Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to paragraphs 28 and 29 of the summary grounds of the Secretary of State provided in the High Court case between the King (on the application of Al-Haq) v the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, AC-2023-LON-003634, whether any of the arms export licences identified in the Change in Circumstances review have been revoked since January 2024.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is monitoring the situation in Israel and Gaza very closely.
The Government can and does respond quickly and flexibly to changing international circumstances. All licences are kept under careful and continual review and are able to be amended, suspended, refused or revoked as circumstances require.
HM Government publishes data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. military, other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will publish a breakdown of the type of military equipment which has been licensed for export to Israel in last five years.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
HM Government publishes data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics on GOV.UK, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. Military, Other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. This data also specifies whether the goods covered by a particular licence are for ultimate use by the destination country or whether the goods are due to be incorporated into another product for use by a third-party destination (ie incorporation licences).
This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
The most recent publication was on 30th August 2023, and covered the period 1st January – 31st March 2023. Information covering 1st April – 30th June 2023 will be published on 16th January 2024.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make it her policy to (a) monitor and (b) report on the impact of UK-supplied arms on civilians in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK export licensing system is based on having a thorough risk-assessment process for the original export licence before the goods leave the UK.
We rigorously assess every application on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria (the SELC).
The SELC provide a thorough risk assessment framework for export licence applications and require us to think hard about the impact of providing equipment and its capabilities. We will not license the export of equipment where to do so would be inconsistent with the SELC. These are not decisions we take lightly.
Our assessments draw on all available information relevant to the criteria in the case, including reports from NGOs and our overseas network.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many arms licences have been issued to Israel in the last five years; and what those licences were for.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
HM Government publishes data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. military, other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data
The most recent publication was on 30th August 2023, and covered the period 1st January – 31st March 2023. Information covering 1st April – 30th June 2023 will be published on 16th January 2024.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to ensure (a) transparency and (b) accountability of arms sales to countries involved in conflicts.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
HM Government takes its export control responsibilities very seriously and we operate one of the most robust and transparent export control regimes in the world.
We rigorously assess every application on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria (the Criteria). The Criteria provide a thorough risk assessment framework and we will not issue an export licence to any destination where to do so would be inconsistent with the Criteria.
We can and do respond quickly and flexibly to changing international circumstances. All licences are kept under careful and continual review as standard. Acting upon advice from other Government departments, in particular the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office regarding the situation in country and the risks this poses with respect to the UK’s export control responsibilities. Secretary of State for Business and Trade is able to amend, suspend or revoke extant licences and refuse new licence applications as circumstances require.
We publish comprehensive Official Statistics every quarter about the decisions we make on licence applications including those issued, refused or revoked. This includes data on outcome, end user destination(s), value and licence (product type). This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many breaches of minimum wage legislation there have been by employers in Leicester East constituency in each of the last four years.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
All businesses – irrespective of their size, business sector or location – are responsible for paying the correct minimum wage to their staff.
National Minimum Wage enforcement data is not available at constituency level so regional data has been provided in Table 1.
Table 1: National Minimum Wage arrears and workers identified in the East Midlands, 2018-19 to 2021-22
Financial Year | Region | Arrears (£) | Workers |
2018-19 | East Midlands | 1,308,929 | 10,291 |
2019-20 | East Midlands | 920,686 | 14,104 |
2020-21 | East Midlands | 9,461,665 | 88,921 |
2021-22 | East Midlands | 2,997,299 | 11,435 |
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Departments are taking to help ensure that garment factories in Leicester East constituency are (a) inspected effectively and (b) meet legal obligations on (i) pay, (ii) safety and (ii) working conditions.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
HMRC enforces the National Minimum Wage on behalf of the Department for Business and Trade. Where HMRC identify other risks such as potential Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking, HMRC will make referrals to the bodies with the powers to investigate.
Similarly, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will respond to intelligence about unsafe working practices that they receive from a variety of sources including workers and other agencies. This follow up includes inspection where it is the most effective form of intervention.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether the Government is taking steps to encourage UK retailers to audit their supply chains on a continuous basis to ensure that workers in those supply chains are (a) paid a living wage and (b) work in a safe environment.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This Government is committed to building an economy that works for everyone. Through the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and the National Living Wage (NLW) the Government protects the lowest paid within our society. On 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage increased 9.7% to £10.42 from £9.50 an hour. The Government takes reports of serious labour exploitation and illegal working practices very seriously, and regularly engage on these issues.