Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the capabilities of the UK (1) construction industry, and (2) related consultancy businesses, to operate in the rebuilding of Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK has led support for Ukraine during the war and we will continue to lead in supporting the Ukrainian government’s Reconstruction and Development Plan. The UK Government is exploring how we engage British construction and consultancy businesses to participate in the reconstruction effort, and we continue to work closely with the sector to identify where it has the capability and capacity to do so
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the current levels of productivity in the UK.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
According to the latest ONS data available, in 2021 Q3 UK labour productivity measured by output per hour worked was 0.7% higher than in 2019 Q4.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the UK’s comparative productivity level when compared to each member of (1) the G7 and (2) the G20.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The ONS do not produce estimates of labour productivity levels for other G20 countries.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the additional capacity necessary to analyse the present levels of productivity in the UK.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has recently expanded its funding for research into productivity by £37 million, including a new Productivity Institute headquartered in Manchester Business School.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the ability of the British postcode system to meet changing demand, including from delivery drivers, and the efficiency and sustainability of the system.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The postcode system is an operational tool, owned and maintained by Royal Mail, with its primary purpose being to ensure the accurate sorting, routing and delivery of customers’ mail. Royal Mail keeps this under review for its purposes.
Postcodes may be used for other purposes including by private and public sector organisations with the terms of access to the postcode address file being regulated by Ofcom, the independent regulator. However, other means of identifying locations for the purposes of deliveries are also available.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of the current postcode system in Britain.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The postcode system is an operational tool, owned and maintained by Royal Mail, with its primary purpose being to ensure the accurate sorting, routing and delivery of customers’ mail. Royal Mail keeps this under review for its purposes.
Postcodes may be used for other purposes including by private and public sector organisations with the terms of access to the postcode address file being regulated by Ofcom, the independent regulator. However, other means of identifying locations for the purposes of deliveries are also available.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the relevance of section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 due to changes in business practice since that date.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 requires directors, in promoting the success of their company in the interests of its members, to have regard to a number of matters, including the interests of employees and the impact of the company’s operations on the community and the environment. The legislation is flexible and permissive, allowing companies to identify a purpose for the company other than to benefit its members. Many companies have made successful use of this flexibility.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of who was originally responsible for the prosecution of Post Office subpostmasters.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government understands the serious impact that issues arising from faults with the Horizon IT system, and the Post Office’s management of these issues, have had on affected postmasters’ lives and livelihoods.
Justice Fraser has considered what happened over this period and has set out his findings in considerable detail. The findings outlined an extensive insight as to what went wrong at the Post Office, including an independent judicial view of the facts that all sides have been looking for.
The Government has also launched the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry on 29 September 2020. The purpose of the Inquiry is to understand and acknowledge what went wrong in relation to Horizon, establish a clear account of the implementation and failings of Horizon over its lifecycle and identify what key lessons must be learned for the future. The Inquiry is chaired by Sir Wyn Williams FLSW. Sir Wyn Williams is independent of both the Post Office and the Government, so he can draw conclusions based on the evidence submitted and produce recommendations and actions that may, in his view, be appropriate as a result of his findings. It would not be appropriate to draw conclusions on responsibility before the work of the Inquiry is complete.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential of the use of (1) biomimicry, and (2) design processes and technology based on natural behaviour models, in the UK economy.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has funded research through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) in a number of areas. This includes investment by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) in the Centre for Nature-Based Engineering (CNIE). Launched in 2013, as one of five EPSRC “Frontier Engineering” Centres, the CNIE draws lessons from nature to engineer innovative solutions to our grand challenges in energy, water, materials, health, and living space. In 2017, the Centre was awarded an EPSRC Progression Grant, to enable the Centre to continue to explore novel, transformative, multi-disciplinary solutions to key engineering challenges, where mechanisms found in nature systems can deliver superior performance over traditional approaches. In addition, the Centre accelerates translation of its findings into practice, through a wide range of industrial collaborations and entrepreneurship. The Frontier Engineering Progression Grant extends underpinning EPSRC investment in the CNIE until at least the end of 2021.
Biomimicry is also one of the potential features of the National Engineering Biology Programme being developed by UKRI partners and the Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory. As part of the proposed programme, Engineering Biology aims to draw upon discovery-inspired advanced research themes in Bioinspired Design (e.g. biomimicry, biocomputing), Bioengineered Cells & Systems (e.g. artificial life, protocells, genome engineering) and Novel Materials (e.g. smart materials, new chemistry).
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, what assessment they have made (1) of, aside from the Crown and the UK Government, which (a) person, (b) family, (c) organisation, or (d) charity, is the largest landowner in England and Wales; and (2) of how many acres are held by that landowner.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
None. HM Land Registry holds the database that records the legal ownership of registered land in England and Wales. While the register currently holds some 87% of the freehold surface area by individual land owner, the data is not structured in a way that makes it practical to assess the largest single landowner.