Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 6th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Paul Scully]

I thank the right hon. Lady for her continued interest in this important area. I have said time and time again that it is not acceptable for employers to use such bully-boy negotiating tactics. ACAS has done the quantitative work on fire and rehire. We are asking it to write guidance, but also to do some more detailed work. If we need to act, we certainly will act.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

I heard from pilots at the travel day of action about the disaster facing their industries if coronavirus restrictions are not relaxed soon. As the Minister will know, our aviation, travel and tourism sectors were the first to be impacted as a consequence of covid-19, with passenger numbers collapsing from March 2020. With recovery likely to take a number of years, these will also be the last sectors to revive. Can my hon. Friend tell me what help he will be giving to the aviation industry after 19 July if the Transport Secretary does not open up the airways?

[Paul Scully]

Travel has an impact beyond the sector itself and the impact of reopening our cities. We will continue to work with the sector to offer it support and to flex our support. My hon. Friend mentioned weddings. On 21 June, the restrictions on weddings were eased, which I was pleased to see. The number is now determined by how many a venue can safely accommodate with social distancing measures in place. I am looking forward to the day when those final social distancing measures can melt away.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 23rd March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Amanda Solloway]

Throughout the covid-19 pandemic, the Government have supported people and businesses across the United Kingdom. The Budget extends the UK coronavirus job retention scheme and the self-employment income support scheme and extends the VAT cut to support tourism, leisure and all the sectors. People and businesses all over the United Kingdom will benefit and have benefited from the Government’s actions.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support women in business.

[Craig Tracey (North Warwickshire) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support women in business. [R]

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Amanda Solloway)]

The Government have taken significant steps to support women in businesses. We have launched the Government-backed Women’s Business Council and published the women in finance charter. The recent Rose review and report also shows that good progress is being made to overcome barriers for women entrepreneurs.

[Mrs Latham]

The majority of people employed in the wedding industry are women. The road map out of lockdown offers very little hope for the wedding industry or the supply chain as couples would rather wait than have only six, 15 or 30 guests. What assurances can my hon. Friend provide that women in the wedding industry will receive the support their businesses need to survive until June 2021, or even beyond?

[Amanda Solloway]

I thank my hon. Friend for her great support; I know how much she supports women entrepreneurs, especially with Derbys Finest. Since March 2020, the Government have provided an unprecedented package of financial support to businesses, including those in the wedding sector. That package of support is kept under regular review. My colleague the Minister for Small Business regularly meets the industry-led weddings taskforce to understand the impact of covid-19 on businesses in this sector.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 9th February 2021 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

I recognise the importance of the Ellesmere Port plant locally and fully appreciate the work that the hon. Gentleman has done to keep it open. I want to see its future secured. We are committed to ensuring that the UK continues to be one of the best global locations for automotive manufacturing. I am happy to meet the hon. Gentleman, should he wish, and I have met representatives from Vauxhall as well.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to help businesses support victims of domestic abuse.

[Imran Ahmad Khan (Wakefield) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to help businesses support victims of domestic abuse.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Paul Scully)]

Our recent report on workplace support is clear that employers’ policies can play a significant role in helping victims of domestic abuse. We will work with employers to support that role and encourage good practice, which includes employers signing up to the Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse and managers downloading the Bright Sky app by Hestia.

[Mrs Latham [V]]

Domestic abuse is a heinous crime that destroys lives and families, and it is vital that every part of society works together to prevent it from happening. Will my hon. Friend confirm that his Department is working with businesses to help to build their awareness of domestic abuse and ensure that they notice the warning signs and help workers to access the support that they may need?

[Paul Scully]

My hon. Friend has been a huge champion of tackling abuse, both here in this country and internationally. As set out in our recent report on workplace support, we will work across Government to raise awareness with businesses and victims’ representatives. From a business point of view, it tackles the £1.9 billion productivity stretch, and employers have a duty of care, just as with bullying, stress and mental health. Clearly, wider awareness can save lives.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 10th November 2020 Commons Chamber

[Ms Nusrat Ghani (Wealden) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support the manufacturing sector.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support the manufacturing sector.

[Jack Brereton (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support the manufacturing sector.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alok Sharma]

I know that my hon. Friend works closely with her three local chambers of commerce in Hailsham, Crowborough and Uckfield. On planning for transition, whatever our future trading relationship with the European Union things will change for businesses and they do need to prepare. My Department and my fellow Ministers and I have been communicating and engaging directly with businesses, and we will continue to do so.

[Mrs Latham [V]]

Rolls-Royce is a very important manufacturer throughout the UK, not least in Derby, where it employs more than 12,000 people. Will my right hon. Friend assure me that whenever the Government help Rolls-Royce, all money spent will directly support the recovery of domestic civil aerospace manufacturing?

