Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making manufacturers operating under SIC codes 2599 and 2790 eligible for support under the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government can confirm that manufacturers operating under SIC codes 2599 and 2790 are within the scope of the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme.
Businesses must meet all of the scheme's eligibility criteria to be eligible and are encouraged to use the online eligibility checker to assess their likelihood of being eligible.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the scope of the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme to include oil refineries.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme is a targeted scheme designed to support a defined group of businesses within the Industrial Strategy sectors, where it can have the biggest impact on growth. Final eligibility was determined after a multi-stage economic and strategic analysis , alongside formal consultation with business and stakeholders. Our focus now must turn to implementing the scheme as effectively as possible.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) banning imports into the UK of goods and services originating from illegal settlements in the West Bank and (b) prohibiting the export of UK goods and services to illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK is clear that Israel's illegal settlements and decisions designed to further them are a flagrant violation of international law. The measures announced by the Foreign Secretary on 8 September will restrict the import of goods originating in illegal settlements into the UK. Furthermore, we are taking action on services, creating new designation powers to go after individuals and companies that support, facilitate or profit from illegal settlement activity. In addition, we will ban advertising or promotion of land and property in illegal settlements and strengthen our existing global human rights sanctions regime to go after those who defy international humanitarian law, in Palestine, and around the world.
Asked by: Henry Tufnell (Labour - Mid and South Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing wrongly convicted applicants to the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme with the £600,000 fixed-sum award as an upfront payment.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Government remains committed to providing full and fair redress to those affected by the Horizon scandal.
In Volume 1 of the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry report, Sir Wyn Williams noted that he could not be convinced 'that the Fixed Sum Offer should, in effect, become a guaranteed minimum payment'. The Department agrees with Sir Wyn and believes it is important to retain the distinction between interim payments and a final settlement. A settlement is the final, total compensation amount agreed upon to resolve a claim, whereas an interim payment is an early, partial payment made before the claim process fully concludes.
The interim payment policy is designed to provide claimants with breathing space, and a meaningful opportunity to consider whether a full assessment would be beneficial to them.