Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of e-invoicing for small businesses on reducing payment times.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is committed to tackling late payments, which can be a major obstacle for small businesses. In September 2024 we announced new measures including a new Fair Payment Code (launched in December 2024), legislation requiring large companies to report headline payment performance data in their annual reports, and a public consultation on further measures.
Business adoption of e-invoicing can also help improve payment times by reducing administrative burdens and streamlining invoicing processes. DBT and HMRC recently ran a consultation to gather views on promoting e-invoicing in the UK and will be publishing a summary of responses in due course.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of e-invoicing for small businesses on productivity.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government is committed to driving business productivity and economic growth in the UK. Adoption of digital technologies, such as e-invoicing, can significantly improve firm-level productivity by streamlining business processes and reducing administrative work and errors.
However, few small businesses use e-invoicing in the UK. Adoption of e-invoicing by SMEs in the UK is behind countries like France and Germany. This is why, as announced at Budget 2024, DBT and HMRC recently ran a 12 week consultation on promoting e-invoicing in the UK. We will be publishing a summary of responses and updating on next steps in due course.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of e-invoicing for small businesses on (a) exports and (b) imports.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Usage of digital technology such as e-invoicing can streamline business processes, including for trading businesses, whether they are importing or exporting.
Usage of e-invoicing software and standards that are compatible with those used by trading partners in other countries can be particularly beneficial. However, small businesses may find adoption of new tools and processes more onerous than larger businesses.
DBT and HMRC recently ran a 12 week consultation to gather views on promoting e-invoicing in the UK. The consultation closed on 7 May, and we will be publishing a summary of responses and updating on next steps in due course.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of introducing e-invoicing.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Business adoption of digital technologies such as e-invoicing can offer benefits that include reduced administrative burdens and fewer data processing errors. This can lead to increased productivity, improved payment times, and streamlined tax administration and collection.
However, we recognise the need to think carefully about introduction of any e-invoicing requirements or standards, especially for smaller businesses who might find this to be an additional burden. We recently ran a 12 week consultation jointly with HMRC, to gather views on promoting e-invoicing in the UK. The Government will publish a summary of responses and provide an update on next steps in due course.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
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 potential impact of improving paternity leave provisions on health disparities in lower-income families.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to supporting working families and is already delivering on this commitment. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing flexibility for families and helping them to better balance work and family responsibilities.
The government has also committed to a review of the whole parental leave system. This review will assess the effectiveness of the current system across a range of metrics, ensuring it offers the best possible support to working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
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 potential implications for his policies of trends in the level of uptake of Shared Parental Leave.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to supporting working families and is already delivering on this commitment. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing flexibility for families and helping them to better balance work and family responsibilities.
The government has also committed to a review of the whole parental leave system. This review will assess the effectiveness of the current system across a range of metrics, ensuring it offers the best possible support to working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
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 potential implications for his policies of the potential impact of extending the statutory minimum paternity leave on (a) early childhood development and (b) reliance on formal childcare in a child's first year.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to supporting working families and is already delivering on this commitment. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing flexibility for families and helping them to better balance work and family responsibilities.
The government has also committed to a review of the whole parental leave system. This review will assess the effectiveness of the current system across a range of metrics, ensuring it offers the best possible support to working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
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 potential implications for his policies of the potential lessons learned from the parental leave policies of other countries in the OECD.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to supporting working families and is already delivering on this commitment. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing flexibility for families and helping them to better balance work and family responsibilities.
The government has also committed to a review of the whole parental leave system. This review will assess the effectiveness of the current system across a range of metrics, ensuring it offers the best possible support to working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
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 potential impact of the statutory minimum level of paternity leave on the economy.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government is committed to supporting working families and is already delivering on this commitment. The Employment Rights Bill will make Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights, increasing flexibility for families and helping them to better balance work and family responsibilities.
The government has also committed to a review of the whole parental leave system. This review will assess the effectiveness of the current system across a range of metrics, ensuring it offers the best possible support to working families. Work is already underway on planning for its delivery.
Asked by: Gregor Poynton (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to reform the audit sector; what his planned timetable is for (a) introducing the Draft Audit and Corporate Governance Reform Bill and (b) establishing a new audit regulator; and whether he plans grant any new regulator powers over Director's accountability.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As set out in the King’s Speech, the Government intends to publish a draft Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill in this session. The Government will keep the House updated as we work towards publication and scrutiny of a draft Bill.
This involves careful consideration of measures relating to the audit sector and corporate reporting, including transitioning to a new regulator with powers relating to directors’ accountability.