Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what progress his Department has made on including an ambitious intellectual property protection framework in the UK-Swiss free trade deal.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The fifth round of negotiations on an enhanced free trade agreement with Switzerland took place in London in October 2024. As part of that, negotiations on intellectual property continued to advance across a number of rights areas. The UK aims to agree a comprehensive IP chapter which builds on the UK and Switzerland’s existing high mutual standards, balances interests across all UK industries and sectors, and reaches an outcome that delivers for the whole of the UK.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Wales on supporting small businesses in (a) Newport West constituency and (b) Wales.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Secretary of State is regularly assessing the impact of economic growth, working with the Secretary of State for Wales to support SMEs.
The Government continues to support businesses, through Help to Grow: Management, Business Support Helpline and GOV.UK.
Wales is benefiting from £2.5 billion in levelling up funding to create jobs and grow the economy, and there will be two Investment Zones in Wales worth £160 million each, with one located across Cardiff and Newport.
The Government has provided business rates relief in England, whilst the Welsh Government has cut the rates relief, effectively doubling business rates in Wales.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an assessment of the impact of recent economic growth figures on small and medium businesses in (a) Newport West constituency and b) Wales.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Secretary of State is regularly assessing the impact of economic growth, working with the Secretary of State for Wales to support SMEs.
The Government continues to support businesses, through Help to Grow: Management, Business Support Helpline and GOV.UK.
Wales is benefiting from £2.5 billion in levelling up funding to create jobs and grow the economy, and there will be two Investment Zones in Wales worth £160 million each, with one located across Cardiff and Newport.
The Government has provided business rates relief in England, whilst the Welsh Government has cut the rates relief, effectively doubling business rates in Wales.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions she has had with her New Zealand counterpart on the compatibility of the proposed Fast-Track Approvals Bill with the UK-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement.
Answered by Greg Hands
On March 13th, the UK and New Zealand highlighted the importance of our environment commitments at the first ever Environment and Climate Change Sub-Committee under the FTA. The Department for Business and Trade will continue discussions with New Zealand on implementing the Environment Chapter and will monitor the proposed Bill as it develops in New Zealand’s Parliament.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had recent discussions with her counterpart in New Zealand on the potential impact of the proposed Fast-Track Approvals Bill on that country's obligations under the chapter of the UK-New Zealand free trade agreement on the environment.
Answered by Greg Hands
On March 13th, the UK and New Zealand highlighted the importance of our environment commitments at the first ever Environment and Climate Change Sub-Committee under the FTA. The Department for Business and Trade will continue discussions with New Zealand on implementing the Environment Chapter and will monitor the proposed Bill as it develops in New Zealand’s Parliament.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent steps she has taken to help increase (a) Welsh and (b) British exports to European countries.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government is committed to growing exports to Europe. The Department for Business and Trade continues to provide businesses with a wealth of support options on great.gov.uk, including the Export Academy, Export Champions, our International Markets network and UK Export Finance. The department is rolling out the Trade Advisory service across the UK, giving consistent support to all UK Exporters.
The department’s Nation Teams bring support closer to businesses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; they work closely with the Devolved Administrations (DAs), businesses and other key partners to improve the availability of support to businesses and ensure that the department’s support is available to all UK companies.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate she has made of the number of zero-hours contracts in Newport West constituency.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Zero hours contracts (ZHC’s) are an important part of the UK’s flexible labour market. They are useful where there is not a constant demand for staff, allowing flexibility for both employers and individuals.
Individuals on zero hours contracts represent a very small proportion of the workforce. The ONS publishes quarterly data for the number of individuals in work on ZHC’s in the UK. The ONS figures are reported for Wales and estimates that between April – June 2023 47,000 people aged 16 or over in employment in Wales were on a ZHC. This is up from 46,000 between April – June 2017. Figures are not reported at constituency level.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment has she made of the potential barriers to exporting for businesses based in Newport West constituency.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
DBT has developed a Barriers to Exporting Framework that sets out the key barriers that businesses face across their exporting journey. DBT’s free export support helps businesses in Newport West and across Wales overcome these barriers to expand their exporting activity.
Welsh businesses can access free export support through Great.gov.uk, including sector specialists and overseas trade advisers, the Export Support Service, the Export Academy and UK Export Finance.
My department recently announced that we will be appointing new International Trade Advisors (ITAs) in Wales, to provide tailored support for Welsh SME exporters to take advantage of new export opportunities.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Fire safety requirements for UK domestic upholstered furniture are acknowledged as being among the highest in the world. However, it is important that changes are made to take account of modern-day hazards and risks.
As a result, the Government announced it would develop a new approach to the fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture to maintain and improve fire safety and take account of modern-day hazards.
A consultation on proposals for a new approach closed on 24 October and the Government will issue a response in due course.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what evidence her Department has on the impact on health of toxic smoke inhalation generated by chemical flame retardants.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
In developing the draft proposals for the new approach to the fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture, the Government considered a wide range of evidence, including evidence submitted during the Environmental Audit Committee’s inquiry into Toxic Chemicals in Everyday Life. The proposals reflect the need to maintain and improve fire safety whilst reducing the risks posed by chemical flame retardants.
The Government is currently consulting on these proposals and welcomes feedback from stakeholders.