John Cooper

This was an acquisition of Harbour Energy shares by BASF and LetterOne, with LetterOne receiving a class of non-voting shares which does not give it the ability to influence Harbour Energy. On 30 July 2024, following a detailed national security assessment, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster imposed a necessary and proportionate Final Order under the National Security and Investment Act on the acquisition of a 46.5% shareholding of Harbour Energy plc by BASF Handels-Und Export GmbH. The Final Order and the conditions imposed within it enable the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to consider further the exercise of his powers under the Act should a share conversion lead to: LetterOne owning 10% or more ordinary shares in Harbour Energy; and/or the appointment of a Harbour Energy plc board member by LetterOne. The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has a statutory duty to keep all Final Orders under review and will exercise this power if and when necessary.

The Department for Business and Trade has not spent anything on media and voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

There has been no spend on either (a) media or (b) voice training for Ministers since 5^th July 2024 in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

We considered a range of factors including (1) labour market analysis, (2) mapping of Government estate availability and costs, and (3) proximity to strategic partners and establishments.

I am confident that Aberdeen is the right place for Great British Energy’s Headquarters. This decision recognises that Aberdeen is at the heart of the energy transition away from fossils fuels. The city also has an excellent talent pool to support the delivery of Great British Energy. Additional smaller sites in Edinburgh and Glasgow will enable us to take advantage of the expertise, skilled workforce and diversity of projects in place across Scotland.

The Department has spent no money on (a) media or (b) voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

The department has not spent any expenses on media or voice training for ministers since 5 July 2024.

The department has not spent any money on media or voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

In the Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor committed to move forward feasibility work on improvements to the A75 by providing up to £5 million to the Scottish Government in 2025-26.

Initial work has been done by Transport Scotland to scope out possible options for the realignment of the A75 around the settlements of Springholm and Crocketford. Following the Budget, the Scottish Government announced they have awarded a contract to progress this work.

The Department has had no spend on media and voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

At the time of writing, there has been NIL spend on this type of training for ministers.

The Department has spent at total of £840 including VAT on media training for ministers, since 5 July 2024.

The contractor used for media training was Robert Taylor Communications Ltd. As Minister for Indo-Pacific at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development I received the media training. No voice training was conducted as part of the media training.

The UK is in constant contact with our Allies to ensure a collective doubling down of support for Ukraine and pressure on Putin’s war machine. The Foreign Secretary spoke to President Zelenskyy on 18 December at a meeting of European leaders hosted by NATO Secretary General Rutte, and reiterated the UK’s unwavering commitment to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. On the 10 January, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions on two Russian oil giants, Gazprom Neft and PJSC Surgutneftegas, alongside the US. The UK has sanctioned 93 vessels in the Russian shadow fleet.

Since 5 July 2024, £1848 has been spent by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on media or voice training for junior Ministers.

The media training was provided by Freud Communications. The Ministers who received the training were the former Economic Secretary, the Exchequer Secretary and the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.

Since 5 July 2024, the Department has spent £9.7k on media training for members of the Ministerial team. No costs on voice training for Ministers have been incurred since the 5^th July 2024.

There has been no spend on media or voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

The Directorate of Defence Communications in the Ministry of Defence Head Office spend on media and voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024 is nil.

Ministry of Defence (MOD) officials have engaged with Scottish counterparts on the impact of Armed Forces training on nature conservation and public access to the countryside in Dumfries and Galloway.

MOD officials have developed Integrated Rural Management Plans (IRMP) for MOD sites in Dumfries and Galloway. These plans include a level of ecological impact assessment and public access management. The IRMPs identify appropriate avoidance or mitigation measures that must be applied to manage the impact of military training and operations on these sites.

MOD officials have not held any discussions with counterparts in Scotland on the proposed national park in Galloway.

The department has not incurred any expenses on media or voice training for ministers since 5 July 2024.

The Government remains committed to working in partnership with the Northern Ireland Executive on delivering growth for Northern Ireland. Given the need to repair the public finances we must ensure that we are making responsible decisions about public spending. The Enhanced Investment Zone will be addressed as part of the process for confirming plans for this year and next at the forthcoming Budget on October 30^th, and plans beyond that at the Spending Review in Spring 2025.

The Department carries out media training in-house and so did not spend any money on media or voice training for Ministers in this period.

The Northern Ireland Office has not incurred any spend on (a) media and (b) voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

Media training in the Scotland Office has been provided by Morrison Media. Both the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and I have received such training.

The Scotland Office has spent £5,416.25 (excluding VAT) on media training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.

The previous Government publicly committed to providing £8m in development funding to complete a detailed feasibility study for specific upgrades to the A75 and to fund targeted improvements identified by the study, subject to the Scottish Government’s business cases at various stages throughout the process. We recognise the importance of this project to communities in Southwest Scotland and remain in regular contact with DFT on it.

The Department has not spent any money on either media or voice training for Ministers since 5 July 2024.