Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the future of the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast which has entered into administration.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
On 16 September, Harland and Wolff announced the winding down of non-core operations and were clear that this would in no way affect jobs at its shipyards or core operations, including delivering on contracts for the Ministry of Defence at the Belfast shipyard.
We explored all options to provide support and following a thorough review of Harland and Wolff’s financial situation, it is clear that at present the market is best placed to address their challenges.
We will continue to work across government and with the Northern Ireland Executive, as needed, to help secure shipbuilding and manufacturing across the UK.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the resilience of the supply chain across the UK and to reduce friction at the borders.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
In January the government published the Critical Imports and Supply Chains Strategy, setting out the actions we are taking to protect supply chains vital to the UK's economic prosperity, national security, and essential services. These include sharing more information and guidance with businesses on key risks; introducing a way for businesses to tell us about barriers affecting critical imports; and working with international partners to tackle shared supply chain challenges.
The Border Target Operating Model, published in August 2023, sets out our new global regime of border controls that makes better use of technology and data to reduce friction and costs for businesses and consumers. It will create a radically simpler yet secure experience for traders moving goods across the UK border.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of how many jobs in the Republic of Ireland are currently dependent on trade with the UK.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
According to the OECD’s Trade in Employment database, exports to the UK supported around 172,500 jobs in the Republic of Ireland in 2020.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the UK’s post-Brexit trade deals with key international partners and the economic benefits that are expected to flow from these agreements.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
We have secured trade deals with 73 countries plus the EU since Brexit, partners that accounted for £1.1 trillion of UK bilateral trade in 2022.
The government publishes analysis to assess the potential impacts of new Free Trade Agreements in advance of negotiations and publishes final impact assessments once the negotiations have concluded. These assessments set out the potential economic impact of the Free Trade Agreements and are available on Gov.UK.
The government publishes analysis that is proportionate to the scope of negotiations and the agreement’s likely impact.