Asked by: Lord McNicol of West Kilbride (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many times the UK has been subject to legal action through investor-state dispute settlement which has been brought either individually or as part of a wider claim; how many times such claims have been successful against the UK; and what was the legal costs of defending those claims.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
The UK has investment agreements with Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions with around 90 trading partners. There has never been a successful ISDS claim brought against the UK, nor has any claim reached arbitral proceedings for the UK to defend.
Asked by: Lord McNicol of West Kilbride (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many businesses they expect to participate in the UK pavilion at the Osaka Expo 2025.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
UK Government will be working with as many British businesses as possible to showcase the UK across Japan and the Asia Pacific region, as well as promote foreign direct investment in the UK. This work is on-going; the total number of businesses that will be involved is not yet confirmed.
Asked by: Lord McNicol of West Kilbride (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government when construction of the UK pavilion for the Osaka Expo 2025 will (1) commence, and (2) be completed.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
Construction for the UK pavilion in Osaka will commence in early 2024. Construction will be completed ahead of the Expo opening on 13 April 2025.
Asked by: Lord McNicol of West Kilbride (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much they estimate will be spent by each department on organising the UK pavilion at Osaka Expo 2025; and how much funding they estimate will be provided by (1) UK businesses, and (2) other organisations, to support the organisation of the UK pavilion at Osaka Expo 2025.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
The Department for Business and Trade is organising the UK Pavilion at Osaka Expo 2025 on behalf of His Majesty's Government. The Department's estimated total budget for delivering the UK's presence is £58.39m. This is funded from contributions from existing budgets.
Significant additional funding is being sought from the private sector to offset costs to the taxpayer. This work is in train - it is not therefore possible to accurately estimate private sector funding levels at this point.
Asked by: Lord McNicol of West Kilbride (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the staffing costs for the UK pavilion at the Osaka Expo 2025.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston
Requirements for staffing the UK pavilion are still being scoped and therefore estimated costs are not currently known.