Alex Mayer

DRIVE35 is providing £4 billion of capital and research and development funding to 2035 to support innovation, commercial scale-up and the industrialisation of zero-emission vehicle manufacturing. As part of this, two projects with relevance to coach manufacturing have been awarded DRIVE35 funding, with grant awards totalling £1,048,957.

The Government continues to seek fair and balanced trade deals that protect the environment; uphold high animal welfare standards; and provide new export opportunities to grow the UK’s world class agri-food and drinks sector.

We continue to advance ambitious environmental and climate objectives, including net zero, through our FTAs, and the UK has secured precedent-setting provisions on animal welfare in several of its deals. We remain committed to maintaining high levels of environmental protection and upholding high animal welfare standards in new trade agreements.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 08 September 2026 to Question UIN 23681 Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 28 August 2026 to Question UIN 23680 Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament

We are supporting the development, validation and international acceptance of alternative methods, including through the forthcoming UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (UKCVAM), engagement with international regulators and participation in OECD test guideline programmes. We are also strengthening bilateral and multilateral partnerships to support the global uptake of validated alternatives, helping to reduce reliance on animal testing while maintaining high standards of human, animal and environmental safety.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) invests in a range of human-specific research that does not rely on animal studies. Many studies developing and using human-specific and alternative methods are classified as basic research, so any funding values given would be an underestimate. Examples include the Medical Research Council’s Experimental Medicine programme, a £15 million UKRI, NC3Rs and Wellcome funding call for novel human in vitro models of complex disease, and an £18 million Experimental Medicine funding call on neurodegeneration. Between 2020 and 2025, UKRI also invested approximately £10 million annually in the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research.

The NC3Rs receives funding from a number of sources. Its core funding is provided by the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) which are part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

Core funding for financial years:

2020/21: £9.35M

2021/22: £9.45M

2022/23: £10.20M

2023/24: £10.00M

2024/25: £10.10M

2025/26: £7.93M

Replacement of the use of animals is included in all NC3Rs programmes with the exception of its animal welfare projects. Between 2020/21 and 2024/25, more than 80% of grants awarded by the NC3Rs have been to replace the use of animals.

The Government is committed to reducing and replacing the use of specially protected species, including cats, in scientific research through the Replacing Animals in Science strategy. The strategy supports the development, validation and regulatory uptake of human-specific technologies, including advanced cell-based models, organ-on-a-chip systems, data-driven approaches and AI-enabled tools. The use of specially protected species remains subject to stringent controls and is permitted only where no validated alternative exists.

Under existing legislation, businesses must only supply safe consumer products. Relevant authorities have powers to require withdrawal of unsafe products from supply and, where appropriate, their recall. The Office for Product Safety and Standards coordinates regulatory activity to ensure online marketplaces prevent and remove any unsafe products from their sites.

The Government recently consulted on proposals to simplify and strengthen the current fragmented enforcement framework. These reforms are intended to create a clearer, more coherent regulatory regime, giving relevant authorities the tools they need to identify and tackle unsafe products across supply chains, including products sold through online marketplaces.

The formal consultation on the UK’s new product safety framework closed on 23 June. It received considerable interest from businesses, consumer groups and other stakeholders, including members of the public and we are now analysing the responses received. Delivering the new product safety framework is a priority for the Department. Given the breadth and complexity of the issues raised, it is important that we analyse and carefully consider the feedback from stakeholders before finalising the Government's position. Following this consideration, we will publish our response in due course.

The UK Climate Change Committee estimates climate change damages in the UK could grow to 1–5% of GDP by 2050 under a 2 degree global warming level. Climate adaptation can protect businesses and productivity, and support economic growth in new markets.

The ONS Business Insights and Conditions Survey monitors the impacts of severe weather events on business, including increased temperatures or heat. The Department for Business and Trade is considering the impacts of extreme heat on economic growth and business productivity to support government to develop an ambitious fourth National Adaptation Programme in 2028.

The Government has published a provisional list of product codes covered by the steel trade measure on gov.uk. This will be updated shortly, following ongoing engagement with industry.

