Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the UK Research and Innovation budget.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This year’s overall settlement for BEIS follows four years of significant growth in R&D funding, including a boost of more than £1.5 billion in 2020/21 and will mean UK Government R&D spending is now at its highest level in four decades. The Government is committed to increasing public expenditure on R&D to £22 billion.
Despite current fiscal challenges, the November 2020 Spending Review set out the Government’s plan to cement the UK’s status as a global leader in science and innovation by investing £14.9 billion in R&D, with £11.3 billion for BEIS.
Specific funding breakdowns for 2021/22, including UKRI's funding, is subject to our Departmental allocations process, which is progressing at pace. As set out in the Higher Education and Research Act 2017, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State takes advice from UKRI’s Board to ensure strategic priorities are met within BEIS’ overall R&D settlement.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to improve guidance on (a) knowledge of and (b) training on whistleblowing for employees.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government recognises how valuable it is that whistleblowers are prepared to shine a light on wrongdoing and believes that they should be able to do so without fear of recrimination.
BEIS has provided guidance for whistleblowers and employers (including a non-statutory code of practice). This aims to ensure that more employers follow good practice when responding to disclosures relating to whistleblowing. The Department will review the effectiveness of guidance in due course.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what fiscal steps he is taking to prevent fuel poverty during winter 2020-21.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Improving the energy efficiency of homes is the best long-term solution to tackle fuel poverty. The Energy Company Obligation is a GB wide energy efficiency scheme worth £640m per year until March 2022 and is focused on low-income and vulnerable households. The Green Homes Grant, launched in September 2020, is a £2 billion programme which will help improve the energy efficiency of homes in England. Of this, around half is specifically for low income, vulnerable and fuel poor households.
We recognise that some households may need immediate support this winter and so we provide assistance with energy bills for low income and vulnerable consumers through the Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments.
We have also successfully negotiated an agreement with energy suppliers to support customers impacted by COVID-19. Based on the circumstances, this could include reassessing, reducing, or pausing debt repayments for households in financial distress and support for prepayment meter customers to stay on supply.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of carbon dioxide was emitted in the Sheffield City Region in (a) April and (b) December 2020.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
While the Government does account for carbon dioxide emissions at the regional and local authority level, estimates of these emissions following the introduction of Covid restrictions last year are not yet available. For 2018, the latest year available, carbon dioxide emissions for the Sheffield local authority area were estimated to be 2,200ktCO2. Total carbon dioxide emissions for the Yorkshire and Humber region in 2018 were estimated to be about 10% of the UK’s total.
As the Government continues to take the steps necessary to reduce our carbon emissions in line with our climate commitments, the Sheffield City Region, and the Yorkshire and Humber region more widely will play an important part in reaching net zero by 2050. For example, as part of the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan for a green industrial revolution, working with industry, the UK is aiming for 5GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030. This could see the UK benefitting from around 8,000 jobs across our industrial heartlands and beyond.
The Government is also determined for the UK to become a world-leader in technology to capture and store harmful emissions away from the atmosphere, with an ambition to remove 10MT of carbon dioxide a year by 2030, equivalent to all of Humber’s industrial emissions today. This is supported by an extra £200 million of new funding to create two carbon capture clusters by the mid-2020s, with another two set to be created by 2030. This increased investment totals £1 billion, helping to support 50,000 jobs, potentially in areas such as the Humber, North East, North West, Scotland and Wales.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of planned reductions in posts at WH Smith on the Post Office network.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Department have made no such assessment given that WHSmith’s restructuring programme is not expected to impact Post Office services provided in WHSmith stores. The review of WHSmith’s operations is to ensure the company is able to navigate the current uncertain economic times, particularly as a result of the decline in travel during Covid-19. However, the Department has an open dialogue with both Post Office Limited and WHSmith and will keep monitoring the situation.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to maintain the public subsidy allocated to Post Offices in rural locations after March 2021.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has invested over £2 billion in the Post Office network since 2010.
Our current funding agreement with Post Office runs up to 2021 and we are working with Post Office to ensure the network is sustainable beyond that point. Beyond 2021, Government remains committed to ensuring the long-term sustainability of the network and will work with Post Office Limited to achieve this.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of Government financial support for businesses who operate from a domestic premise during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Paul Scully
Businesses operating from a domestic premises are eligible to benefit from a range of Government support during the pandemic, including the Coronavirus Business Interruption Scheme (CBILS), Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) and Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), Future Fund, Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS).
As of 12 July, £45 billion worth of loans have been approved under the three debt schemes (CBILS, CLBILS and BBLS). 429 convertible loans have been approved under the Future Fund, worth almost £419.6 million.
Around 95 per cent of those with more than half their income from self-employment in 2018-19 could be eligible for the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). As of 12 July, SEISS had helped 2.7 million individuals, claiming £7.8 billion of government support.
Those who pay themselves a salary through their own company via a PAYE scheme, including those based in domestic premises, are eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). As of 12 July, 9.4 million jobs had been furloughed under the CJRS.
We engage frequently with businesses of all sizes including micro businesses and self-employed people and their representative organisations, to understand and identify the most effective support.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the average time taken for banks to process applications to the Bounce Back Loan Scheme.
Answered by Paul Scully
In order to apply for the Bounce Back Loans scheme, businesses complete a short, simple, online application form, meaning that applications can be submitted and processed rapidly. The Government is providing lenders with a 100% guarantee on each loan to give them the confidence they need to quickly support the smallest businesses in the country.
The scheme has proved popular with businesses and as of 5 July, there had been 1,013,410 approved loans totalling £30.93 billion.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to encourage businesses to incorporate gender impact assessments into their plans to reopen with alternative working arrangements after the covid-19 lockdown.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government’s Safer Working guidance does not affect employers’ existing responsibilities under employment and equalities legislation. For example, this guidance does not change employers’ responsibilities towards new or expectant mothers. Workers who are pregnant are part of the “clinically vulnerable” group who are at higher risk of coronavirus.
Employers, therefore, need to bear in mind the particular needs of different groups or individuals, and make sure that the steps they take to address the risk of COVID-19 do not unjustifiably impact on some groups compared with others.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to prevent elderly and vulnerable people being targeted with scams related to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government is committed to protecting consumers from those who seek to profit from scams, and particularly those associated with Covid-19.
The Consumer Protection Partnership of consumer advice and enforcement agencies collects regular intelligence on scams as they emerge. Citizens Advice and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute issued advice and warnings on Covid-19 related scams earlier this month.
Consumers can access advice on how to spot a scam and how to report one through the Citizens Advice website. Citizens Advice refer cases onto enforcement agencies including local Trading Standards where appropriate.