Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department has taken to increase the level of access to credit for businesses in Stafford constituency in the last 12 months.
Answered by Margot James
We are working hard to support businesses and entrepreneurs across the UK to ensure they can access finance and wider support to grow and the right conditions are in place for companies to invest for the long-term.
Small businesses in Stoke and Staffordshire can access support through GOV.UK and the Business Support Helpline. The Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Growth Hub also acts as the first port of call for local businesses seeking advice or support. Since its launch in May 2014, the Stoke and Staffordshire Growth Hub has engaged and supported 4340 businesses and it has helped 385 individuals to start up a new business.
Since November 2014, British Business Bank programmes have facilitated over £4.3m* to 87 businesses in the constituency of Stafford. This includes 54 Start-up Loans at a value of £415,957.
Stafford constituency is also part of the Midlands Engine. A key part of the Government’s strategy for fuelling growth in the region is the £250m Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), which is a result of close collaboration between the British Business Bank, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Department for Communities and Local Government and 10 Midlands Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). It aims to transform the finance landscape for smaller businesses in the Midlands, accelerate economic growth and promote job creation. The Fund launched its first wave, £120m of Debt and Small Business funds, at the end of August.
*This does not include ENABLE funding data as this is not available at a constituency level.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps his Department has taken to support businesses in Stafford constituency.
Answered by Margot James
We are working hard to support businesses and entrepreneurs across the UK to ensure they can access finance and wider support to grow and the right conditions are in place for companies to invest for the long-term.
Small businesses in Stoke and Staffordshire can access support through GOV.UK and the Business Support Helpline. The Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Growth Hub also acts as the first port of call for local businesses seeking advice or support. Since its launch in May 2014, the Stoke and Staffordshire Growth Hub has engaged and supported 4340 businesses and it has helped 385 individuals to start up a new business.
Since November 2014, British Business Bank programmes have facilitated over £4.3m* to 87 businesses in the constituency of Stafford. This includes 54 Start-up Loans at a value of £415,957.
Stafford constituency is also part of the Midlands Engine. A key part of the Government’s strategy for fuelling growth in the region is the £250m Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), which is a result of close collaboration between the British Business Bank, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Department for Communities and Local Government and 10 Midlands Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). It aims to transform the finance landscape for smaller businesses in the Midlands, accelerate economic growth and promote job creation. The Fund launched its first wave, £120m of Debt and Small Business funds, at the end of August.
*This does not include ENABLE funding data as this is not available at a constituency level.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations he has made to his EU counterparts on the UK continuing to participate in the Horizon research network after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
This Government wants the UK to be the go-to place for innovators and investors across the world, and we intend to secure the best possible outcome for the UK research base as we exit the European Union.
The United Kingdom’s exit from and new partnership with the European Union’ White Paper set out that the UK Government would welcome an agreement to continue to collaborate with our European partners on major science, research, and technology initiatives and we will approach the upcoming negotiations on this basis. The Government is committed to ensuring the UK remains a world leader in international research and innovation.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his policy is on the Government having full access to and use of technologies developed outside the UK and used in the construction of new nuclear power stations in the UK; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jesse Norman
It is for developers to bring forward new nuclear power stations in England and Wales; this includes procuring the technology. All developers must submit their full designs to the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and the Environment Agencies as part of the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process: the GDA is the non-statutory system by which the UK’s independent nuclear regulators assess safety, security and environmental aspects of new reactor designs proposed for use in the UK. In addition, any organisation wishing to carry out prescribed nuclear activities must apply for, and be granted, a nuclear site licence. A site licence puts the licence holder under strict legal obligations and, importantly, gives specific regulatory powers to ONR to ensure the safe and secure construction, commissioning and operation of a nuclear site.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
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 ensure the training of sufficient engineers and technicians to support the UK nuclear industry.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government is working with industry and skills bodies to achieve this goal, and Government-backed skills initiatives such as the Apprenticeship Levy and the National College for Nuclear are examples of actions taken to date. The National College for Nuclear aims to train 7,000 people by 2020, with the first intake of students to begin in September 2017.
The Government plans to deliver the majority of skills needed for the sector through national Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, including apprenticeships and higher education in combination with organisations’ in-house training and targeted support from accredited skills bodies.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to acquire significant equity stakes in new nuclear power stations to be constructed in the UK.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government engages with developers proposing new nuclear projects in the UK on a range of issues, including funding. Discussions on funding, as my hon. Friend would expect, are commercially sensitive.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when the Government plans to acquire a golden share in each new nuclear power station project in the UK.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government announced on September 15 2016 that, after Hinkley Point C, it would take a special share in all future nuclear new build projects. A special share would be discussed at the time any support package for a project is negotiated, and before a developer makes a Final Investment Decision and starts construction.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many new companies were started in Stafford constituency in each of the last two years.
Answered by Anna Soubry
Companies House estimates that, in the Stafford parliamentary constituency area, the number of new companies started is as follows:
2014-15: 1,649
2015-16: 1,701
These figures are estimates because Companies House’s data is drawn from postcode areas and these can cross constituency boundaries.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to support businesses in Stafford constituency.
Answered by Anna Soubry
The Government is working to make the UK the best place to start and grow a business by supporting businesses across the country. In Stafford, 42 Government backed Start-Up Loans have been drawn down since September 2012 with a value of over £218,000. A Regional Growth Fund award of £4m made in 2011 has attracted private investment of £56.5 million, delivering 1,600 jobs. Since May 2010, 26 loans have been drawn down in Stafford, worth over £2.6 million, from the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme. Businesses in Stafford also have access to the Stoke-on-Trent & Staffordshire Growth Hub which was live from September 2014, which is one of a network of 39 Growth Hubs set up across England.
Asked by: Jeremy Lefroy (Conservative - Stafford)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the level of access to credit for businesses in Stafford constituency in the last 12 months.
Answered by Anna Soubry
The Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 contained two specific policies to support Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in accessing finance.
The first requires major banks to refer SMEs they reject for finance to designated ‘finance platforms’ that can help match SMEs with alternative finance providers. This will ensure that viable SMEs, including businesses in Stafford, that may not fit the major banks’ risk appetite can still get the finance they need to grow and expand. Three platforms have recently been designated by HM Treasury on the advice of the British Business Bank and are expected to come into operation later this year.
The second requires the major banks to share information on their SME customers, with the SME’s permission, with other lenders through designated Credit Reference Agencies. This will improve the ability of challenger banks and alternative finance providers to conduct accurate risk assessments and level the playing field between providers and make it easier for SMEs to get finance from providers other than their bank.
The Government is supporting the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) and Crowdfunding sectors, which provide alternative sources of finance for both businesses and individuals. The British Business Bank, for example, has invested £100m in SMEs via five P2P platforms.
In addition, the British Business Bank’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) scheme has facilitated over £2.6 billion of bank lending and other finance to over 25,000 SMEs. Since the start of the scheme, 45 EFG loans have been drawn down in Stafford worth over £5 million. Government has also provided loans through the Start Up Loans Company to help new businesses in Stafford. 42 start up businesses in Stafford have secured a loan from the Start Up Loans Company, with a total value of over £218, 000.
More widely, credit conditions for business continue to improve with net lending to SMEs in 2015 positive across the complete year, the first time this has happened since the financial crisis.