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 with some of the sizes produced in the UK and potential for steel to be imported and then cut-down. In such cases, quotas are being designed with the aim of allowing for sufficient imports.

The product scope of the measure is designed to only cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. In some instances, this isn’t feasible for technical reasons and quotas have been set with the aim of allowing continued availability of these goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. The measure will be reviewed after 12 months to ensure it remains effective.

This Government recognises the value of downstream, including specialist importers for defence and aerospace, alongside a resilient steel sector.

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

The Government has engaged extensively with both producers and downstream users to inform its development;

To ease impacts, we will introduce a transitional arrangement under which the new measure would not apply to goods contracted before 14 March and imported between 1 July and 30 September 2026.

We will keep the measure under review, including after 12-months to ensure its effectiveness.

The steel trade measures have been designed, as far as is technically possible, only to cover steel requirements that can be met in the UK. Quotas have been set with the aim of allowing continued availability of goods to UK downstream users without unnecessary additional costs. The measure will be reviewed after 12 months to ensure it remains effective.

The government is committed to supporting UK SMEs, including independent gyms in the East of England, through the Small Business Plan - the most comprehensive package of support for SMEs in a generation.

This includes the most significant legislative reforms in 25 years to tackle late payments; unlocking billions of pounds in finance to support start-ups; removing unnecessary red tape; revitalising High Streets and boosting Digital and AI Adoption among small businesses.

The Business Growth Service helps SMEs access tailored support at every stage of their growth journey. The South Midlands Growth Hub offers free accessible business advice and support at all stages of a business’s journey.

The government believes the current daylight-saving arrangements represent the optimal use of the available daylight across the UK. Since the government does not intend to make changes to the existing system, we have not conducted an assessment of the potential impact of Single or Double British Summer Time on pubs during major sporting tournaments.

Following reviews by the Trade Remedies Authority, the Government varied and extended anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on imports of Chinese bus and lorry tyres on 1 August 2025. These measures are in place to protect the UK tyre retreading industry from unfair trading practices, and support jobs.

The Department remains vigilant to any reports of potential injury to the UK tyre retreading industry. Affected producers should speak to the TRA in the first instance.

The Government is focused on boosting the UK bus manufacturing sector’s long-term competitiveness and advancing zero-emission vehicles. Trade agreements will open new export opportunities, remove tariffs, and introduce flexible rules of origin, benefiting automotive businesses nationwide.

According to industry figures, nearly 80% of UK automotive production is exported, with direct export support available from DBT alongside dedicated automotive export campaign support, and through UK Export Finance, with £14.5 billion allocated for UK exports from UKEF in 2024/25.

The £2.5bn DRIVE35 programme accelerates R&D and commercial scale-up in strategic vehicle technologies, unlocking investment in zero-emission bus manufacturing and supply chains, increasing competitiveness in international markets.

According to industry estimates, the UK Bus Manufacturing sector employs around 4,300 people directly with approximately 13,000 in the supply chain. HMG is committed to boosting the UK bus manufacturing sector’s competitiveness, accelerating the transition to zero-emission vehicles and increasing jobs. This includes the £2.5bn DRIVE35, to support R&D in strategic vehicle technologies, accelerate their commercial scale-up, and unlock investment across zero emission vehicle manufacturing, including buses. In addition, HMG announced £15.6 billion for Transport for City Regions alongside a Bus Manufacturing Expert Panel bringing local leaders together to translate funding and reform plans into a steady and growing pipeline of manufacturing orders.

The Government believes the current daylight-saving arrangements represent the optimal use of the available daylight across the UK. Therefore, we have no plans to introduce single summertime, double summertime, or other such changes. Since the Government does not intend to make changes to the existing system, we have not conducted assessments of the impact on the retail and hospitality sectors, on levels of energy consumption or crime.

The Government believes the current daylight-saving arrangements represent the optimal use of the available daylight across the UK. Therefore, we have no plans to introduce single summertime, double summertime, or other such changes. Since the Government does not intend to make changes to the existing system, we have not conducted assessments of the impact on the retail and hospitality sectors, on levels of energy consumption or crime.