Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for the Government's policies on the regulation of privatised utilities of the report by Ofwat entitled Putting the sector back in balance – summary of Ofwat’s decision on issues for PR19 business plans, published on 3 July 2018; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
Economic regulators are statutorily independent. It is for regulators to decide how to regulate the companies in the sectors for which they are responsible, in line with their duties. The Government is fully committed to a model of private ownership with strong independent economic regulation.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of regional disparity in energy poverty; and what estimate his Department has made of the number of households living in energy poverty in Blackburn.
Answered by Claire Perry
Fuel poverty figures by region can be found in Table 6 of the fuel poverty detailed tables: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fuel-poverty-detailed-tables-2018
The number of households living in fuel poverty in Blackburn in 2016 is estimated to be 6,400 (15.4 per cent).
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sub-regional-fuel-poverty-data-2018, Table 5
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the implication for his policies of 2.5 million people living in energy poverty.
Answered by Claire Perry
This Government is committed to tackling fuel poverty. The latest statistics on fuel poverty in England show the average fuel poverty gap – the amount needed on average to lift households out of fuel poverty – decreased to £326 in 2016, down from £341 in 2015.
The best long-term solution is to improve energy efficiency to bring the cost of heating homes down. That is why we have just consulted on focussing the whole of the £640m per year Energy Company Obligation on low income and vulnerable households from later this year.
We are also introducing a price cap to stop unreasonable price rises for those 11 million households on standard variable and default tariffs and under the Warm Home Discount Scheme, over 2 million low income and vulnerable households are provided with a £140 rebate off their energy bill each winter.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to support (a) single parents and (b) households in private rented accommodation at risk of energy poverty.
Answered by Claire Perry
The best long-term solution to fuel poverty is to improve energy efficiency to bring the cost of heating homes down. That is what we are doing through the Energy Company Obligation where we have consulted on focussing the whole of the scheme on low income and vulnerable households from later this year. We are also introducing a price cap to stop unreasonable price rises for those 11 million households on standard variable and default tariffs. Under the Warm Home Discount Scheme, over 2 million low income and vulnerable households are provided with a £140 rebate off their energy bill each winter.
Single parents and households in private rented accommodation will benefit from all of these measures. For those in the latter category, new Private Rental Sector Regulations came into force as planned on the 1st April 2018. They mean that all private landlords need to ensure that their properties reach at least a minimum Energy Performance Certificate rating of E before granting a tenancy to new or existing tenants. We also want to use new powers under the Digital Economy Act to help us focus support more accurately towards low income and vulnerable households living in fuel poverty.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has had discussions with businesses on their concerns on the effect on supply chains of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
Since the referendum, the Department has engaged with over 2500 businesses and representative organisations across sectors, both here and in Europe, to deepen our understanding of the key business priorities and opportunities after our withdrawal. This dialogue has included hearing businesses views on supply chain preparedness and on the importance of issues such as the need for an Implementation Period.
The agreement on the Implementation Period gives businesses, particularly SMEs, the clarity and confidence that market access and common regulatory rules will remain in place until the end of 2020, meaning businesses will be able to trade on the same terms as now and that businesses will have the time to respond to one set of changes.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on (a) Blackburn and (b) other regional areas of the UK of a no deal scenario when the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
We are committed to getting the best possible deal for the United Kingdom - a deal that works for all parts of the UK, including the North West. We do not want or expect a no deal outcome. However, a responsible government should prepare for all potential outcomes, including the unlikely scenario in which no mutually satisfactory agreement can be reached.
The Government is undertaking a wide range of continuing analysis and preparatory work, across a range of scenarios, looking at the implications of UK withdrawal from the EU.
Ministers have a specific responsibility, which Parliament has endorsed, not to release information that would reveal our negotiating position and so the Government will not provide an ongoing commentary on internal analytical work.
The Government has confirmed that when we bring forward the vote on the final deal, we will ensure that Parliament is presented with the appropriate analysis to make an informed decision.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Airbus continues its operations in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
The UK is a strong supporter of Airbus and its UK suppliers and we engage frequently and constructively on their UK investment and activity. Alongside industry we will invest almost £4 billion in aerospace research and technology by 2026 to ensure the UK remains a world leader in civil aerospace.
We are working closely with Airbus and other UK based companies to understand their concerns ahead of leaving the EU. We have been clear that we are determined to secure a deal with the EU that meets the sector’s needs. This includes our ambition to seek continued participation in EASA, maintaining barrier free trade, avoiding disruption to supply chains, and allowing employees to work across sites within Europe.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support manufacturers in the North West.
