Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps his Department is taking to boost textile manufacturing in the UK.

This Government is committed to strong and sustainable growth that is balanced across the economy. Manufacturing, including textile manufacturing, is a vital part of this. Textile manufacturing has received direct support from the Government; including awarding £12.8m of grant funding to the Textiles Growth Programme through the Regional Growth Fund, which is being used to support capital investment, training, and research and development in the textile industry.

Textile manufacturing, and indeed all manufacturing, in the UK is also being supported by various measures announced in the most recent Budget. This includes increasing the Annual Investment Allowance to £500,000 until 31 December 2015, raising the rate of the R&D tax credit payable to loss making SMEs to 14.5%, and the package of measures to reduce manufacturers’ energy bills and improve UK competitiveness.