Having been advocating to advance economic reforms through various legislations that would entice foreign investors to do business in the Philippines, the British Chamber of Commerce lauds and supports the current administration’s progress in acting on various legislations that promote and secure trade.

Currently, the administration’s priority bills include the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, and the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA) which have already been passed to both the House of Representatives and Senate.

The chamber also hopes for the passage of the Cybersecurity Act, another priority legislation since its deliberations in November 2022.

On April 22, at the 2024 Annual General Meeting, British Embassy Manila Deputy Head of Mission Alistair White highlighted the advocacy efforts of the Chamber on pushing for legislation on lowered tariffs (Signing of Executive Order No. 50), agriculture (Advocating for the passage of Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act), and cybersecurity (Cybersecurity Act).

In a bid to eliminate barriers to open trade, the Chamber consistently supports the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act. The legislation targets illegal activities such as smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and cartel operations that disrupt agricultural supply chains, destabilize prices, threaten food security, and deprive the state of vital tax revenue.

On March 20, the British Chamber hosted its Trade and Connect series titled: “Securing the Digital Frontier: Breaking Through Digital Boundaries” in partnership with CyberQ.

BCCP Executive Director Chris Nelson emphasized its support for the passage of the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act––reiterating further resilience in combating cybercrimes within the financial industry through the passage of the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA). This act allows securitization over Illegal acts including money muling, social engineering schemes, and economic sabotage to strengthen the fight against illicit financial account-related cybercrime.

The British Chamber also stresses the need to enhance the country’s digital posture and cybersecurity landscape, where Nelson highlights the growing nature of cybersecurity challenges, stressing the legislative measures’ importance and recognizing the need to underscore the significance of integrating cybersecurity measures in businesses to bolster resilience against threats through improved programs and policies.

“Cybersecurity is a very critical point. We, at the British Chamber, fully endorse how important that is, and we continue to support the government to pass as we mentioned the three acts, particularly the Anti-Mule Act, Online Site Blocking Act and Cybersecurity Act along with supporting the [on-going] educational initiatives,” Nelson concluded.

The British Chamber reiterates its strong support for these legislative measures and looks forward to their swift passage to enhance trade security and economic growth in the Philippines.

On 14 February 2024, the British Chamber in partnership with the UK Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), launched its internal Philippine-British Meat Trade Briefing. It consistently collaborated with the UK AHDB to further boost British pork trade to the Philippines and reiterates its support to the Executive Order No.50–mandating the extension of lowered tariffs on agricultural commodities including pork until the end of 2024, and the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act–mandating stringent policies to protect the local industry.

(AHDB Head of International Trade Development Jonathan Eckley and Senior Analyst Freya Shuttleworth)
A recent report by the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), active ASF cases remained in 10 regions, 15 provinces, 34 municipalities, and 118 barangays as of 06 February 2024, noting that the livestock sector continues to be affected by ASF. With this growing concern in the industry, the British Chamber previously expressed its concern on the reported plan of the Department of Agriculture in suspending the MAV for pork imports as it will impact the domestic supply and existing trade agreements of the country.

In its official statement:

“We reiterate our support for the Executive Order No. 50, s. 2023 and its full implementation to manage inflation and food supply. We hereby acknowledge the role of agriculture in the Philippine economic growth and we look forward to the Bicameral Conference and therefore, the passage of the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act.”

Moreover, the British Chamber further reiterated the need for the passage of the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act to protect the local farmers and consumers while promoting fair trade practices, sustaining food security and the decline of inflation rate. It also remains committed to further boosting the UK-PH trade with an emphasis on reinforcing the agricultural industry towards economic growth.