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Written Question
Fuel Poverty
Wednesday 25th July 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 reduce fuel poverty in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England.

Answered by Claire Perry

The best long-term solution to tackling fuel poverty is to improve energy efficiency to bring the cost of heating homes down. We recently announced that the whole of the £640m per year Energy Company Obligation scheme will be focused on low income and vulnerable households from later this year.

Financial support is also available to help low income and vulnerable households with the cost of keeping warm each winter. The Warm Home Discount provides over 2 million households with a £140 rebate off their energy bill.

In addition, the current Safeguard Tariff caps energy prices for 4 million pre-payment meter customers, and 1 million households in receipt of the Warm Home Discount, two groups who are known to be among the most vulnerable in society. The Domestic Gas & Electricity (Tariff Cap) Act 2018 requires Ofgem to temporarily extend these protections to a further 11 million customers on standard variable and default tariffs.


Written Question
Manufacturing Industries: Employment
Monday 9th July 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 manufacturing jobs in North East England.

Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford

The Government’s Industrial Strategy has set out a long term approach to boost the UK’s productivity growth and ensure that we’re building an economy fit for the future. The White Paper has set out a range of measures aimed at increasing investment from the private and public sector, which will both be vital in meeting the objective of increasing our productivity and earning power for people across the UK. This includes a commitment to increase total R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027.

We are committed to making the UK the best place in Europe to own and grow a manufacturing business. Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. That means using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster. We are also cutting business taxes and slashing red tape.

Government is supporting the North East LEP Growth Deal by providing £380 million of funding that will lead to an estimated 8,000 new jobs. The Growth Deal includes funding for the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) providing a world-class environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses.


Written Question
Manufacturing Industries: North East
Monday 9th July 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 support manufacturing jobs in North East England in his negotiations with the EU for when the UK leaves the EU.

Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford

As we leave the EU there is an opportunity for us to do far more to engage with the wider world beyond Europe where there is so much emerging innovation and opportunity. The Industrial Strategy builds on our strengths, creates strong foundations to meet the challenges of the future and will help us to make the best of our relations with Europe and beyond. This helps ensure that minimal disruptions are made to UK manufacturing and facilitates conditions for it to thrive.

We recognise the challenges faced by EU Exit, and we remain committed to making the UK the best place in Europe to own and grow a business after the UK leaves the EU. Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. This includes using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster. We are also cutting business taxes and slashing red tape.

Government is also supporting the North East LEP Growth Deal by providing £380 million of funding that will lead to an estimated 8,000 new jobs. The Growth Deal includes funding for the International Advanced Manufacturing Park, providing a world-class environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses.


Written Question
Shipbuilding
Wednesday 2nd May 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 commercial shipbuilding in (a) the North East and (b) the UK.

Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy continues to work closely with the Maritime Enterprise Working Group tasked in the National Shipbuilding Strategy with driving up productivity and competitiveness in the supply chain and shipyards, including those in the North East.


Written Question
Shipping: Procurement
Tuesday 13th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 27 February 2018 to Question 128159, for what reasons the decision was made to procure ships other than warships by international rather than UK-only competition.

Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford

As outlined in the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSbS), the Government is committed to the procurement of non-warships through international competition. It remains the cornerstone of defence procurement policy as the means by which we attract the best solutions and maximise value for money for UK taxpayers, and lies at the heart of the NSbS. The exemption under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (Article 346), which allows any member nation to reserve a procurement for reasons of national security, does not apply to the design, construction and commissioning of non-warships. Where applicable, the sensitive elements of these ships will be limited to a UK only competition. A key element of our vision for a modern and efficient maritime sector, capable of meeting the country’s future defence and security needs, is one that can compete in the overseas as well as in the domestic market. Sir John Parker identified a renaissance in the UK shipbuilding sector, which has a record of success in international competitions. As a result of the NSbS, we have set up and are supporting the Maritime Enterprise Working Group, an industry group aimed at actively assisting UK shipyards and supply chains improve their competitiveness and capability capacity to put in high-quality bids. BEIS expects UK shipbuilding companies to be in a position to be able to bid into all competitions announced by MoD. We strongly encourage UK companies to take part in all Defence competitions.


Written Question
Productivity: North East
Tuesday 13th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 increase regional productivity in the North East.

