Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 diversification in (a) vineyards, (b) farm shops, (c) tourism and (d) other small rural business.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department’s flagship plan for Small and Medium Sized Business is giving rural businesses the tools they need to grow and diversify. Our plan will help businesses to tackle late payments, improve access to finance, and streamline licensing. Targeted funding and Growth Hubs will provide tailored advice alongside sector-specific schemes to encourage innovation and local investment. DBT also provides advice and support for businesses via business.gov.uk, including access to the Business Academy and international market teams. These measures help rural businesses to thrive, create jobs, and strengthen local economies.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent steps he has taken to ensure rural community owned businesses are included in the Small Business Strategy.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Small Business Plan outlines how we will make thriving small businesses a reality across the UK, whether across towns or countryside. Rural areas offer significant growth potential and fulfilling the needs of people and businesses in rural areas is at the heart of our policymaking.
The Plan was developed through engagement with a large number of key stakeholders and trade associations including roundtables with farms and community-based businesses.
The Government has made a commitment that all policy decision-making should be rural proofed, ensuring that all intended outcomes are deliverable in rural areas and include community-owned businesses.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 UK film exports, in the context of the announcement of 100% tariffs on films produced in the UK by the US President on 5 May 2025.
Answered by Gareth Thomas
My department has a dedicated exports promotion programme for the film and high-end TV industry, which includes providing export support for businesses at major international film festivals and markets. We work with the UK film and TV sectors to remove market access barriers to enable businesses to increase their exports and use free trade agreements to grow exports.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department plans to take to strengthen the framework for holding large corporations accountable in their support for small businesses.
Answered by Gareth Thomas
In September 2024 we announced a package of measures to help ensure small businesses are paid promptly by the large businesses they supply.
This included launching a new Fair Payment Code and a commitment to including payment performance information in large companies’ annual reports.
In the spring we will launch a public consultation on further measures to address late payments, including new powers for the Small Business Commissioner to tackle large businesses who pay late.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether UK Export Finance is taking steps to support companies in Newbury constituency sell their goods and services overseas.
Answered by Gareth Thomas
Businesses based in Newbury can take advantage of the range of products that UK Export Finance provides to facilitate exporting, including loan guarantee and insurance facilities.
In 2023/24 alone, UKEF provided £8.8 billion support to help UK businesses sell their goods and services overseas.
Businesses in Newbury and across the country may also want to consider other support for exporting that is available from the Department for Business and Trade, such as our network of International Trade Advisers and guidance on GREAT.GOV.UK.
To obtain further information about the range of support available, businesses in Newbury can reach out to their local Export Finance Manager, for whom contact details are available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/find-an-export-finance-manager.