Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what progress has been made on agreeing a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with the United Arab Emirates.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK is negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as a whole and is prioritising strengthening our trade and investment relationship with all six GCC countries through a UK-GCC-wide trade deal. The UAE is an important trading partner, the largest within the GCC. Total trade in goods and services between the UK and the UAE was £25.3 billion in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2025.
The UK strongly values the UK-UAE relationship and will continue to work to further deepen cooperation in trade and investment.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Competition and Market Authority’s final report of March 26th 2026, what the planned frequency of review is on the prescription fee caps on veterinary medicines; and which authority will have the responsibility to review the prescription fee caps on veterinary medicines.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is independent of Government and is responsible for the design, implementation and monitoring of market investigation remedies. The CMA has a statutory duty to keep under review the Order that will set out the prescription fee cap requirements. The prescription fee caps will increase annually in line with inflation, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index. Compliance with the caps will be monitored and enforced by the CMA and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Competition and Market Authority’s final report of March 24th 2026, what formula the Competition and Markets Authority used to determine the cap of £21 specifically for a first prescription.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is independent of Government and is responsible for remedies resulting from a market investigation. In its final report, the CMA set a £21 cap on first prescription fees based on evidence of fees charged across a large proportion of the veterinary services market. Full details of the CMA’s approach are set out in Part B of its final report (pages 262–311), which is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/veterinary-services-for-household-pets-final-decision-report
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what independent security testing of the WebFiling service was conducted prior to its restoration on 16 March 2026.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The WebFiling service was successfully reopened at 9am on Monday 16 March after rigorous testing. The testing was done in accordance with best-practice security methodologies by government-approved testers, including external specialists.
Companies House takes the security of its systems and data extremely seriously. It operates an ISO 27001:2022-certified Information Security Management System, demonstrating its commitment to robust, independently audited security controls. This approach aligns with recognised government and industry standards.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Companies House news story entitled Update on Companies House WebFiling security issue, published on 16 March 2026, what steps his Department is taking to (a) identify and (b) notify the directors of companies whose details may have been accessed without consent.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Companies House has written to all companies via the registered email address on a precautionary basis to update them and to advise that they check their registered details and contact Companies House if concerned. This guidance has also been placed on their website and other channels. There is currently no confirmed evidence that any records have been changed.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many unauthorised changes to company records were (a) attempted and (b) successfully registered before the WebFiling service was closed on 13 March 2026.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Companies House is investigating this from both a technical and customer perspective. Following the initial report, ongoing investigations have found no subsequent confirmed cases of personal data having been (a) accessed without permission as a result of this issue. There is (b) no confirmed evidence that any records have been changed. The absence of any new confirmed cases is welcome although the investigation continues.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Companies House news story titled Update on Companies House WebFiling security issue, published on 16 March 2026, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of this security issue on the planned roll-out of new identity verification requirements for company directors.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The issue affecting Companies House’s Web-filing service did not extend to other services, including the identification verification service for company directors and persons of significant control. It has also written to customers confirming that no data used as part of the identity verification process, such as passport information, was accessible.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Companies House news story titled Update on Companies House WebFiling security issue, published on 16 March 2026, what the total cost to the public purse was for the (a) investigation, (b) independent testing and (c) technical remediation of the identified security vulnerability.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Companies House’s investigation into the issue is ongoing so it is not yet possible to provide a total cost. The initial investigation and technical remediation work was undertaken by Companies House staff supported by specialist contractors. Further work is planned as the investigation progresses.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions (a) he and (b) his officials had with the British Business Bank on Wayve prior to 25 February 2026.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The British Business Bank notified the Department on the morning of 20 February 2026 that it had concluded commercial negotiations with Wayve and would be participating in its equity funding round. Ministers and officials were not aware before this date that an investment in Wayve was being contemplated.
Discussions with officials between 20 and 25 February focused on communications arrangements for the announcement of Wayve's successful fundraise and the British Business Bank's investment.
Asked by: Gareth Davies (Conservative - Grantham and Bourne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an estimate of the level of private capital the British Business Bank expects to crowd-in from their investment in Wayve.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The British Business Bank has invested £25 million in Wayve as part of a $1.2 billion Series D funding round, at a post-money valuation of $8.6 billion. Additional capital secured in parallel brings the total value of the raise to $1.5 billion.
The Bank has an objective to “support our most promising businesses in the Industrial Strategy priority sectors to scale and stay here.” Crowding-in private capital was not the primary aim of this investment. Neither the Bank nor the Department has sought to assess the influence, if any, of the Bank’s investment in Wayve on the decisions of private co‑investors.