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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what comparative estimate he has made of the number of rare earth separation plants in (a) the UK, (b) the People’s Republic of China, (c) the EU, (d) the United States, (e) Australia and (f) Canada.

The Government has made no such estimate. However, we fully recognise the importance of rare earth materials to industry, particularly those industries that underpin the clean, green economy to which we are committed such as wind turbines and low-emission vehicles.