Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Secretary of State for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development office and (b) UK Ambassadors on the promotion of exports.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department engages regularly with other government departments including the FCDO. As set out in our Trade Strategy our overseas network is a critical asset for British businesses. The network is led by nine HM Trade Commissioners who work closely with HM Ambassadors and High Commissioners around the world to support UK exports. This includes helping businesses to build local relationships, providing advice on market conditions and regulations, and promoting UK goods and services in a unified "Team UK spirit".
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of secondary live event ticket sales price caps in other countries, in the context of potential price caps in the UK.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to putting fans back at the heart of live events by clamping down on exploitative practices in the ticket resale market. We ran a consultation earlier this year to seek views on a range of proposals, including a price cap that would restrict the price at which tickets could lawfully be resold.
We are currently reviewing all the evidence that we received in response to our consultation, including insights on international comparisons and operational requirements. We will set out our plans in the government response, which we intend to publish later this summer.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment the he has made of the potential impact of a secondary live event ticket sales price cap on levels of tourism.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to putting fans back at the heart of live events by clamping down on exploitative practices in the ticket resale market. We ran a consultation earlier this year to seek views on a range of proposals, including a price cap that would restrict the price at which tickets could lawfully be resold.
We are currently reviewing all the evidence that we received in response to our consultation, including insights on international comparisons and operational requirements. We will set out our plans in the government response, which we intend to publish later this summer.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of has made of the feasibility of implementing a secondary live event ticket sales price cap.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to putting fans back at the heart of live events by clamping down on exploitative practices in the ticket resale market. We ran a consultation earlier this year to seek views on a range of proposals, including a price cap that would restrict the price at which tickets could lawfully be resold.
We are currently reviewing all the evidence that we received in response to our consultation, including insights on international comparisons and operational requirements. We will set out our plans in the government response, which we intend to publish later this summer.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 7 July 2025 to Question 64503 on British Steel: Scunthorpe, what conclusion the report in late 2024 commissioned at British Steel reached on the remaining lifespan of the blast furnaces.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 65668.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much his Department has spent on advertising the Industrial Strategy in (a) newspapers, (b) other print media, (c) online and (d) in total.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Marketing including paid advertising is necessary to reach a target audience of senior business decision makers, raising awareness of the UK’s new modern industrial strategy and the opportunities it presents for business growth. The Department of Business and Trade declares all advertising and media spend above £25,000 through its monthly transparency reporting process. These figures are published on gov.uk.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure that small businesses have input into Departmental regulatory consultations.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
For regulation to be effective, it must be created in partnership with businesses. To support this, the government initiated the Invest 2035 call for evidence from key stakeholders, including small businesses, providing input on where regulation can be reformed across our key growth-driving sectors to help encourage growth and innovation.
These responses informed our Modern Industrial Strategy published last month, as well as the Government’s Action Plan for Regulation, published in March. We are continuing to engage with SMEs, via a dedicated forum chaired by Minister Thomas, which will directly inform our forthcoming SME Strategy.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has made an estimate of the time spent by businesses on regulatory paperwork annually.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Determining the cumulative administrative costs of regulation that businesses face has not been done for 15 years. That’s why we are undertaking a baselining exercise to understand the administrative costs of regulation to businesses. This baseline will inform how we implement the target of reducing administrative burdens by 25% by the end of the Parliament, as announced in the March Action Plan for Regulation. We have considered different analytical options and looked to identify the most proportionate methodology to calculate the baseline for costs. We will announce a final baseline in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what comparative assessment he has made of levels of regulation on businesses in (a) the UK and (b) other G20 countries.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK is an excellent place to do business, and in 2023 scored in the top 3 G20 countries on regulatory quality according to the World Bank [Regulatory Quality: Percentile Rank | Data]. However, businesses have told us that regulation can be too complex, stifle progress and innovation, with 45% businesses agreeing that regulation was an obstacle to their success in 2022, according to DBT’s Business Perceptions Survey. Our Action Plan for Regulation aims to reduce these burdens for businesses, including by cutting the administrative costs for business by 25% by the end of this Parliament.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had discussions with devolved Administrations on coordinating business regulation to reduce duplication.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
To deliver growth across the UK, and support businesses and consumers, UK Government officials have been engaging with officials from the Scottish and Welsh Governments, and Northern Ireland Executive, on its Action Plan to overhaul our regulatory system, including the target to reduce the administrative cost of regulation to business by 25% by the end of this Parliament. Whilst the territorial scope relates to reserved matters, the Government is committed to collaborating with the devolved governments, including at Ministerial level using intergovernmental structures where appropriate, to ensure that reforms benefit the maximum number of people around the UK.