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 (a) implications for her policies of the capacity limits of container ports around the western Mediterranean and (b) impact of those limits on (i) inventory costs and (ii) the availability of components for (A) retailers and (B) manufacturers.

Government is monitoring the disruption to shipping caused by Red Sea attacks and working with businesses to understand the current and potential future impacts on shipping.

Shipping operators are working to mitigate any potential impact on consumers, and the shipping and supply chain sectors are well practiced at putting contingencies in place to continue to meet their customer needs.

If UK businesses are facing issues as a result of actions in the Red Sea, they can access advice and report disruptions through the Export Support Service: https://www.gov.uk/ask-export-support-team.