Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision in Wales of HM Revenue and Customs PAYE employer enquiries assistance through the medium of Welsh.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
To comply with the Welsh Language Act 1993, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) adopts the principle that, in the conduct of its public business and communication in Wales, it will treat the English and Welsh languages equally in appropriate circumstances and when reasonably practicable.
The Welsh Language Unit is a specialist team within HMRC's Customer Services department that handles both telephone and written queries from individuals who want to contact with HMRC in Welsh. They also translate and distribute Welsh letters, forms, and leaflets.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Language Commissioner on the adequacy of the provision through the medium of Welsh of public services in Wales for which the UK Government is responsible.
Answered by David T C Davies
As a fluent Welsh speaker and champion for the Welsh language, I take every opportunity to promote the language and communicate bilingually in my role.
My officials and I regularly meet with the Welsh Language Commissioner and her office to discuss matters relating to the Welsh language, including the provision of public services through the medium of Welsh by UK Government. Most recently in August, I met the Commissioner in Aberystwyth as part of my Welsh Language Roundtable to discuss the Census 2021 results and the causes of the decline in the number of Welsh speakers in parts of Wales.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment she has made of the impact of trends in the level of export costs to the EU for small businesses on the economy of (a) Wales and (b) Arfon constituency.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
Our export strategy sets out a 12-point plan, which is helping businesses in Arfon and across Wales expand their export opportunities. Welsh businesses can access a wide range of free support services, including a network of sector specialists and overseas trade advisers, our Export Academy, the Export Support Service, and UK Export Finance.
My department has also recently announced that we will be appointing new International Trade Advisors (ITAs) in Wales, boosting our support for Welsh SME exporters. This expansion should see a further 400-600 companies across Wales receiving tailored support to seek new export opportunities.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to help ensure that parcel delivery companies (a) adopt and (b) adhere to her Department's Statement of principles for parcel deliveries, published in July 2014.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
While the principles in this guidance still stand, through the Consumer Protection Partnership, we have undertaken further work to ensure retailers provide information about delivery options upfront in the purchasing process to ensure consumers can make informed decisions.
In its 2022 review of postal regulation Ofcom, the independent regulator of the postal sector, committed to ongoing monitoring of operators’ performance, keeping under review the need for additional regulation to protect consumers.
Current guidance for parcel operators and retailers on their obligations is available from the Chartered Trading Standards Institute’s Business Companion website and through the dedicated deliverylaw.uk website.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to reduce exporting costs for small business that export to the EU.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
My department are better equipped than ever to support UK businesses to export. We offer a wide range of free support services, including a network of domestic and overseas trade advisers, sector specialists, Export Support Service, Export Academy, and International Markets network.
UK Export Finance (UKEF) also continues to focus on supporting SMEs. In 2022-23, 84% of the companies supported directly with a UKEF product were small and medium-sized enterprises.
But we are doing more – maximising uptake of new Free Trade Agreements by SMEs, using data to better target our services and working across Government to reduce barriers to exporting and simplify border processes.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent estimate she has made of the number of small businesses that have (a) relocated and (b) part-relocated their operations to the EU due to export costs in (i) Wales, (ii) England, (iii) Scotland and (iv) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
We do not have the information you are asking for, however, what we can say is that 94% of all businesses that responded to the ONS business survey in the 2 weeks to the 3rd September were not planning to open any new branches or subsidiaries in the EU in the next 12 months.
We understand that SMEs have had to adapt to the new post-Brexit environment, and that’s why we are ensuring they have what they need to do so, including comprehensive guidance on GOV.UK, and support from UK Export Finance (UKEF) and the Export Support Service (ESS).
Now we have left the single market, we can turn our focus to the rest of the world, where in the 12 months to June 2023 trade is up 38% in current prices compared to pre-pandemic (2018) levels.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment she has made of the impact of the UK's withdrawal from the EU (a) single market and (b) customs union on costs for small businesses that export to the EU.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
We do not have the information you are asking for, however, what we can say is that 94% of all businesses that responded to the ONS business survey in the 2 weeks to the 3rd September were not planning to open any new branches or subsidiaries in the EU in the next 12 months.
We understand that SMEs have had to adapt to the new post-Brexit environment, and that’s why we are ensuring they have what they need to do so, including comprehensive guidance on GOV.UK, and support from UK Export Finance (UKEF) and the Export Support Service (ESS).
Now we have left the single market, we can turn our focus to the rest of the world, where in the 12 months to June 2023 trade is up 38% in current prices compared to pre-pandemic (2018) levels.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when his Department last reviewed the adequacy of rates for Disability Living Allowance for children.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The Secretary of State will shortly be conducting his annual review of benefit levels and will report in due course.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims for Disability Living Allowance for children were (a) successful and (b) not successful in Arfon constituency in each of the last three years for which data is available.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
We have grouped the response to the above two parliamentary questions.
The information is not available. However, quarterly statistics for the number of children receiving Disability Living Allowance, by length of claim and by Westminster Parliamentary Constituency to February 2023, are published on Stat-Xplore.
Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims for Disability Living Allowance for children were made in Arfon constituency in each of the last three years for which data is available.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
We have grouped the response to the above two parliamentary questions.
The information is not available. However, quarterly statistics for the number of children receiving Disability Living Allowance, by length of claim and by Westminster Parliamentary Constituency to February 2023, are published on Stat-Xplore.
Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required.