Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 the new Maritime and Coastguard Agency proposed safety code for small vessels on microbusinesses.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
My department works closely with the Maritime Coastguard Agency on regulations, including the new proposals for small commercial vessels, to ensure that they evolve alongside technology and alternative fuels while maintaining safety. The UK is committed to supporting a robust UK maritime sector — recognising that 99% of businesses in the industry are SMEs — and is dedicated to fostering their growth. Support is available through UK Export Finance, export campaigns and through Department for Transport initiatives including UK SHORE, which has funded decarbonisation projects involving over 150 SMEs, together with the new SME support hub launched by the Ministry of Defence.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on their new proposed safety code for small commercial vessels.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
My department works closely with the Maritime Coastguard Agency on regulations, including the new proposals for small commercial vessels, to ensure that they evolve alongside technology and alternative fuels while maintaining safety. The UK is committed to supporting a robust UK maritime sector — recognising that 99% of businesses in the industry are SMEs — and is dedicated to fostering their growth. Support is available through UK Export Finance, export campaigns and through Department for Transport initiatives including UK SHORE, which has funded decarbonisation projects involving over 150 SMEs, together with the new SME support hub launched by the Ministry of Defence.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 support small commercial vessels.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
My department works closely with the Maritime Coastguard Agency on regulations, including the new proposals for small commercial vessels, to ensure that they evolve alongside technology and alternative fuels while maintaining safety. The UK is committed to supporting a robust UK maritime sector — recognising that 99% of businesses in the industry are SMEs — and is dedicated to fostering their growth. Support is available through UK Export Finance, export campaigns and through Department for Transport initiatives including UK SHORE, which has funded decarbonisation projects involving over 150 SMEs, together with the new SME support hub launched by the Ministry of Defence.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of provisions in the Employment Rights Bill on (a) statutory sick pay and (b) dismissal procedures on small businesses.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government has published a robust set of Impact Assessments on all aspects of the Employment Rights Bill, available here: Employment Rights Bill: impact assessments - GOV.UK. These include assessments on the impacts to small and micro businesses in line with the Better Regulation Framework.
New dismissal procedures and statutory sick pay measures will apply to all businesses regardless of size. Whilst it is recognised that smaller businesses could potentially face disproportionate challenges due to their limited resources, the broader societal benefits of increased job security, productivity and fairness in the labour market justify the policies scope.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of increased operating costs on the (a) employment retention and (b) pay levels of small businesses.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government recognises the need to protect the smallest employers.
The Government has doubled the Employment Allowance, meaning that more than half of businesses with NIC liabilities will either gain or will see no change this year. As well as this, a Business Growth Service will make it easier for businesses across the UK to get the advice they need.
The National Minimum Wage increases that came into effect on the 1st April 2025 follow the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission. To inform its recommendations, the Low Pay Commission considered the impact on business, competitiveness and the labour market, and undertook extensive research and stakeholder engagement. The Government’s Impact Assessment1, includes a detailed assessment of the impact of the rates on small and micro businesses, including the increase in pay levels and possible wider impacts on competitiveness and employment.
1The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2025 - Impact Assessment
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the tribunal system in supporting small businesses facing late payments.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government understands the impact late payments has on small businesses and the important role the tribunal system plays in helping to recover late payments, alongside the Office of the Small Business Commissioner which was set up to help small businesses with late payment disputes and which runs a free dispute resolution service. The Government will soon be launching a public consultation seeking views on how we can go further to tackle late payments.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate on employment levels in the UK automotive manufacturing sector.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government does not hold data on how the Zero Emissions Vehicle Mandate has affected automotive employment in the UK.
We speak regularly to all the major UK automotive stakeholders to understand the health of the sector and factors impacting competitiveness. Government is committed to ensuring the transition to zero emissions works for industry. That is why we introduced significant changes to the Mandate, allowing for greater flexibility in meeting ZEV targets and extending the sale of hybrid vehicles.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the increase in National Insurance contributions on the services sector.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
An assessment of the changes to Employers’ National Insurance has been published by HMRC in their Tax Information and Impact Note, including impacts on the exchequer, the economy, individuals, households and families, equalities, and businesses including civil society organisations, alongside details on monitoring and evaluation. Tax information and impact notes - GOV.UK
The government is protecting the smallest businesses from changes to Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) by increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This means that in 2025-26, 865,000 employers (43%) will pay no NICs at all. We are reforming business rates and protecting the smallest properties by freezing the small business multiplier in 2025-26, protecting over a million properties from inflationary bill increases.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment he has made of the long-term resilience of small businesses in (a) England and (b) Essex.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Business cash levels have been resilient and have strengthened since the pre-pandemic and pre-referendum periods. According to figures published by BVA BDRC, in Q1 2025, 29% of SMEs were holding over £10,000 in credit balances compared to 23% in 2018 and 2019. SMEs have also increased their levels of cash relative to their turnover, with credit balances amounting to 28% of turnover in Q1 2025 compared to 24% in 2018 and 2019.1
The Southeast Growth Hub is where small and medium sized businesses across Essex can benefit from specialist advice on how to scale up, access new markets and receive financial support through the British Business Bank.
1 SME Finance Monitor – March 2025
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 Employment Rights Bill on regulatory requirements for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
On Monday 21 October, the Government published 24 Impact Assessments representing a comprehensive package of analysis on the impact of the Employment Rights Bill. These Impact Assessments are available at the following link: http://www.gov.uk/guidance/employment-rights-bill-impact-assessments. As per our Better Regulation requirements, each Impact Assessment includes a small, medium and micro business assessment, which discuss the potential impacts of the Employment Rights Bill.