Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department plans to hold an African Investment Summit.

Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)

I refer the member for Arundel and South Downs to the answer I gave to UIN 101498 on 8 January.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish information held by the Disclosure and Barring Service on DBS checks issued in the most recent year by (a) sector, (b) occupation and (c) Standard Industrial Classification.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is operationally independent and therefore responsible for the information it publishes.

The organisation currently publishes performance against its targets at DBS dataset 1: DBS checks, the DBS Update Service, and disputes - GOV.UK.

It does not publish information about the sector, occupation, or Standard Industrial Classification in relation to its checks.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of DBS checks are requested for roles not involving regulated activity.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

DBS received 7,434,323 applications across all levels of checks between 01/03/2025 and 28/02/2026. Of those, 3,580,685 (48%) applications were for roles not involved in regulated activity.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure the Employment Rights Act 2025 does not negatively impact employment levels.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

Our analysis demonstrates that the Act is more likely to help more people into work than reduce employment. Making work more attractive and accessible to a wider range of people, such as those with caring responsibilities or health conditions, can help more people enter or return to the workforce.

Changes will be introduced gradually over a two-year period, giving businesses time to prepare. We have launched a dedicated website offering practical guidance and support for businesses and workers, alongside wider communication, engagement and educational activity to raise awareness. We will keep consulting with businesses, trade unions and civil society to make sure we get the detail right.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Employment Rights Act 2025 on the number of entry-level and flexible jobs.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Government published a comprehensive package of analysis on the impact of the Employment Rights act and this is available here: http://www.gov.uk/guidance/employment-rights-bill-impact-assessments.

Our analysis, supported by independent modelling and international evidence, demonstrates pro-employment effects are more likely and deems the overall risk to employment to be low.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what proportion of Freedom of Information requests received by his Department were responded to (a) within the statutory 20 working day deadline, (b) between 21 and 40 working days, (c) between 41 and 60 working days, and (d) after 60 working days, in each of the last three calendar years.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Cabinet Office publishes official Freedom of Information (FOI) statistics for all monitored central government bodies, including the Department for Business and Trade, as part of its regular Government FOI Statistics series. These statistics are available on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statistics.

FOI statistics for 2023 and 2024 are currently available online through this collection. The 2025 FOI statistics are scheduled to be published in April 2026.