Department for Business and Trade

The Government has held extensive consultations with industry to inform development of the new steel trade measure, including a Call for Evidence in July 2025, and will continue to engage with companies across the supply chain. The measure has been designed to strike a careful balance between supporting domestic steelmaking and maintaining secure, reliable supply so the UK can meet its defence and critical national infrastructure needs. We will continue to monitor the impact of the measure and review it after 12 months to ensure the balance is right between producers and downstream users.

As he will see from the statutory instrument, the general trade licence for the maritime transportation of liquefied natural gas, under contracts with a duration of one year or less, will expire on 1 January 2027, although it can be varied, revoked or suspended at any time at the discretion of the Secretary of State. We are keeping it under fortnightly review.

On 20 May 2026, the UK introduced new sanctions to further target Russian revenues and degrade its ability to wage its illegal war in Ukraine. Alongside these measures, general trade licences for refined oil and liquid natural gas (LNG) were issued to ensure a managed and phased implementation of complex restrictions. We will continue to assess the energy market and maintain communication with industry.

I committed to fortnightly review of these licences, which will expire on 1 January 2027. This review will consider the impact of the licences on UK energy supply and global markets.

The measure has been designed to strike a balance between securing domestic steelmaking while maintaining secure supply for downstream users.

It is designed to only cover requirements that can be met in the UK. Where not feasible for technical reasons, quotas have been designed to allow for sufficient imports to be available to downstream users.

To ease short-term impacts, we are introducing a transitional arrangement under which the new measure would not apply to goods agreed under contract before 14 March 2026 and imported between 1 July and 30 September 2026. Further details are available on GOV.UK.

The Government’s Industrial Strategy sets out a long-term plan to support growth across the UK. Delivering the Industrial Strategy, regulatory reform and other steps will help to ensure the UK remains competitive, delivers long-term sustainable growth and that its economic fundamentals remain strong.

To assist all Growth Hubs in long-term planning, we will establish indicative multi- year core funding budgets for 2026-29 and provide flexibility to accommodate local government reorganisation. This funding will form part of the Integrated Settlement in Established Mayoral Strategic Authorities, per our commitment in the English Devolution White Paper.

Ministers and officials have engaged extensively with business, trade unions and representative organisations on the zero hours measures in the Employment Rights Act 2025, informing the development of the consultation.

We have held over 17 meetings with businesses on these measures and over 11 meetings with trade unions, alongside wider engagement on Make Work Pay, and continue to meet regularly with business representative organisations and trade unions.

The new steel trade measure has been designed to strike a careful balance between supporting domestic steelmaking and maintaining secure, reliable supply for downstream users, including the makeup and length of the transitional arrangement to ease short term impacts. It is not possible to give an estimate of the volume and value of steel subject to contractual commitments before 14 March 2026 given that information is held by individual businesses. However, our measure design has been informed by last year’s Call for Evidence which attracted 100 responses from industry.

The measure has also been designed to only cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. Where this is not feasible for technical reasons, for example where product codes contain both steel products that can be made in the UK and products that cannot be made, quotas sizes are being set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. We will continue to monitor the impact of the measure and review it after 12 months to ensure the balance is right between producers and downstream users.

The new steel trade measure has been designed to strike a careful balance between supporting domestic steelmaking and maintaining secure, reliable supply for downstream users, including the makeup and length of the transitional arrangement to ease short term impacts. It is not possible to give an estimate of the volume and value of steel subject to contractual commitments before 14 March 2026 given that information is held by individual businesses. However, our measure design has been informed by last year’s Call for Evidence which attracted 100 responses from industry.

The measure has also been designed to only cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. Where this is not feasible for technical reasons, for example where product codes contain both steel products that can be made in the UK and products that cannot be made, quotas sizes are being set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. We will continue to monitor the impact of the measure and review it after 12 months to ensure the balance is right between producers and downstream users.

Trade Envoys are political appointees. The Department for Business and Trade conducts scrutiny and due diligence as part of the process for appointing Trade Envoys.

There are currently no plans for the Foreign Affairs Committee to undertake any pre-appointment checks for Trade Envoys.

