Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the use of AI in his Department on security.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Within the Department for Business and Trade we have produced an AI governance framework for how we use AI both internally and externally to ensure safe and effective use of AI. On our departmental risk register we have identified a number of risks associated with the use of AI in particular in relation to leakage of sensitive information or incorrect decisions being made on the back of outputs from AI outputs. Our mitigations to these risks include blocking non-approved AI tools and guidance to staff that all outputs from AI should be checked for accuracy.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK retains steelmaking capacity.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
National security is a top priority for this government. DBT are working closely with MOD and other Government Departments as we develop the Plan for Steel, the Defence Industrial Strategy, and the Strategic Defence Review respectively, to ensure that key government priorities are reflected across these strategies.
At the recent Business and Trade Committee on 26 March, along with the Minister for Defence, I emphasised the importance of retaining steelmaking capabilities in the UK with the Government providing up to £2.5bn for steel through the National Wealth Fund and other routes.
This is why we continue to work tirelessly to safeguard the future of Scunthorpe and protect its workers. We have made a generous offer to British Steel designed to achieve that.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has held any recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Defence on the potential national security implications arising from the planned closure of Scunthorpe steelworks.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
National security is a top priority for this government. DBT are working closely with MOD and other Government Departments as we develop the Plan for Steel, the Defence Industrial Strategy, and the Strategic Defence Review respectively, to ensure that key government priorities are reflected across these strategies.
At the recent Business and Trade Committee on 26 March, along with the Minister for Defence, I emphasised the importance of retaining steelmaking capabilities in the UK with the Government providing up to £2.5bn for steel through the National Wealth Fund and other routes.
This is why we continue to work tirelessly to safeguard the future of Scunthorpe and protect its workers. We have made a generous offer to British Steel designed to achieve that.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the White House's factsheet entitled President Donald J. Trump adjusts imports of automobiles and automobile parts into the United States, published on 26 March 2025, what steps the Government plans to take to respond to the proposed tariffs on UK car and car parts exported to the United States.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The UK automotive sector is an integral part of driving our economic growth and, like industry, the Government is concerned about the potential impact of automotive tariffs.
We are disappointed by this decision by the United States to impose global tariffs on the automotive industry and know this will be extremely concerning for businesses and consumers. We are keeping all options on the table and will always respond in the national interest. We continue to have productive discussions on securing a wider economic deal.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the number of welders to meet demand in the (a) infrastructure, (b) construction and (c) manufacturing sector.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are working across Government to understand the demand impacts for the construction sector to deliver our built environment and infrastructure commitments. This includes working with Skills England, who will bring businesses, training partners and unions together with national and local government to develop a clear assessment of the country’s skills need – and map pathways by which they can be filled.
On 23 March, Government announced reforms that will get young people into well paid, high skilled, jobs in the construction sector by funding additional placements, establishing Technical Excellence Colleges, launching new foundation apprenticeships, and expanding Skills Bootcamps.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the median age is of computers issued to officials in their Department.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The median age of computers issued to officials in the Department is 2 years.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to increase trade between the UK and Canada.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The UK is taking various steps to strengthen our bilateral trade relationship with Canada, which was worth £27 billion in the 12 months to September 2024, up 7% on the previous 12 months.
This includes our work with Canada on their ratification of the UK’s membership of the multilateral Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Once ratified, this will provide additional benefits for UK firms seeking to do business in Canada, building on our existing bilateral trade agreement with Canada which already supports trade between our two countries.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of transparency of pre-pack administration procedures.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Transparency is embedded within the regulatory requirements for pre-pack administration procedures. The administrator must give creditors a detailed explanation of why the pre-pack sale was the best outcome. This report is filed at Companies House and is also sent to the administrator’s regulatory body for monitoring and compliance. The Government’s review of administrator pre-pack reports in 2023 concluded there is a high level of compliance with the transparency requirements.
The Government keeps these requirements under regular review.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has with Ofcom on Royal Mail's performance against their quality service targets.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues in relation to its role as the regulatory authority for the postal sector.
As an independent regulator, it is for Ofcom to decide how to respond should Royal Mail fail to meet its obligations. While the government does not have a role in Ofcom's regulatory decisions, in January, I met with representatives from Ofcom to discuss the proposed changes to the universal service obligation and the importance of Royal Mail's quality of service.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had recent discussions with Ofcom on its decision to investigate Royal Mail on the quality of service performance targets.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues in relation to its role as the regulatory authority for the postal sector.
As an independent regulator, it is for Ofcom to decide how to respond should Royal Mail fail to meet its obligations. While the government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions, in January, I met with representatives from Ofcom to discuss the proposed changes to the universal service obligation and the importance of Royal Mail’s quality of service.