Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Written Statement of 22 June 2020, Official Report, HCWS305, Business Update, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) Australia, (b) Canada, (c) New Zealand and (d) the United States on best practice for preventing business takeovers by potentially hostile state actors.

The Government engages frequently with its closest allies on a range of subjects, including investment screening. A number of our Five Eyes partners, including Australia, Canada and New Zealand have – like the UK – made changes to their investment screening regimes in response to Covid-19.