UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) has released data showing that the number of medium-size businesses in the UK receiving support to boost their trade overseas has doubled in just seven months — from 1,000 to more than 2,000. Back in April, Trade Minister Lord Livingston wrote to all the medium-size businesses in the country, offering tailored advice and an intensive programme of support from UKTI to help them start exporting or break into new markets.

He said that the Government is still not satisfied with the percentage of UK firms that export their products, and he urged more companies to make use of UKTI’s services. Recent research found that only 17% of medium-size companies in the UK generate revenues outside of the EU, compared to 25% in Germany and 30% in Italy.

Lord Livingston said: “I would like to see British firms exporting just as much as companies from Italy and Germany, so I am hugely encouraged by the ambition of our newly recruited firms. By the end of this year, I want to treble the numbers receiving support, so that we can overhaul our international rivals. By reaching more international customers, our medium-size businesses can become the next Jaguar Land Rover or Unilever.”