Answered by Claire Perry
We are working with UK industry to create the right conditions for competitive, world leading manufacturing businesses to flourish and grow across the UK. We are supporting all UK manufacturers by cutting business taxes, slashing red tape and investing in new scientific infrastructure on a record scale. Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North West. That means using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster.
Over the past few years, we have invested over £1.5 billion through the Local Growth Fund, in the North West for projects to boost local economies and the Regional Growth Fund that supports eligible projects and programmes raising private sector investment to create economic growth and lasting employment, has since its launch in 2010, resulted in over 46,000 jobs being contracted, of which 21,426 are in manufacturing.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support job creation schemes in (a) the North West and (b) Blackburn with Darwen.
Answered by Margot James
The Northern Powerhouse is about boosting growth across the North by building on its economic assets and addressing barriers to productivity including the creation of new job opportunities to ensure an economy that works for everyone. They are 7 million people in employment in the Northern Powerhouse and the North West accounts for almost half of that. Proof that the steps we are taking to support job creation schemes in the North West are working.
Small businesses are playing their part in this through access to national support through GOV.UK and the Business Support Helpline and we have invested in the creation of a network of 38 Growth Hubs (one in each Local Enterprise Partnership area), providing businesses across England with access to tailored local advice and support to help them grow. Lancashire’s business growth hub (Boost) which covers Blackburn and Darwen has worked with over 3,000 local SMEs and created over 1,300 new jobs in its first three years.
In February this year, we launched the £400 million Northern Powerhouse Fund for small businesses across the North, ensuring they access to finance they need to start-up and grow. This fund has now made 39 investments/loans into businesses in the North West totalling £7.11m (over half of that invested across the Northern Powerhouse) which are forecasted to create 409 jobs.
The Regional Growth Fund (RGF) supports eligible projects and programmes raising private sector investment to create economic growth and lasting employment. Since its launch in 2010 it has invested £2.6 billion to help local businesses grow and take on more staff across England. In the North West, 46,676 jobs have already been contracted of which 249 are in Blackburn with Darwen.
Over the past few years, we have invested over £1.5 billion through the Local Growth Fund in the North West for projects to boost local economies and Growth Deal 1 and 2 allocations aim to create over 35,000 jobs across the North West. The Lancashire Local Enterprise Partnership, which covers Blackburn with Darwen have now received over £320m as part of their Local Growth Funding to give businesses the support and opportunities they need to achieve their potential which aims to see up to 11,000 jobs created across Lancashire
Projects such as the Blackburn – Bolton Rail Corridor, Blackburn Town Centre improvements, Café Northcote at the Cathedral Quarter, Making Rooms Fab Lab and the Pennines Gateway initiative are just some of the locally-chosen projects in Blackburn and Darwen that are set to benefit over the next few years helping unlock new growth potential, create jobs and establish a network of centres focused on innovation and industrial excellence in key growth sectors for the whole of Lancashire.
Asked by: Kate Hollern (Labour - Blackburn)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support business growth schemes in (a) the North West and (b) Blackburn with Darwen.
Answered by Margot James
We are working hard to support businesses and entrepreneurs across the UK to ensure they can access finance and wider support to grow and the right conditions are in place for companies to invest for the long-term.
Small businesses across the North West can access national support through GOV.UK and the Business Support Helpline. Government has also supported and invested in the creation of a network of 38 Growth Hubs (one in each Local Enterprise Partnership area), providing businesses across England with tailored advice and support. For businesses in Lancashire (including those based in Blackburn, Darwen and Rossendale) this support is provided by Lancashire Business BOOST Growth Hub which acts as the first port of call for businesses seeking advice and support locally. Since its launch in November 2013, Boost has engaged and supported 3943 businesses and helped 312 individuals to start up a new business.
Since November 2014, the British Business Bank has facilitated over £11.8 million of investment/lending to 279 businesses within Blackburn and Darwen. This includes 208 Start-up Loans at a value of £1.4 million.
The British Business Bank also launched the new Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF) on 22 February 2017. The NPIF works with ten Local Enterprise Partnerships, combined authorities and Growth Hubs, as well as local accountants, fund managers and banks, to provide a mixture of debt and equity capital to northern-based SMEs at all stages of their development. NPIF provides funding to fund managers who in turn offer microfinance (£25,000 - £100,000), business loans (£100,000 - £750,000) and equity finance (up to £2m).