If I understand the Honourable Member’s question correctly, I can assure him that all imported food stuffs have to meet the UK’s environmental standards and that we will not and do not abandon either animal welfare or food standards when securing trade deals with other countries. To the contrary, we champion British farming, protect the environment, and promote the highest food production standards including through trade deals promoting high sustainable standards.

In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review of the UK’s approach to responsible business conduct, focused on addressing environmental harms alongside human rights and labour abuses in global supply chains. We hope to publish our conclusions soon.

Please see table below, derived from HMRC’s Import data by preference bulk dataset, using trade codes as published in the technical annex of the UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy. Countries of origin have been grouped into EU and non-EU for legibility.

Volumes of each critical and growth mineral imported into the UK, tonnes, 2023-25, broken down by those sourced from EU and non-EU countries.

The government has published a comprehensive assessment of the potential impacts from the zero hours contract measures in the Employment Rights Act 2025 and will publish further analysis in due course as we implement these measures.

The government has published its consultation to understand further the impacts that different options could have on employers and workers.

The Government held extensive engagement with both primary steel producers and downstream users to inform development of the trade measure, including a Call for Evidence in July 2025.

To ease short-term impacts, we are introducing a transitional arrangement under which the new measure would not apply to goods agreed under contract before 14 March 2026 and imported between 1 July and 30 September 2026.

We will continue engaging regularly with companies across the supply chain, including those in the advanced manufacturing sector, and will monitor implementation of the measure ahead of a full review of the measure after 12 months.

My department is looking carefully at the proposed measures in the EU’s Industrial Accelerator Act. Where these measures, as currently drafted, could disadvantage the UK’s automotive sector, or UK-EU integrated automotive supply chains, the Secretary of State, Minister Bryant, and I have and are continuing to engage positively with EU member states, Commission counterparts, and MEPs.

We continue to engage industry to assess potential impacts to business.

This Government is supporting investment into the transformation of our automotive industry through DRIVE35, a £4 billion programme to 2035. This is in addition to wider interventions to improve competitiveness and attract investment. From 2027, a new British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme will reduce electricity costs by c.£35-40/MWh and support thousands of businesses, including those in the automotive sector.

My department is looking carefully at the proposed measures in the EU’s Industrial Accelerator Act. Where these measures, as currently drafted, could disadvantage the UK’s automotive sector, or UK-EU integrated automotive supply chains, the Secretary of State, Minister Bryant, and I have and are continuing to engage positively with EU member states, Commission counterparts, and MEPs.

We continue to engage industry to assess potential impacts to business.

This Government is supporting investment into the transformation of our automotive industry through DRIVE35, a £4 billion programme to 2035. This is in addition to wider interventions to improve competitiveness and attract investment. From 2027, a new British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme will reduce electricity costs by c.£35-40/MWh and support thousands of businesses, including those in the automotive sector.

The measure is designed to only cover steel requirements that can be made in the UK. In some instances, this is not feasible for technical reasons, for example where single product codes contain different sizes of steel products.

Quotas aim to allow sufficient imports to ensure continued availability of these goods to UK downstream users.

We will monitor implementation of the measure and review after twelve months to ensure it remains effective, and the balance is right for both producers and downstream users.

The two generations of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF) support employment across the North of England by increasing access to finance for smaller businesses to start, scale and innovate.

The first NPIF delivered more than £1 billion of combined public and private sector investment to businesses across the North of England, of which £613 million was private sector investment. The Fund created more than 7,900 jobs.

Since launch, NPIF II has supported more than 400 businesses, facilitating almost £275 million of investment, and we would expect job creation across the North as under the first-generation fund.

No.

Public consultation and communication with local communities ahead of planned branch closures is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd and Government does not provide guidance on this matter.

Post Office is committed to consulting on any proposed branch changes as set out in the ‘Principles of Community Engagement’, which is published on Post Office’s website. These are a set of guidelines agreed with the statutory consumer advocacy bodies – Citizens Advice, Consumer Scotland and the Consumer Council Northern Ireland. These consultations focus on customers’ access to Post Office products following any proposed change.

