Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to help increase trade with Ukraine.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In February this year the Government agreed to extend tariff liberalisation with Ukraine for an additional five years on the vast majority of goods; the most generous tariff concessions offered by any country. In March 2023, the Government signed a Digital Trade Agreement to underpin Ukraine's transition to a digitally-led economy, and supported this with the launch in January of the UK-Ukraine TechBridge. The Government's work to remove market access barriers continues in sectors such as pharmaceuticals and public procurement. To support more businesses to engage with Ukraine, particularly on reconstruction, the Government host regular business engagement events, nationally and internationally, and published a Guide to Doing Business with Ukraine.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many businesses have attended a UK-Ukraine TechBridge tech-focussed event in each year since its launch.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The UK-Ukraine TechBridge was formally launched in January 2024. We estimate over 200 companies have attended a UK-Ukraine TechBridge event so far this year. DBT plans to hold further TechBridge events later this year, including innovation workshops, online and in-person training and trade webinars. We welcome businesses with expertise in sectors such as agritech, health tech, AI, and demining and others to join these events and deepen their collaboration with Ukrainian counterparts.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are taking any steps, in collaboration with international partners, to encourage peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We support a just and sustainable peace which restores Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, underpinned by the UN Charter. President Zelenskyy has clearly indicated Ukraine's desire for peace in his Peace Formula, which reflects principles supported by 141 countries in the UN General Assembly. The UK has supported Ukraine to convene senior officials from G7 and several G20 countries, to discuss principles for a just peace. We welcome the planned conference in Switzerland to discuss these principles further. By contrast, Russia's continued actions on the battlefield demonstrate that President Putin has no meaningful interest in a just peace. It will be for Ukraine to determine its position in any negotiations, just as it is for Ukraine to decide its democratic future and long-term security arrangements. The quickest path to peace would be for President Putin to withdraw all Russian troops illegally present in Ukraine and end its aggression against its neighbour.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the delivery of the Future Commando Force.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Commando Forces are deployed globally today, delivering disproportionate impact for a formation of their size, in the High North, Eastern Mediterranean and India-Asia Pacific regions as well as supporting rapid operational feedback and validating lessons from Ukraine.
The Department continually assesses resourcing of all operational capabilities. The Commando Force has delivered significant capability improvements at pace which have already been deployed on operations, with spiral development of key capabilities to retain their operational advantage going forward.
The Commando Force Programme is delivering a transformational change to amphibious operations through two investment increments over the next ten-years that offer political choice at competition, crisis and conflict levels.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, which businesses accompanied the Minister for Trade on his recent visit to Ukraine.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
29 companies attended the trade mission to Kyiv.
For reasons of commercial sensitivity and protecting the security interests of the companies that accompanied the minister on the trade mission, the department will not disclose the businesses that attended.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department plans to have further engagement with the businesses that accompanied the Minister for Trade on his visit to Ukraine in April 2024.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Yes.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many UK-Ukraine TechBridge tech-focussed events have been held in each year since its launch.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The UK-Ukraine TechBridge initiative was announced by the Prime Minister at the London hosted Ukraine Recovery Conference in 2023 with a Memorandum of Understanding between the UK and Ukraine signed in November.
Since its formal launch in January 2024,15 tech-focussed events have been held. Innovation workshops on AI, agritech and healthtech were held at the end of March to assess the most significant barriers to innovation in these sectors in Ukraine. New innovation workshops will commence from May targeting new thematic areas, including cyber security, fintech, and demining.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions her Department had with the businesses that accompanied the Minister for Trade on his recent visit to Ukraine while preparing that visit.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In preparation for our recent trade mission to Ukraine, the Government engaged in extensive discussions with all participating businesses. Notably, during the mission, BAE Systems successfully negotiated a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence to maintain and repair L119 Light Guns directly in Ukraine. This arrangement not only speeds up the return of these crucial assets to the frontline but also significantly bolsters Ukraine’s defence capabilities. Moreover, the department facilitated numerous discussions to help businesses align the capabilities they offer with the urgent demands of Ukraine's defence efforts, ensuring their contributions are both timely and impactful.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what criteria her Department used to select the businesses to accompany the Minister for Trade on his recent visit to Ukraine.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The selection of companies for the recent trade mission to Ukraine was carefully considered based on several key criteria. These included companies with advanced operational capabilities in the field, those with an established business presence in Ukraine or already in contract with the Government of Ukraine, and those specifically matching Ukrainian demand as outlined by the Ukrainian government.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has taken delivery of the first newly UK-built NLAW missiles.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Following significant Granting in Kind of Next generation Light Anti-Tank Weapon (NLAW) missiles to Ukraine, the Ministry of Defence placed a contract for replenishment in December 2022. The initial delivery of replenishment missiles into UK stock was successfully achieved in July 2023, with the remaining contracted quantities being delivered in multiple batches between now and December 2026.