Asked by: Paulette Hamilton (Labour - Birmingham Erdington)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to help increase trade and business support to Moroccan-British entrepreneurs in local communities; and whether he has plans to help promote UK-Morocco small business exchange programs.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Total trade in goods and services (exports plus imports) between the UK and Morocco was £4 billion in the 12 months to June 2024, an increase of 11% or £378 million in current prices, from the previous 12 months.
UK businesses can access DBT’s business support via Great.gov.uk, the Business Support Service, their local Growth Hub, and Help to Grow.
DBT’s trade promotion plan includes trade missions that will bring Moroccan and UK entrepreneurs together. This includes recent trade missions building up to the World Cup in 2030, rail sector and airport sector missions, with small businesses an important part of these delegations.
Asked by: Paulette Hamilton (Labour - Birmingham Erdington)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will have discussions with (a) Uber and (b) other private hire operators on their practices for deactivating drivers’ accounts.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
While the Government is unable to comment on the working practices of individual companies, we are clear that everyone deserves to be treated fairly at work and rewarded for their contribution to the economy.
The Supreme Court’s judgment on Uber was clear that those who qualify as workers under existing employment law are entitled to core employment rights. Anyone who needs help determining their employment rights may wish to seek advice from the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas), who deal with questions from employers, individuals, and others about a wide range of employment relations matters.
Asked by: Paulette Hamilton (Labour - Birmingham Erdington)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to educate (a) workers and (b) businesses on ways to reduce negative health impacts of night-time work.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Working Time Regulations provide specific protections to night workers. Before someone starts working at night, they must be offered a free health assessment to see if they are fit to work nights before they become a night worker and on a regular basis after that. A record of this must be kept by the employer. Employers must also make sure that night time workers do not work more than an average of 8 hours in a 24-hour period. Employers can make collective or workforce agreements to change or exclude this limit.