The Government held extensive engagement with producers and downstream users of steel to inform development of the new steel trade measure, including a Call for Evidence in July 2025, and will continue to engage regularly with companies across the supply chain. Our aim with the new steel trade measure is to strike the right balance: securing the future of domestic capability while maintaining secure supply chains to make the UK economy more resilient in the long term.

The Government will monitor implementation of the measure and conduct a review after twelve months to ensure it remains effective and that the balance is right for both producers and downstream users.

This government is focused on creating a stronger business environment by making the UK the best place to start and grow a business, with a culture that supports entrepreneurship.

Through the Small Business Plan, we are tackling late payments, improving access to finance for start-ups, and cutting unnecessary red tape. The new Business Growth Service supports SMEs with digital adoption and facilitates international trade and investment.

As part of the Regulation Action Plan, published in March 2025, we have committed to reducing the administrative burden on businesses by 25% by the end of the Parliament.

As of 31^st March 2025, there were 6,540,159 appointments for People with Significant Control (PSC) registered at Companies House. This is not the number of unique individuals on the register, but the number of appointments held. Another corporate body can also act as a PSC for another company.

The current figures are provided in the published Companies House official statistics:

Companies register activities: statistical release April 2024 to March 2025 - GOV.UK

Figures up to 31^st March 2026 will be published on 25^th June 2026.

The Government held extensive engagement with industry to inform development of the steel trade measure, including a Call for Evidence, and will continue to engage with companies across the supply chain. The measure has been designed, as far as is technically possible, to only cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. Quotas are being set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. We will continue to monitor the impact of the measure and review it after 12 months to ensure the balance is right between producers and downstream users.

Please see table below, derived from HMRC’s Import data by preference bulk dataset, using trade codes as published in the technical annex of the UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy.

The Strategy recognises that supply chains are increasingly concentrated and sets out a clear ambition to diversify supply, including ensuring that no more than 60% of any critical mineral is sourced from a single country. This will be achieved by strengthening domestic production and recycling, building international partnerships to diversify supply, and leveraging finance and innovation to support more resilient global supply chains.

Single largest country of origin for UK imports of critical and growth minerals, by proportion of the total mass imported, 2023-2025.

The Government recognises that UK vehicle production has been affected by global shocks since 2020. Output declined during the Covid19 pandemic and was further impacted by supply chain disruption and volatile consumer demand. We want to make the UK one of the best locations in the world to manufacture vehicles and we are working with industry to support recovery and strengthen long term competitiveness.

Our ambition to grow UK vehicle production to over 1.3 million cars and commercial vehicles by 2035 is backed by our £4 billion DRIVE35 programme. It will support the automotive sector through to 2035 by accelerating commercial scale‑up and increasing investment in zero‑emission vehicles, batteries and their supply chains. We are also investing in the infrastructure needed to support this transition, including a further £200 million for EV charging, in addition to the £400 million committed at the 2025 Spending Review.

The Government is committed to minimising administrative burdens and frictions experienced by businesses trading internationally. The UK–India Free Trade Agreement reflects this, by including a commitment for both Parties to introduce or maintain a Single Window System.

The UK remains committed to delivering a Single Trade Window, recognising the potential benefits it offers for streamlining trade and improving border operation. Policy development is ongoing and focused on designing a service that delivers genuine value for businesses and strengthens the UK’s border system.

Our aim with the new steel trade measure is to strike the right balance: securing the future of domestic capability while maintaining secure supply chains to make the UK economy more resilient in the long term.

Where this is not feasible for technical reasons, quota sizes are being set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. The Government will monitor implementation of the measure and conduct a review after twelve months to ensure it remains effective and that the balance is right for both producers and downstream users.

The measure has been designed to strike a careful balance between supporting domestic steelmaking and maintaining secure, reliable supply for downstream users.

Quotas have been designed with the aim of allowing for sufficient imports to ensure continued availability of goods to UK downstream users, including the automotive sector, without unnecessary additional costs. The increased tariff will apply only once import quotas have been filled.

