Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government plans to take in response to the recommendations of the Law Commission's report on prepayments in retail insolvency.
Answered by Paul Scully
In December 2018, the Government set out in its response to the Law Commission prepayment report, ‘Consumer Prepayments on Retailer Insolvency’ that it intends to develop proposals to create a power to create sector specific legislation on pre-payments to enable action on Christmas savings clubs. The Government is considering the most practical route to formulate and implement this legislation.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January to Question 130668, if he will name the projects that received funding in 2019-20 from the (a) Medical Research Council and (b) National Institute for Health Research.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Medical Research Council (MRC) funded seven Motor Neurone Disease-related projects in 2019-20 in pursuant to the Answer of 11 January to Question 130668. Details of the projects can be found in the table below.
Research Organisation | Project Title | Start Date | End Date | Amount Awarded (£m) |
University College London | The impact of TDP-43 on translation and the response to axonal damage in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis | 01/10/2019 | 30/09/2024 | £1.9m |
University College London | Elucidating early stage ALS pathomecanisms that drive mitochondrial dysfunction | 01/01/2020 | 31/12/2022 | £0.9m |
University of Sheffield | Regulation of ER-mitochondria contacts in neurodegeneration | 01/07/2019 | 30/09/2022 | £0.6m |
University College London | A 5 year prospective follow-up clinical and imaging investigation of demyelinating clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) | 01/09/2019 | 31/08/2023 | £0.8m |
Imperial College London | Regulated proteolysis of p62/SQSTM1, nutrient-sensing and human disease | 01/02/2020 | 31/01/2023 | £0.5m |
University of Edinburgh | Investigating the molecular mechanisms of mutant C9orf72 human iPSC-derived astrocyte-mediated motor neuron deficits | 01/08/2019 | 31/01/2022 | £0.2m |
Newcastle University | Novel MRI Biomarkers in Neuromuscular Disease | 01/09/2019 | 31/08/2022 | £0.1m |
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funded no Motor Neurone Disease-related projects during this period.
Further details of all projects funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which MRC has been integrated into, can be found at https://gtr.ukri.org/.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which Motor Neurone Disease-related projects were funded by the (a) Medical Research Council and (b) National Institute for Health Research in (i) 2018-19 and (ii) 2019-20.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Medical Research Council (MRC) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) have funded the following number of Motor Neurone Disease-related projects, started in 2018-19 and 2019-2020.
| 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 |
MRC | 10 | 7 |
NIHR | 3 | 0 |
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
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 is taking to support research on motor neurone disease.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
In 2019/20, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), through the Medical Research Council (MRC), spent around £13.4 million on Motor Neurone Disease (MND) research. This included research which aims to increase our understanding of the causes and genetic mechanisms of MND and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) a form of MND. Over 5 years (2015/16 - 2019/20) MRC expenditure relevant to MND and ALS totalled £45 million.
In addition, UKRI, through the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, supports a diverse portfolio of neuroscience research and innovation totalling around £30 million per annum. This work may underpin MND research by furthering current understanding of: the structure and function of the nervous system; cell biology and genetics; mental processes including learning and memory, and neurodegeneration as a result of normal ageing. Their portfolio of funded research also includes awards seeking to understand the biology of neuromuscular systems and motor control which has underpinning relevance to MND has an average annual spend of £1.2 million.
Additionally, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) funds research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). It is not usual practice to ring-fence funding for particular topics or conditions. The NIHR welcomes funding on applications for research into any aspect of human health, including MND. Applications are subject to peer review and judged on open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.
Over the past five years, DHSC has spent over £9 million on MND research through NIHR programmes and infrastructure. In 2018-19 alone, the NIHR invested £2.2 million in MND research through the NIHR research programmes and the NIHR Clinical Research Network. Additionally, the NIHR research infrastructure supported 73 research studies and trials on MND in 2018-19.
Furthermore, you be interested to hear about the NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre which has a research theme dedicated to MND. Further information on the AMBRoSIA study can be found at:http://sheffieldbrc.nihr.ac.uk/research-themes/motor-neurone-disease/.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
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 reduce industrial energy costs for UK steel producers.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The Government has helped steel companies to reduce their costs through resource and energy efficiency, including through a package of compensation and exemptions from electricity costs, and has provided more than £560 million in support to the UK steel industry since 2013.
In?addition, we have established an Industrial Energy Transformation Fund,?backed by up to?£315 million?of investment. This Fund will help businesses, including steel companies, with high energy use in order to cut their bills and transition the UK’s industry to a low carbon future.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to include representatives of the electricity network supply chain in the Government’s future engagement with industry and other stakeholders on the development of the energy system.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
The Government’s commitment to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050 puts clean growth at the heart of our modern Industrial Strategy. The manufacturing sector will have a key role to play in delivering the required investment in energy infrastructure to help meet these commitments. It also provides an opportunity to develop skills, provide employment and boost exports, which will be key in supporting a post-COVID green recovery. Government will continue to engage with the electricity network supply chain, along with a wide range of stakeholders, as we work towards developing a smarter, more flexible energy system.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
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 is taking to ensure that companies comply with ACAS guidelines on accrued holiday pay when making an employee redundant.
Answered by Paul Scully
Where a worker is made redundant by their employer, they are entitled to be paid for any accrued but untaken holiday and any holiday taken but unpaid up to the point of their redundancy. Further guidance on how to calculate holiday pay and entitlement is available on GOV.UK and is kept under review.
On the 23rd July, the Department published updated guidance to clarify holiday pay for workers who are made redundant. This also includes when an employee is made redundant by an insolvent employer. The guidance can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/calculating-holiday-pay-for-workers-without-fixed-hours-or-pay
Employees who feel their rights have been denied may contact ACAS to receive free and impartial advice and may be able to bring a claim to an employment tribunal.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
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 number of people unable to apply for a Bounce Back Loan as a result of an application for a feeder account being declined.
Answered by Paul Scully
Decision-making on lending under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme is fully delegated to the Scheme’s accredited lenders.
In order to minimise administrative burden and therefore facilitate the issuing of as many loans as possible, the British Business Bank’s system only gathers data from lenders when loans are offered and drawn. Decisions on whether to capture information relating to rejected loans are at the discretion of the lender.
It is not a requirement of the Scheme for businesses to operate via a business account. However, some lenders may request that an applicant opens a business account in line with their standard policies. This is at the sole discretion of the lender.
A lender may consider paying funds into a personal current account if no business bank account is held, if it has been satisfactorily evidenced that the personal current account is being used for business purposes.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the average time is between application and payment of Bounce Back Loans by banks to customers who (a) have an existing business bank account and (b) are new customers.
Answered by Paul Scully
The processing of applications under the Bounce Back Loan Scheme is fully delegated to the 26 accredited lenders. The length of time from application to payment will vary across each of these lenders. A number of factors, including whether or not a customer has an existing relationship with the lender, will have an impact on how long the application process will take.
In order to apply for the scheme, businesses complete a short, simple, online application form, meaning that applications can be submitted and processed rapidly, and loans can be accessed within a matter of days. The Government is providing lenders with a 100% guarantee on each loan to give them the confidence they need to support the smallest businesses in the country.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
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 merits of a Government-backed industry watchdog for the website design and IT sectors.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has not made an assessment of establishing an industry watchdog for these sectors. Businesses contracting for website design and IT will be protected by the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008, and consumers are protected under general consumer law.