Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps they are taking to help ensure that their Department (a) gives sufficient attention to long term strategic challenges, (b) does not allow current events to slow down work on long term strategic issues and (c) consistently undertakes horizon scanning.

Horizon scanning and a focus on long-term strategic challenges are an important part of the Department’s work. Consideration around future issues and risks feature regularly in discussions by senior officials and ministers and underpin broader strategic decision making.

The Department has functions focusing on long-term strategic issues, which means that such work is not crowded by near-term demands. That includes strategic foresight and horizon scanning, working with the broader futures ecosystem to ensure long-term thinking is joined-up across government.