Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on Government progress towards publishing a UK Critical Minerals Strategy; and whether that strategy will consider the resilience of critical mineral supply chains.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State said at the BEIS Select Committee in June 2022, the Government is preparing a Critical Minerals Strategy, that will be published soon.
Through the Strategy, the Government will mitigate risks and promote a more resilient global supply chain, through diversification, international partnerships and the circular economy
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the proposed undertakings offered by Cobham Ultra Acquisitions Limited in relation to its acquisition of Ultra Electronics Holdings plc, whether the non-executive Director appointed on the boards of the two SecureCos will be from UK Government Investments.
Answered by Jane Hunt
The agreed undertakings are available on GOV.UK. As set out in the undertakings, the boards of the SecureCos will be comprised solely of British nationals with the appropriate security clearance and the non-executive Director appointed to the boards of each SecureCo will be appointed by the Government. The size of the boards is a matter for Ultra.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the proposed undertakings offered by Cobham Ultra Acquisitions Limited in relation to its acquisition of Ultra Electronics Holdings plc, how many (a) members will sit on the two SecureCos boards and (b) of those members will be UK nationals.
Answered by Jane Hunt
The agreed undertakings are available on GOV.UK. As set out in the undertakings, the boards of the SecureCos will be comprised solely of British nationals with the appropriate security clearance and the non-executive Director appointed to the boards of each SecureCo will be appointed by the Government. The size of the boards is a matter for Ultra.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the proposed undertakings offered by Cobham Ultra Acquisitions Limited in relation to its acquisition of Ultra Electronics Holdings plc, whether the Government will maintain a shareholding in Ultra Electronics.
Answered by Jane Hunt
The Government does not have a shareholding in Ultra Electronics.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the acquisition of Ultra Electronics by Cobham.
Answered by Jane Hunt
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues on a range of topics.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the acquisition of Meggit by a US company.
Answered by Jane Hunt
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues on a range of topics.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the statement of 27 June 2022 by the chair of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry on the Department's application for a restriction order, for what reason the restriction order was requested.
Answered by Jane Hunt
We are fully committed to enabling the Inquiry to get to the bottom of the Horizon scandal so it can set out exactly what went wrong. Ministers and senior civil servants are responsible and accountable for policy, and we have therefore asked that the Inquiry redact the names of junior civil servants that appear in documents we provide if they have not had a decision-making role. This request is consistent with the approach adopted by the department when handling matters covered by the Data Protection Act and Freedom of Information Act.
The Department’s definition of a junior civil servant is those at Grades 6 and 7, Senior Executive Officer (“SEO”), Higher Executive Officer (“HEO”), Executive Officer (“EO”) or Administrative Officer/Assistant levels.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the statement of 27 June 2022 by the chair of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry on the Department's application for a restriction order, including the redaction of the names of junior civil servants from relevant documents, what the Department's definition of a junior civil servant is.
Answered by Jane Hunt
We are fully committed to enabling the Inquiry to get to the bottom of the Horizon scandal so it can set out exactly what went wrong. Ministers and senior civil servants are responsible and accountable for policy, and we have therefore asked that the Inquiry redact the names of junior civil servants that appear in documents we provide if they have not had a decision-making role. This request is consistent with the approach adopted by the department when handling matters covered by the Data Protection Act and Freedom of Information Act.
The Department’s definition of a junior civil servant is those at Grades 6 and 7, Senior Executive Officer (“SEO”), Higher Executive Officer (“HEO”), Executive Officer (“EO”) or Administrative Officer/Assistant levels.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what sanctions Trading Standards can impose on advertisers referred to them by the Advertising Standards Agency for consistently breaking advertising standards.
Answered by Paul Scully
Buckinghamshire & Surrey Trading Standards Service (B&STSS) acts as the prosecuting authority for investigations carried out by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
B&STSS uses its own legal powers to assess, investigate and take action, where appropriate, on any matter ASA refers to it. Action available to B&STSS includes arranging undertakings with traders and prosecutions.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans to provide relief payments on energy costs to people suffering from cold-related conditions.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As announced on 26 May, the Government will be providing a £150 one-off disability Cost of Living Payment to the 6 million people who receive disability benefits. The Government is also providing an additional one-off £300 payment for UK pensioners and £400 for all domestic electricity customers through the expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS). The Government will also continue to provide support through the Warm Home Discount Scheme and Cold Weather Payments, which help to ensure the most vulnerable are better able to heat their homes over the colder months.