Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of British International Investment's increased focus on renewable energy projects in Africa; and what assessment they have made of how this aligns with the UK's international development policy.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO's International Development White Paper outlines the Government's ambition for BII to be a leading DFI on climate finance, supporting partner countries in their transition to net zero and resilient economies. This builds on BII's track record of being the UK's principal investment vehicle for delivering climate finance to developing countries, with over $1 billion of climate finance invested since COP26.
Through the agreement of BII's five-year strategy, Investment Policy, and Policy on Responsible Investment, FCDO ensures alignment of all BII's investments with the UK's international development priorities. In addition, FCDO oversees an evaluation and learning program which recently reviewed BII's infrastructure portfolio. The review found that (i) BII contributes to the provision of cleaner capacity through investments in renewable energy assets, (ii) BII increases resource efficiency through the lowering of power distribution losses in its transmission and distribution (T&D) portfolio, and (iii) 65 percent of the impact generated by BII's infrastructure investments comes from those located in Africa.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following reports of non-food item deflation, what assessment they have made of the impact of this on (1) employment, and (2) business profitability, in the retail sector.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is continuing to pursue an ambitious policy agenda to increase sustainable economic growth and productivity across the economy. This includes making full expensing permanent, backing the UK’s priority growth sectors and announcing measures to boost labour supply. Across Spring Budget 2023, Autumn Statement 2023 and Spring Budget 2024 tax and labour market measures increase total hours worked by the equivalent of more than 300,000 full-time workers by 2028-29.
Whilst consumers will undoubtedly welcome lower shop price inflation, government continues to provide the right environment to help retailers grow, such as by extending Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief for 2024-25, a tax cut worth nearly £2.4 billion
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the S&P Global UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index survey published on 1 May, which showed contraction in the manufacturing sector in April, what support they are providing to this sector to boost growth.
Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK’s manufacturing sector is showing resilience, despite challenges such as supply chain disruptions in the Red Sea.
According to the OECD, since 2010 the UK has had the fastest manufacturing productivity growth in the G7. Make UK’s Q1 Manufacturing Outlook Report, published at the end of March, showed increased investment and recruitment intentions among manufacturers.
The Government has a strong track record of backing the sector. Our Advanced Manufacturing Plan published last November is underpinned by tax cuts, faster grid connections and a £4.5bn commitment to 2030, as well as the expansion of our successful SME Made Smarter Adoption programme.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take in response to the ruling of the High Court on 3 May regarding their carbon budget delivery plan.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is immensely proud of its record on climate change. The Carbon Budget Delivery Plan remains Government policy and sets out over 300 policies and proposals that the Government has in place to reach its ambitious carbon budgets.
The judgment contains no criticism of these detailed plans nor the policies themselves, which will keep the UK on track to meet net zero by 2050.
Officials are now considering the best approach to comply with the court order and the Government will publish a new report within 12 months.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Ireland concerning asylum seekers returning from that country to the UK; and what impact this has on the Common Travel Area agreement.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
There is a high level of cooperation on migration and border security between the UK and Irish Government. The Home Office regularly discuss asylum trends and work to respond to these trends with our counterparts in the Department of Justice in order to protect the Common Travel Area.
In 2020, we agreed non-legally binding operational arrangements which allow for the return and readmission of asylum seekers where this is agreed by both participants.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the recent content licensing agreement between The Financial Times and OpenAI, what assessment they have made of the potential implications this may have for the AI industry; and what steps they are taking to further promote transparency and accountability in AI-driven content generation and distribution.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government wants the AI sector and our creative industries to grow together in partnership and is encouraged to see agreements being reached between AI developers and press publishers.
As set out in its response to the AI White Paper, the Government believes there should be greater transparency from AI developers in relation to data inputs and the attribution of outputs. It is considering ways to achieve this and will engage closely with right holders and AI developers.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the bank loan application success rates of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises the vital importance small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and is committed to supporting SMEs grow and create jobs by providing an environment in which they can thrive.
Access to finance for small businesses is important to drive growth. The government supports that access through the Recovery Loan Scheme, which offers a 70% government guarantee on loans to SMEs
of up to £2 million. The scheme has supported over £5.3 billion of finance to SMEs since its introduction in April 2021.
At the 2024 Spring Budget, the Government announced that the Recovery Loan Scheme would be extended to the end of March 2026, and renamed as the Growth Guarantee Scheme.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) retain, and (2) attract, foreign financial firms and jobs in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Financial and related professional services employ more than 2 million people in the UK and the Government is committed to ensuring the UK remains the location of choice for top talent from across the world. This is part of the Government’s mission to ensure the UK retains its position as one of the most innovative and competitive financial centres in the world. Most recently, at Spring Budget 2024, the Chancellor updated on the ambitious package of reforms which will help to deliver the Government’s vision for a financial sector that is open, sustainable, technologically innovative, and globally competitive.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the 12 per cent increase in house sales during April; and what steps they are taking to support first-time buyers.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The most comprehensive measure of UK property transactions is published by HMRC. According to this measure, residential property transactions rose by 1% in March 2024 compared to February, the third consecutive monthly increase.
The Government continues to monitor developments in the housing market closely and consider the implications.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the reported recent increase in mergers and acquisitions activity among medium-sized companies, what steps they are taking to support continued mergers and acquisitions activity whilst ensuring that it does not lead to (1) monopolistic practices, or (2) reduced competition in key industries.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Competition and Markets Authority is the UK's independent competition regulator with responsibility for reviewing mergers and acquisitions on competition grounds.