfast event was an opportunity for guests to reconnect, make new acquaintances and meet WA’s new Agent General John Langoulant AO.

Western Australia warmly welcomed students, business partners, regional neighbours, tourists and investors back to our shores when the State’s borders re-opened on 3 March and WA reconnected with the world.

Guests at the UK networking event were a diverse, talented and interesting group of people, each with a strong link to WA and all living in the UK, and included key potential partners and stakeholders in the business community.

Chair of the Chamber, founder of STA Travel and a proud West Australian living in the UK, Dick Porter was a guest speaker along with Mr Langoulant, and WA’s Deputy Premier Roger Cook gave a bespoke video message welcoming guests back to “truly awesome” Western Australia.

In 2020, the WA Government undertook the significant task of redesigning WA’s global network of investment and trade offices into a hub-and-spoke model – now with eight investment and trade offices across five regions – enabling them to better adapt and respond to market-driven demands and global opportunities.

“As Minister for Trade, I am pleased to note that our global network is led by a new generation of Agent General and Investment and Trade Commissioners who are enhancing our engagement and presence across international markets,” Mr Cook said.

“These incredibly capable individuals are already making significant headway, strengthening ties with existing partners, at home and overseas – as well as forging new relationships with partners in emerging sectors.”

With the newly signed Australia-UK Free Trade Agreement – a landmark, gold-standard agreement signed in December 2021, and one of the first to be finalised with the UK since Brexit – the strong cultural and business connections between Australia and the UK are more prolific than ever.

The UK is the second largest direct investor in Australia and one of WA’s most important trade partners, ranking fourth in the State’s top ten markets for total trade in goods (exports and imports) by value of trade in 2020-21, at $10.6 billion.