Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:31 pm on 22 November 2016.
Well, trade missions are all-encompassing. It’s right to say that we do trade with companies whose values we would not share. There are issues with a number of countries around the world, where we would prefer it if their systems were more open, and their systems were closer to ours. But I believe that, through trading with these countries, it’s possible to show that there is a way of government that is different and, to my mind, better than the ones that exist in their countries. It’s a matter for them, of course, how they govern themselves, but, nevertheless, we are guided by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as to whether it’s appropriate to have trade links with countries or not.