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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government has taken to develop (a) upstream, (b) midstream and (c) downstream sections of the critical minerals supply chain in the UK.

Upstream, midstream and downstream sections of the critical minerals supply chain have all been – and will continue to be – supported through a number of Government initiatives. For example, the 10 Point Plan announced £500 million to support the electrification of vehicles and their supply chains, and other strategically important technologies including critical mineral processing, through the Automotive Transformation Fund. Other specific examples of the UK’s extensive work in this area include the Driving the Electric Revolution Challenge, which is investing £80 million in electrification technologies. This includes projects relating to the recovery and recycling of Rare Earth Elements, and activities to facilitate the development of Rare Earth Element magnet supply chains in the UK.

Going forward, the Government will publish a UK Critical Minerals Strategy in 2022, setting out our approach to securing the technology-critical minerals and metals. Our stated aims include to ensure the UK has a reliable supply of critical minerals and metals, and to establish an enabling environment for growing the sector in the UK.