Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure action is taken against travel agents who fail to honour contractual commitments regarding the cancellation of travel and holiday arrangements; and whether they are considering any support for consumers affected by any such failures.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Under consumer law consumers are entitled to a refund within 14 days, depending on the nature of the contract in place. Many businesses are also offering consumers vouchers or alternative dates, which consumers are able to choose should they wish. The Government is engaging with the package travel sector and consumer advocacy bodies to assess the impact of cancellations made in light of the covid-19 outbreak.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure action is taken against travel agents whose approach towards refunds is inconsistent with consumer rights legislation and, in particular, the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 protect consumers who have bought package holidays. Under existing consumer law consumers are able to choose a voucher or credit note should they wish. We are engaging with the package travel sector and others to assess the impact of the covid-19 outbreak.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to amend the provisions of the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 in relation to the contractual commitments of travel agents regarding the refunding of holiday and travel bookings; and, if they have any such plans, what steps they are taking to ensure that any such changes are not financially detrimental to consumers.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Under consumer law consumers are entitled to a refund within 14 days, depending on the nature of the contract in place. Many businesses are also offering consumers vouchers or alternative dates, which consumers are able to choose should they wish. The Government is engaging with the package travel sector and consumer advocacy bodies to assess the impact of cancellations made in light of the covid-19 outbreak. We recognise the extremely difficult circumstances travel agents are currently facing, which is why on 17 March the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a wide range of support for businesses, in addition to the £30bn support announced in the budget.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many UK Space Agency grants for horizontal launch applications for small satellite launch programmes have been made; and what plans they have, if any, to provide additional grants for such programmes in the future.
Answered by Lord Duncan of Springbank
On 4 June 2019, the UK Space Agency announced its intention to award up to £7.85 million, subject to business case, to Spaceport Cornwall and US operator Virgin Orbit to develop facilities and operational capabilities that would enable small satellite launch from Cornwall in the early 2020s.
In May 2019, the UK Space Agency also opened a £2 million Horizontal Spaceport Development Fund to assist future horizontal spaceports with their plans for small satellite launch and sub-orbital flight. The deadline for applications closed on 17 July, and the UK Space Agency is currently reviewing submitted proposals. Grant awards will be announced in due course.