Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority into the proposed merger between Vodafone and Three Mobile.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Merger investigations undertaken by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) are independent of Government. The CMA is directly accountable to Parliament.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the links between the Li family and the Chinese state on the proposed merger of Three Mobile with Vodafone.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Government has the power to review mergers and acquisitions through the National Security and Investment Act to ensure the most sensitive sectors of our economy are protected. It would be inappropriate to comment on private individuals.
The Secretary of State in the Cabinet Office has issued a Final Order in respect of the proposed Vodafone Three merger, allowing the transaction to proceed subject to the introduction of proportionate measures to address national security concerns.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Animals in Science Regulation Unit annual report 2022, published on 25 April 2024, if he will make it his policy to initiate an investigation into the reasons for the rise in non-compliance cases since 2021.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Home Office takes non-compliance with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 very seriously. The reasons for the increase in the number of non-compliance cases in 2022 include the introduction of a risk-based audit programme and the drive to improve governance within establishments, including self-reporting.
The Animals in Science Regulation Unit will further evaluate trends in non-compliance as its regulatory reform programme develops. Every case is investigated, and remedies and sanctions applied, using more rigorous sanctions in cases where animal welfare is impacted or there are significant systems failures.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to increase public sector pay in line with inflation.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pay for most frontline workforces is set via independent Pay Review Bodies (PRBs). PRBs consider a range of evidence when forming their recommendations, including the need to recruit, retain and motivate suitably able and qualified people; the financial circumstances of government; the government’s policies for improving public services; and the inflation target.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the workplace culture at the Financial Conduct Authority.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is operationally independent from Government, meaning it is responsible for internal matters, including its workplace culture.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to help support train companies to (a) buy rather than lease trains and (b) purchase UK-made trains.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Rolling stock assets have an expected operational lifespan of between thirty to thirty-five years exceeding the duration of the operating contracts currently in place with train operators.
These long-term investments made by the rolling stock owners passes risk from the Government to the private sector. It also means that such capital does not need to be spent by the Government on rolling stock but can be invested elsewhere in infrastructure such as schools, prisons and roads.
Train manufacturing is a competitive, commercial market in which there can be no guarantee of orders to individual manufacturers. All contracts need to be assessed thoroughly to demonstrate a business need for the trains and comply with the law.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what comparative assessment she has made of trends in the levels of steel production between (a) the UK and (b) European Union Member States.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
In the latest data made available by the World Steel Association, the UK is estimated to have produced 6 million tonnes of crude steel. Crude steel production for the 27 EU member states is estimated at 136 million tonnes.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to help increase domestic steel production.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Government recognises the vital role that steel plays within the UK and has taken steps to increase competitiveness and a level playing field. We have provided over £730 million in energy cost relief since 2013; the British Industry Supercharger is now in place to reduce energy costs. The sector has been able to bid for Government funds worth hundreds of millions of pounds to support energy efficiency and decarbonisation, and we have announced a joint £1.25bn investment project with Tata Steel.
We have a robust trade remedies framework to protect domestic industries, including steel, from unfair trading practices and unforeseen surges in imports. Last April, we published an updated public procurement note to help the UK steel sector be well positioned when competing for public contracts. The Government is consulting on a UK CBAM to tackle carbon leakage risk.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had discussions with homelessness stakeholders on measures within the Criminal Justice Bill.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities lead on homelessness and rough sleeping and as such have regular meetings with stakeholders. They reviewed the Vagrancy Act and determined replacement legislation was needed. They published the response to their public consultation on replacement in 2023.
The Home Office has additionally engaged with police, local authorities, Police and Crime Commissioners and other organisations including the homelessness sector. This has highlighted that more direct tools were needed to respond to begging and rough sleeping where it causes nuisance to others.
These provisions will be supported by guidance highlighting that local authority outreach and engagement remain at the heart of our approach and that these civil tools support a staggered approach to enforcement where that is necessary.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to help encourage uptake in the use of hydrogen.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Our regulatory and policy framework is designed to support offtakers to switch to hydrogen, and includes innovation funding, CAPEX and ongoing revenue support.
DESNZ’s Hydrogen Production Business Model will provide ongoing revenue support to incentivise production and use of low carbon hydrogen. The first in our planned yearly allocation rounds for the Hydrogen Production Business Model represented the largest number of commercial scale green hydrogen projects announced at once anywhere in Europe, and the second round has already closed to applications. Our hydrogen transport and storage business models will link up production and demand, enabling security of supply for offtakers.