Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether any contracts awarded by his Department have included diversity quotas since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department has not included diversity quotas in any contracts awarded by the Department since 5 July 2024.
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what proportion of contracts awarded by his Department have been to British SMEs since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department of Business and Trade has awarded and published 185 contracts over £10,000 ex VAT since 5 July 2024; 52 (28%) of which were to UK based SMEs.
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
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 planned increases in business rates for small retailers.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Against the current fiscal backdrop, the Government is clear that changes to the business rates system should be affordable and sustainable. It is not realistic to continue this support indefinitely. Without any Government intervention, Retail Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) relief would have ended in April, creating a cliff-edge for businesses.
We are providing support for retail, hospitality and leisure properties in the interim period leading up to the new permanent multiplier by providing 40% relief to RHL businesses on their business rates in 2025-26, up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business. For example, we are freezing the small business multiplier and protecting over a million properties from inflationary bill increases.
HMT are conducting engagement on future business rate reform and are encouraging stakeholders to provide written evidence prior to March 2025. This will provide any sized retailer to share their concerns directly with HMT.
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2024 to Question 12624 on Agriculture: Exports, what (a) trade shows, (b) missions and (c) events ministers have attended.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) offer a compelling programme of trade shows and events to support agriculture exporters to access new markets, build buyer connections and increase their marketing in target countries, all underpinned by our GREAT marketing programme. We also host outward missions of exporters and inward buyer missions, creating as many opportunities as possible for businesses to connect and secure tangible connections and contracts.
Minister Jones recently attended 100+ Accelerator Demo Day and Sustainable Innovation Expo as well as the Food and Drink Federation Investment Summit
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many (a) internal policy reviews, (b) independent reviews, (c) external reviews, (d) taskforces, (e) public consultations, (f) investigations and (g) other reviews their Department launched between 5 July 2024 and 5 January 2025; what the titles were of those reviews; and how many of those reviews have been (i) completed and (ii) published.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government has outlined its ambitions through the Plan for Change, which sets out an ambitious set of milestones - across the missions - for this Parliament. As the House would expect, Government continually reviews its work to ensure that it is delivering the best outcomes for the people of the United Kingdom, and that its policies continue to represent the best value for the taxpayer. Public reviews and consultations will be available on GOV.UK as they are published.