The Steel Council was re‑established in January 2025 to support the development of the UK Steel Strategy. Since then, the Council has met five times, with all meetings attended by the Minister for Industry. Additional Ministers have attended meetings as follows:

• 7 January 2025: Secretary of State for Business and Trade; Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy and Planning, Welsh Government; Minister for the Economy, Northern Ireland Executive
• 8 April 2025: Secretary of State for Business and Trade
• 14 July 2025: Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office; Minister for Public Finance of Scotland, Scottish Government
• 4 November 2025: Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy and Planning, Welsh Government
• 19 March 2026: Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy and Planning, Welsh Government

I confirm that officials at the Department for Business and Trade have contacted the company to offer them a meeting.

My Department conducted social value research into the most frequent users of the Post Office to feed into the Green Paper on the Future of the Post Office, which we published last year. This research showed that the most frequent users are typically older, from more rural areas, or less confident using digital technology. In the Government’s Response to the Green Paper, we committed to protecting access to services for these and other users by retaining the minimum requirement of 11,500 Post Office branches and all six geographical Access Criteria. This means, for example, that 99% of the UK population must be within three miles of a Post Office.

The Government has not published an estimate of how many SMEs will benefit from the 60-day maximum payment term, as impact varies across sectors, supply chains and contractual practices.

The supporting evidence is set out in the Department’s Impact Assessment, which explains the data and methodology used. The case for reform reflects the scale of the late payment problem. It is estimated late payments cost the UK economy £11 billion each year, with around 14,000 business closures annually

The new steel measure has been designed to strike a careful balance between supporting domestic steelmaking and maintaining secure, reliable supply so the UK can meet its defence and critical national infrastructure needs. We will continue to monitor the impacts and review the measure after 12 months to ensure the balance is right between producers and downstream users of steel.

The Government does not hold data on the average amount owed to SMEs in overdue invoices over the last 5 years. However, research commissioned by DBT and published last year highlighted that late payments cost the UK economy £11 billion each year, causing 14,000 business closures annually.

The Department for Business and Trade is working with the Office of the Small Business Commissioner to ensure it has the necessary resources to effectively carry out its new functions.

The Growth Hub network comprises 38 local business support bodies delivered by or via local authorities in England. DBT provides funding to authorities for their Growth Hubs to deliver a core service and to act as local delivery partners for the new Business Growth Service. Hubs provide advice and access to support across a broad range of business needs for businesses of any size, sector or ownership structure within their footprint, via a free and impartial single point of contact. Authorities have the freedom to shape and enhance their Growth Hub’s support offer to meet local business and economic needs.

The department does not currently collect information on trends in the average time for SMEs to receive a decision on bank loan applications. Last year, the Government’s call for evidence on small business access to finance found that the shift to digital banking has brought increased convenience and efficiency for businesses who often find these services simpler to navigate, meaning they can progress their applications at a faster pace. However, the time taken to receive a decision will vary depending on each institution’s internal processes and the specific details of the credit application.

The Government has created the Metals Circularity Group to ensure a sustainable supply of high-quality scrap for the domestic steel sector whilst considering how a circular economy can aid supply chains for steel, aluminium and critical minerals. The group met for the first time on 29 April 2026. Industry members have been pulling together views following that meeting.

This cross government-led group consists of DBT, DEFRA, DESNZ, other government departments and devolved administrations alongside representatives from industry, unions, academia and other stakeholders. As is standard practice, we do not publish details of individual companies involved.

Government is working to determine the scope of these funds and will provide further detail on this and the application process in due course. It is Government’s intent to open these funds to applications in summer 2026.

The table shows the number of FTE DBT staff working in, and on behalf of the UK in each region as of July 2024 and April 2026. April 2026 is the latest available data point; data for June 2026 are not available. The available data are held at regional level. The requested information on a country-by-country basis is not readily available but could be provided as a separate list.

DBT also has UK-based teams working across a broad range of business and trade activities, including support for international trade missions. Most staff are in the Trade Group. However, DBT uses a flexible resourcing model, some staff work across multiple functions. The department therefore cannot separately identify the proportion of wider UK-based roles that support international trade missions.

The Electrotechnical Assessment Specification (EAS) is an industry agreed specification, and decisions on the detailed requirements and implementation timelines, including the October compliance deadline, are therefore primarily a matter for industry. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government sits on the EAS management committee.

