Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
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 value to shipyards of the Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme (SCGS) is a £500m loan guarantee scheme, supporting eligible ship buyers and operators to access finance to buy UK-built vessels and upgrade existing ones. The scheme forms part of the Government’s £4bn plan to revitalise UK shipbuilding and coastal communities through the National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh, announced in 2022.
The value generated by the scheme will depend on the details of individual transactions, but each SCGS deal agreed will directly benefit UK shipyards, supply chains and coastal communities right across the UK.
Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what her planned timetable is for the implementation of the Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme (SCGS) was officially launched on 26 July 2023, and we are continuing to work closely with the National Shipbuilding Office on all aspects of scheme implementation.
The SCGS is a £500 million scheme to help ship buyers and operators to access finance to purchase UK-built vessels and upgrade existing ones. It guarantees a percentage of the value of loans used to purchase, refit, retrofit or repair vessels, sharing the risk with lenders. The scheme forms part of the Government’s £4 billion plan to revitalise UK shipbuilding and coastal communities through the National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh, announced in 2022.
There have been 32 expressions of interest in the scheme so far and we are now working at pace to finalise the first transactions supported by the scheme.
Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
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 Cabinet colleagues on the implications for the Government's policies of the research being undertaken at universities with Iranian scientists on drone technology.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government take all allegations of breaches of export controls or sanctions seriously, and officials in my department have been leading a review of the allegations made in the recent press articles. They are working at pace with others in the Ministry of Defence, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) to establish the facts and assess if any export controls (Military, Dual-Use, UK National) or relevant sanctions regulations may have been contravened.
The outcome of this review will determine what further action may be needed. If there has been a potential breach of the sanctions or export controls, HMRC and/or OFSI will consider appropriate enforcement action.
Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of compliance with (a) sanctions and (b) restrictions on exports of the research being undertaken at universities with Iranian scientists on drone technology.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government takes all credible allegations of breaches of sanctions and export controls seriously, and the enforcement agencies will take further action if appropriate. The UK has a number of sanctions in place against Iran including against Iranian UAV manufacturers and related military individuals and executives.
Officials in my department have been leading a review of the allegations made in the recent press articles. They are working at pace with others in the Ministry of Defence, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) to establish the facts and assess if any export controls (Military, Dual-Use, UK National) or relevant sanctions regulations may have been contravened.
The outcome of this review will determine what further action may be needed. If there has been a potential breach of the sanctions or export controls, HMRC and/or OFSI will consider appropriate enforcement action.
Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
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 universities that are undertaking research on drone technology in collaboration with Iranian scientists.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We take all allegations of breaches of sanctions or export controls seriously, and my officials are leading a review of the allegations made in recent press articles that UK universities are collaborating with Iran to develop drones and other technologies which may be linked to Iran’s military programmes.
They are working at pace with others in the Ministry of Defence, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) to establish the facts and assess if any export controls (Military, Dual-Use, UK National) or relevant sanctions regulations may have been contravened.
In parallel, the Research Collaboration Advice Team (RCAT) - which advises research institutions on national security risks linked to international collaboration - is establishing what due diligence was carried out by the institutions identified to date.
The outcome of this review will determine what further action may be needed. If there has been a potential breach of the sanctions or export controls, HMRC and/or Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) will consider appropriate enforcement action.