Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps the Government is taking to help support women in business.

The Government has set an ambition to increase the number of female entrepreneurs by half by 2030, equivalent to 600,000 new entrepreneurs. The Government is delivering on this ambition through a range of initiatives working with the private sector, including the Investing in Women Code, Investing in Women Hub, and the Angel Investment Taskforce. In 2022, a record 150,000 women-led companies were started, representing 20% of new incorporations.

The Start Up Loans Company, part of the Government-owned British Business Bank, has provided over 100,000 loans to entrepreneurs since the programme started in 2012. Of these, 40% have been to women.