Trade Disputes Policy Advisor

The Department for Business and Trade was created in February from the Department for International Trade and the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy. It brings together business and trade into a single department. The Trade Disputes Team in the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is responsible for managing the UK’s international trade disputes and using the UK’s independent voice to champion global rules-based trade.

Trade disputes occur when one trading partner claims that another is in breach of their international trade commitments. Disputes can be worth billions of pounds to the UK economy, can have significant implications for the UK’s international reputation, and often make headlines.

This is an exciting time to join the team and help shape the UK’s newly independent trade policy. The team is diverse, friendly, collaborative and supportive. We value and encourage learning and development, including through various formal offerings and an exciting, rich and rewarding team portfolio.

The first role will be within the Strategy and Reform Branch of the Trade Disputes Team. The Branch is responsible for developing and leading engagement on the UK’s long term-policy towards dispute settlement at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and in free trade agreements (FTAs); and ensuring the UK has the right tools to enforce and settle disputes. It also leads on building capacity to support WTO and FTA disputes across Whitehall. This is a great opportunity to work on important and high-profile areas of work and gain first-hand experience of negotiating with a number of the UK’s trading partners.

The second role will be in the Case Policy Branch of the Trade Disputes Team. The Branch is responsible for managing the UK’s risk pipeline on offensive cases – possible breaches by trade partners of WTO obligations or Free Trade Agreement – and defensive cases, where the UK may be at risk of breaching its own WTO or FTA obligations.

You will play a crucial role in developing policy on contentious issues within the international trading system at the moment, such as the use of essential security exceptions and developing mechanisms to take more effective enforcement action in intellectual property and services disputes.

You may also have opportunities to work on other issues across the wider dispute team as priorities across the portfolio demand, subject to conversations taking into account individual preference, skills, development needs and business need. The post-holder can expect to work with various stakeholders both within the department and outside the department. It is a challenging role that would be ideally suited to someone who can get up to speed quickly on the policy and technical issues around trade disputes and is able to work resiliently in a fast-paced, sometimes ambiguous, and rapidly changing environment.

Work on disputes involves developing a detailed knowledge of individual cases and therefore our expectation is that the post holder will stay in the team for a reasonable period in order to effectively develop and deploy this level of expertise.

Each role reports to a Grade 7 in the Trade Disputes team.

SEO role in the Strategy and Reform Branch

• Lead on developing policy on use of arbitration, and alternative dispute resolution within the WTO as possible means of Dispute settlement; and supporting any such actions in which the UK is involved.
• Lead on developing policy on contentious provisions in key international agreements such as the WTO security exceptions.
• Formalising and enhancing our horizon-scanning and forecasting activity to anticipate events of global consequence more rapidly and precisely, including through use of crowd-sourced insights from across government.
• Preparing briefing and high-quality ministerial advice to support the delivery of disputes powers in future legislation.
• Provide ‘box support’ to debates, lead/deputise briefings etc.
• Leading future secondary legislation work to enforce disputes. This involves working closely with legal, analytical and policy colleagues in DBT and across Whitehall to identify and target enforcement and retaliatory measures. The post-holder will prepare for any potential announcements and draft documents that may be needed.
• Management of international dispute cases where the UK is acting as a third-party.
• This role will include the line management of an Executive Officer (EO) and potential task management of a Higher Executive Officer (HEO).

 SEO role in the Case Policy Branch

Your focus will be on managing the UK’s risk pipeline, and will include:

• Identifying and investigating possible offensive disputes, maintaining and working with networks across DBT, OGDs and Posts overseas and upskilling these networks so that trade issues can be identified and addressed accordingly.
• As offensive and defensive disputes arise, convening and leading case teams as a dispute expert, working across teams and disciplines to deliver the UK’s objectives.
• Leading on specific third party disputes (supported by 1 HEO). Third party disputes are where WTO members can participate in disputes where they are neither the complainant or the responding member and is a helpful way for the UK to build understanding of the dispute settlement system, as well as to raise points of strategic interest. The post holder will coordinate and lead work on specific disputes to ensure the UK is positioning itself as promoter of the rules-based system and in line with its wider interests.

Essential Criteria

• Ability to quickly get up to speed in new and complex policy areas and to be able to translate them into effective policy advice, and to discuss them with key interlocutors.
• Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate with colleagues and external stakeholders at all levels including senior officials and ministers. 
• Track record in drafting papers and submissions or briefing on technical policy areas.
• Ability to build effective influential relationships within DBT, across government and with negotiating counterparts in order to support delivery of objectives. 
• Able to deliver in a fast-paced environment under tight time constraints, remaining flexible and adaptable, and prioritise effectively.

Desirable Criteria

• Knowledge and experience of trade policy or international law.
• Experience of international negotiations.
• Knowledge of the legislation-making process.

Personal Attributes & Skills

• You will be a motivated, highly organised team player who has an eye for detail and can communicate effectively with different audiences.
• You will have the ability to be proactive and to develop and take forward policy initiatives and to gather, organise and present research.
• You will be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment and be able to prioritise between competing demands, balancing the needs of the team and other stakeholders.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities

Please refer to the attached candidate pack for further information on our benefits.

Job contact :

• Name : Anjum Rahman
• Email : Anjum.Rahman@businessandtrade.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dbtrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk