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.

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.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Category D1 minibus licensing regime on Community Transport provision.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Category D1 licence rules changed almost 30 years ago, when the EU Second Driving Licence Directive removed automatic entitlement to Category D1(101) for Category B (car) licence holders.

Category D1(101) allows licence holders to drive minibuses when operated on a not for hire or reward basis. There are also more limited circumstances in which a minibus can be driven on a Category B driving licence.

The community transport sector reports that they are seeing an increase in the shortage of minibus drivers as those with D1(101) licences retire. However, despite the previous Government’s Call for Evidence in 2022, no evidence was provided that road safety would not be compromised by a relaxation of the licencing requirements.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many seizures of illegally imported meat products have been made at UK borders in each of the last three years.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Information on the number of seizures of imported products of animal origin is published by Border Force in the Multi-Annual National Control Plan (MANCP) annual reports.

The latest report, published on GOV.UK here, gives the latest available data on the annual number of seizures of imported products of animal origin as:

2022/23 - 3069

2023/24 - 2896

2024/25 - 2987

These figures may be amended in later MANCP annual reports to correct any errors found.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with Border Force, the Animal and Plant Health agency and Port Health Authorities on strengthening control against illegal meat imports.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Defra officials have been engaging regularly with Border Force, the Food Standards Agency, Port Health Authorities, other Government departments and the Devolved Governments over the past year to strengthen controls against illegal imports of animal products. The Animal and Plant Health Agency is an agency of Defra and has also been involved. These discussions form the routine mechanism through which the Secretary of State is kept informed of operational progress, and they will continue as part of the standard model for developing and enhancing controls.

Found: Carmichael (Chair) • Sarah Bool • Charlie Dewhirst • Sarah Dyke • Ben Goldsborough • Terry Jermy • Henry Tufnell

Found: Wells, Wales Attendees EFRA Committee • Mr Alistair Carmichael MP (Chair) • Sarah Bool MP • Henry Tufnell

Found: West Norfolk) Jayne Kirkham (Labour; Truro and Falmouth) Josh Newbury (Labour; Cannock Chase) Henry Tufnell

Found: Cymru; Ceredigion Preseli) Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru; Ynys Môn) Andrew Ranger (Labour; Wrexham) Henry Tufnell