Bearing down on the cost of living is a priority for the government, including addressing the impact of the Iran conflict. My officials are rapidly developing legislation to grant the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and potentially other regulators, powers to require companies to provide information where a crisis is disrupting UK markets for essential goods and services. Markets like food, fuel and medicine will be in scope, as well as markets rendered essential by the particular crisis, like hand sanitiser during the pandemic. The powers will allow government to rapidly understand and respond to crises and – in appropriate cases – publish information about markets so consumers can choose where to spend their money.

We are developing these powers alongside the CMA and other regulators. We will design them so that, as far as possible, they protect business from unnecessary burdens and are only used when absolutely necessary. We will publish information on estimated impacts in due course.

The government is not prohibiting certain levels of pricing or profit. I would like to thank the businesses across the economy that have fought to keep their pricing as low as possible in extremely difficult circumstances, and the government believes competitive markets are the best mechanism for driving down prices. But the Chancellor has been clear that if examples of egregious exploitation of this crisis are exposed, the government will not hesitate to act.

Bearing down on the cost of living is a priority for the government, including addressing the impact of the Iran conflict. My officials are rapidly developing legislation to grant the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and potentially other regulators, powers to require companies to provide information where a crisis is disrupting UK markets for essential goods and services. Markets like food, fuel and medicine will be in scope, as well as markets rendered essential by the particular crisis, like hand sanitiser during the pandemic. The powers will allow government to rapidly understand and respond to crises and – in appropriate cases – publish information about markets so consumers can choose where to spend their money.

We are developing these powers alongside the CMA and other regulators. We will design them so that, as far as possible, they protect business from unnecessary burdens and are only used when absolutely necessary. We will publish information on estimated impacts in due course.

The government is not prohibiting certain levels of pricing or profit. I would like to thank the businesses across the economy that have fought to keep their pricing as low as possible in extremely difficult circumstances, and the government believes competitive markets are the best mechanism for driving down prices. But the Chancellor has been clear that if examples of egregious exploitation of this crisis are exposed, the government will not hesitate to act.

Bearing down on the cost of living is a priority for the government, including addressing the impact of the Iran conflict. My officials are rapidly developing legislation to grant the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and potentially other regulators, powers to require companies to provide information where a crisis is disrupting UK markets for essential goods and services. Markets like food, fuel and medicine will be in scope, as well as markets rendered essential by the particular crisis, like hand sanitiser during the pandemic. The powers will allow government to rapidly understand and respond to crises and – in appropriate cases – publish information about markets so consumers can choose where to spend their money.

We are developing these powers alongside the CMA and other regulators. We will design them so that, as far as possible, they protect business from unnecessary burdens and are only used when absolutely necessary. We will publish information on estimated impacts in due course.

The government is not prohibiting certain levels of pricing or profit. I would like to thank the businesses across the economy that have fought to keep their pricing as low as possible in extremely difficult circumstances, and the government believes competitive markets are the best mechanism for driving down prices. But the Chancellor has been clear that if examples of egregious exploitation of this crisis are exposed, the government will not hesitate to act.

Bearing down on the cost of living is a priority for the government, including addressing the impact of the Iran conflict. My officials are rapidly developing legislation to grant the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and potentially other regulators, powers to require companies to provide information where a crisis is disrupting UK markets for essential goods and services. Markets like food, fuel and medicine will be in scope, as well as markets rendered essential by the particular crisis, like hand sanitiser during the pandemic. The powers will allow government to rapidly understand and respond to crises and – in appropriate cases – publish information about markets so consumers can choose where to spend their money.

We are developing these powers alongside the CMA and other regulators. We will design them so that, as far as possible, they protect business from unnecessary burdens and are only used when absolutely necessary. We will publish information on estimated impacts in due course.

The government is not prohibiting certain levels of pricing or profit. I would like to thank the businesses across the economy that have fought to keep their pricing as low as possible in extremely difficult circumstances, and the government believes competitive markets are the best mechanism for driving down prices. But the Chancellor has been clear that if examples of egregious exploitation of this crisis are exposed, the government will not hesitate to act.