[Alok Sharma]

My hon. Friend is a great champion of workers in her constituency, and she and I have met to discuss these issues. She will know that the Government are supporting the aerospace and aviation sectors to the tune of almost £9 billion through loans and grants. Of course, we want that support to create a positive business environment and ensure that Rolls-Royce and, indeed, other companies in the sector base their work in the UK, sustaining well-paid local jobs for decades to come. As my hon. Friend will know, Rolls-Royce proposes to consolidate the assembly and testing of its large aero-engines from Singapore to Derby.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Monday 4th May 2020 Commons Chamber

[Michael Gove]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. It is the responsibility of all of us to do everything we can to ensure that we have visibility on the need for PPE. That is why NHS trusts and others report on their stocks and the additional requirements that they have. It is also why we have ensured that, across our resilience forums that are responsible for the distribution of PPE to more than 58,000 settings, we have seen something like 57 million pieces of PPE distributed, but, again, he makes an important point about improving the visibility that we all have, and I will talk to my right hon. Friend the Secretary State for Health and Social Care about just that.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking with UK manufacturers to increase the supply of ventilators to the NHS.

[The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office (Michael Gove)]

My Department and the Department of Health and Social Care have been working with a variety of UK manufacturers in order to increase the supply of ventilators to the NHS. We have placed an order with one in particular, Penlon, for 15,000 additional ventilators. I am pleased to see so many UK manufacturers and medical supply companies working so well together to ensure that we can increase domestic supply.

[Mrs Latham [V]]

Will my right hon. Friend tell the House how many companies have risen to the challenge to make the extra ventilators needed—companies that do not normally make them such as Dyson or Rolls-Royce?

[Michael Gove]

Yes, of course. We have been working with 11 new potential, or existing potential, suppliers, but more than 5,000 businesses have been involved, offering to provide services, because, of course, when producing a complex machine such as a ventilator, we need to make sure that we source everything from the appropriate batteries, the appropriate valves and the appropriate other technology. As I say, 5,000 businesses, including Rolls-Royce, have been involved in the manufacture.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 12th February 2019 Commons Chamber

[Kelly Tolhurst]

I thank the hon. Lady for allowing me to talk about this issue. A short internal review has been carried out by my officials and I expect to receive information on that shortly. I have already committed to keeping cross-party colleagues updated and I happily extend that commitment to her.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Greg Clark)]

Since our last departmental questions, we have been continuing to implement the industrial strategy. We are doing more, for example, to protect businesses and consumers from online threats, with the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund backing research to make hardware more secure. As we leave the EU, we are determined to continue to be a pioneer in setting the highest standards, including proposals—currently being consulted on—to expand protections for pregnant women and new parents returning to work after having children.

[Mrs Latham]

Could the Secretary of State tell us what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the creative industries sector deal?

[Greg Clark]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question. It was one of the first sector deals. We were very determined to act on the report of Sir Peter Bazalgette, which celebrated the potential for new jobs to be created. It is going extremely well. Investments are being made in virtual reality, creating new opportunities for small businesses to benefit from the technology that larger ones have.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 1st May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

And now no chuntering or purring, but simply Gardiner oratory. I call Mr Barry Gardiner. [Interruption.] I thought the hon. Gentleman was coming in a second time. The House is deprived, but I am afraid that it will have to rest content with that situation.

[Mrs Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

10. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the creative industries sector deal.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Richard Harrington)]

I congratulate you, Mr Speaker, on your ruling that facial chuntering is not in fact a form of chuntering. I am sure that hon. Members on both sides of the House will be delighted to take that into account in future.

As for the creative industries sector deal, Sir Peter Bazalgette’s review forecast that the creative industry deal will increase exports, sustain growth, boost jobs and narrow the productivity gap between the south-east and the rest of the UK. The deal launched only on 28 March, so it is in its early stages, but I will be carefully monitoring it and working with the industry to ensure that the deal delivers the expected benefits.

[Mrs Latham]

How can the creative industry sector deal benefit local economies and communities across the country, particularly in Mid Derbyshire?

[Richard Harrington]

My hon. Friend is always talking about Mid Derbyshire and how the University of Derby supports the creative industries sector. She has told me about Mr Paul Cummins, a very creative chap who was responsible for the Tower of London poppies, which went all over the world. The creative industries sector has a £2.5 million regional development fund, managed through a strategic action plan, which is exactly what my hon. Friend is talking about. Her local enterprise partnership is involved, and the university is working with businesses in the area, including small and medium-sized enterprises in the creative and digital industries, to aid local job creation in areas such as Cromford Mills in her constituency.

Oral Answers to Questions

Pauline Latham Excerpts

Tuesday 13th September 2016 Commons Chamber

[Greg Clark]

I am certainly attached to the work that is done in Sheffield and the highly valued colleagues we have there. The decision was made some time ago, and many changes have been made. As we sort out the responsibilities of different parts of the Department, I will look carefully at what Sheffield can provide.

[Pauline Latham (Mid Derbyshire) (Con)]

What further steps can be taken to help make non-commercial community energy schemes viable?

[Mr Hurd]

As we have said in response to earlier questions, the Government are committed to the deployment of renewable energy and have had considerable success, and of course the feed-in tariff has been central to that.