Answered by Andrew Griffiths

The Government’s Industrial Strategy has set out a long term approach to boost the UK’s productivity growth and ensure that we’re building an economy fit for the future. The White Paper has set out a range of measures aimed at increasing investment from the private and public sector, which will both be vital in meeting the objective of increasing our productivity and earning power for people across the UK, including the North East of England.

We are working with the North East Local Enterprise Partnership to support the delivery of their Strategic Economic Plan, with its key themes of More and Better Jobs, which articulates how productivity can be enhanced in the area. In their latest analysis, the North East LEP highlights that, of the 55,200 additional jobs created in the North East since 2014, 73% – or 40,300 – meet their definition of ‘better’ jobs.


Written Question
Job Creation: Jarrow
Tuesday 13th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 support job creation schemes in the Jarrow constituency.

Answered by Andrew Griffiths

The Government has funded the provision of tailored advice and support through the North East Local Enterprise Partnership’s Growth Hub, which aims to grow the number and quality of jobs across the North East, including Jarrow.

This growth hub has a particular focus on scale-up businesses. In 2014, the North East LEP estimates that the area had 420 scale-up businesses employing 15,500 people with a combined turnover of £1.8billion. A third of the increase in the value of goods and services produced in the North East during 2014 can be attributed to these 420 scaleups.

While the North East economy has seen significant business growth in the past two years, we are supporting the Local Enterprise Partnership in their ambition to do even better by increasing the number of scale-up businesses in the North East LEP area by 50% by 2024, creating 6,000 more jobs.


Written Question
Infrastructure: North East
Tuesday 13th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 provide funding for regional infrastructure development in the North East.

Answered by Andrew Griffiths

Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. That means using our record investments in infrastructure to unlock growth in every part of the country; using the major new investment in research to support innovative manufacturing businesses across the country; and encouraging inward investment into the parts of the country where we need to get growth going faster.

The North East LEP Growth Deal supported by £379.6 million of funding is estimated to provide 8,000 new jobs. The Growth Deal includes funding for the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) providing a world-class environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses. South Tyneside and Sunderland Councils estimate that it will bring £300 million of private sector investment into the region, helping support and grow the manufacturing sector in the North East.


Written Question
Business: North East
Monday 12th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) business start-ups and (b) business closures in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) Tyne and Wear and (iv) the North East in each year since 2010.

Answered by Andrew Griffiths

The Office for National Statistics’ Business Demography survey details the change in number of UK businesses.

When looking at business start-ups and business closures we look at business births and business deaths. The Office of National Statistics defines business births as new business registrations and business deaths as businesses that have ceased to trade.

The following table gives the number of business birth and deaths in the Jarrow Constituency, South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear Metropolitan County and North East Region from 2010 to 2016.

Jarrow Constituency

South Tyneside

Tyne and Wear Metropolitan County

North East Region

Year

Number of Business Births

Number of Business Deaths

Number of Business Births

Number of Business Deaths

Number of Business Births

Number of Business Deaths

Number of Business Births

Number of Business Deaths

2010

150

170

290

315

2,460

2,925

5,975

6,925

2011

175

160

325

295

2,935

2,705

7,070

6,200

2012

200

190

390

335

3,120

2,980

7,265

7,035

2013

275

175

560

300

4,160

2,750

9,685

6,530

2014

310

190

565

375

4,080

3,145

9,650

7,070

2015

275

190

540

410

4,145

3,340

9,635

7,785

2016

330

220

645

440

4,380

3,760

10,180

8,530


Written Question
Shipbuilding: North East
Tuesday 27th February 2018

Asked by: Stephen Hepburn (Independent - Jarrow)

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 promote (a) commercial and (b) military shipbuilding in the North East.

Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford

The National Shipbuilding Strategy sets out plans for procuring all future naval ships. Future warship procurement will be by competition between UK shipyards, and international partners will be encouraged to work with them to produce the best possible commercial solution. Non-warships, such as support shipping, will be procured by international competition. BEIS is supporting the Maritime Enterprise Working Group (MEWG) set up to lead the industry response to the National Shipbuilding Strategy. The MEWG is led by Peter French, former Chief Executive of BMT Group, and is supported by the Society for Maritime Industries (SMI). The MEWG’’s membership consists of high ranking industry members from different parts of the country, including the North East. The group’s priorities include looking at improving competitiveness and productivity in the shipyards and supply chain to help shipbuilding companies improve their capability when bidding for, both, commercial and naval contracts. BEIS ensures that the work of the MEWG is used appropriately in the wider work being done across Whitehall on the National Shipbuilding Strategy.