Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
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 consultancy fees in each year since 2021.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade is a newly formed Department established in February 2023. The new department absorbed the functions of the former Department for International Trade (DIT) and some of the functions of the former Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The amount spent on consultancy by both departments are as follows:
Year | DIT | BEIS |
2021 | £5,782 | £636,000 |
2022 | £380,000 | £587,000 |
2023 | £865,000 | £649,000 |
The Department publishes its annual expenditure on consultancy in its Annual Report and Accounts.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to assess levels of risk in relation to the inclusion of Investor State Dispute Settlement clauses in trade deals.
Answered by Greg Hands
Inclusion of Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) in UK treaties is considered where it is in the UK's interests and where we agree with partners that it can play a useful role in supporting the bilateral investment relationship.
Where the UK negotiates ISDS, it is in line with modern international best practice. This ensures that the mechanism delivers fair outcomes of disputes, has independent arbitrators bound by high ethical standards, and that proceedings are transparent.
The UK has investment agreements containing ISDS provisions with around 90 trading partners. There has never been a successful ISDS claim against the UK.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of a reduction in the hours of Royal Mail callers officers on levels of (a) service quality and (b) customer satisfaction.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Decisions on the operating hours of Royal Mail’s customer service points are an operational matter for the business. The Government does not have a role in Royal Mail's operational or commercial decisions.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to prevent the blacklisting of trade unions.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government is clear that blacklisting is completely unacceptable and has no place in modern employment relations. The Employment Relations Act 1999 (Blacklists) Regulations 2010 made it unlawful for an individual or organisation to compile, sell or make use of a blacklist of trade union members or those who have taken part in trade union activities. Any individual or trade union who believes they have been the victim of blacklisting can enforce their rights under the regulations through an employment tribunal or the county court.
The 2010 blacklisting regulations are reinforced by powers in the Data Protection Act 2018, protecting use of personal data, including information on trade union membership and sensitive personal data.
The Information Commissioner’s Office regulates use of personal data and investigates breaches of the Data Protection Act 2018. It has the power to take enforcement action, including searching premises, issuing enforcement notices and imposing fines for serious breaches. Anyone with evidence that blacklisting is taking place should present it to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2023 to Question 181604 on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, whether trade unions have powers to raise formal challenges to alleged labour abuses under the Agreement’s dispute mechanism.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Labour Chapter is subject to the dispute resolution mechanism contained in Chapter 28 (Dispute Settlement). The dispute settlement mechanism concerns state-to-state dispute settlement, and so it does not permit non-government bodies, including trade unions, to raise a dispute under its provisions.
However, Chapter 28 and the Rules of Procedure for Dispute Settlement provide that non-governmental entities may submit views on a dispute brought under the Agreement. This is subject to the conditions set out in the CPTPP.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership on (a) workers' rights in the UK and (b) the ability of trade unions to challenge alleged abuses of workers' rights.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
There is nothing in the CPTPP agreement which would cause the UK to weaken its own labour laws. CPTPP contains a comprehensive labour chapter with binding provisions that reaffirms CPTPP parties’ obligations as members of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and helps to protect labour rights and improve working conditions. The Chapter promotes enhanced co-operation and consultation including through public engagement with domestic stakeholders, such as trade unions, on a range of labour issues. It is also subject to the agreement’s dispute settlement mechanism and a range of mechanisms to facilitate implementation of the chapter, including public submissions.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had recent discussions with her Mexican counterpart on taking steps to facilitate student exchanges between UK and Mexican students.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The Secretary of State met with her Mexican counterpart in Mexico City in February. Discussions focused on boosting trade and investment between the United Kingdom and Mexico through the UK’s accession to CPTPP and a new free trade agreement. Facilitating student exchange was not a topic of discussion. However, I am pleased to note that the UK Government’s outward student mobility scheme which was launched in 2021, the Turing Scheme, has already successfully enabled funded organisations to send more than 800 UK students on placements to study and work in Mexico.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will take steps with her Mexican counterpart to include measures on the mutual recognition of higher education qualifications in a free trade agreement with that country.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
We are looking to enhance our existing trading relationship with Mexico through a modern free trade agreement which secures additional benefits for the whole of the UK. We do not pursue the mutual recognition of higher education qualifications in our trade agreements. However, we will be seeking commitments to facilitate the mutual recognition of professional qualifications such as for architecture and audit. As well as other measures which reduce trade barriers and provide certainty for the UK’s world-leading higher education service suppliers.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals on mandatory human rights and environmental standards for multinational companies in the UK.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government supports the current voluntary approach to human rights and environmental standards for multinational companies in the UK; as set out in international frameworks such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises. Whilst the Government keeps this approach under review, including discussions with business where requested, we currently have no plans to bring forward legislative proposals to make changes to the current system.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions she has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues, (b) multinational companies and (c) non-governmental organisations on ensuring businesses adhere to global human rights and environmental norms.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government supports and encourages the current voluntary approach to human rights and environmental standards for multinational companies in the UK. This approach is set out in international frameworks such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises, and ensures businesses adhere to global norms. The Government continues to keep this approach under review, including by welcoming discussion with companies and non-Governmental Organisations.