Jonathan Reynolds

As Minister responsible for postal services policy, I have met Royal Mail to discuss a range of issues relating to its role as the universal postal service provider.

There are fifteen officials in the Department for Business and Trade working on legislative proposals on reform of audit and corporate governance.

As set out in the published terms of reference (www.gov.uk/government/publica-tions/prompt-payment-and-cash-flow-review/payment-and-cash-flow-review-terms-of-refer-ence), we will publish a conclusions document in 2023 which will:

• summarise our findings in response to the engagement undertaken, and next steps;

• respond to the consultation on the Payment Practices and Performance Regulations 2017;

• set out the findings of the statutory review on the performance of the Small Business Commissioner.

Ministerial responsibilities will be published in due course.

The Government is supporting six Private Members Bills to increase workforce participation, protect vulnerable workers, and level the playing field, ensuring unscrupulous businesses do not have a competitive advantage. Relevant trade unions were consulted prior to and throughout the development of these reforms.

The Government regularly discusses legislative proposals with the trade unions and has recently engaged with unions on the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill, which is currently progressing through the House of Lords.

I recently met with Trades Union Congress, and the Secretary of State is also scheduled to meet with the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress in April to discuss shared interests.

The Department for Business and Trade has appointed Minister Hollinrake as Ministerial Disability Champion.

The Windsor Framework protects the economic rights of the people of Northern Ireland and provides us with the basis to move forward together as one united country. The Retained EU Law Bill does not impact the Framework.

Furthermore, the Government has always been clear that we are committed to taking the necessary steps to uphold the UK’s international obligations after the sunset date, including those obligations in the Withdrawal Agreement and now in the Windsor Framework.

The Government is working with Post Office to ensure all victims of the Horizon IT scandal are returned to the financial position they should have been in had the wrongs not occurred.

Both Post Office and the Government want to see fair compensation for all victims and are looking at the tax issues raised so that if any unfairness is identified in individual cases, this can be addressed.

The Government is working with Post Office to ensure all victims of the Horizon IT scandal are returned to the financial position they should have been in had the wrongs not occurred.

Both Post Office and the Government want to see fair compensation for all victims and are looking at the tax issues raised so that if any unfairness is identified in individual cases, this can be addressed.

The Government is working with Post Office to ensure all victims of the Horizon IT scandal are returned to the financial position they should have been in had the wrongs not occurred.

Both Post Office and the Government want to see fair compensation for all victims and are looking at the tax issues raised so that if any unfairness is identified in individual cases, this can be addressed.

Data on the Help to Grow: Digital scheme will be released in Spring 2023 after the scheme has fully closed.

Data on the Help to Grow: Digital scheme will be released in Spring 2023 after the scheme has fully closed.

The Government has not set a date for publication of a draft Audit Reform Bill. The Government is committed to legislating when Parliamentary time allows.

As set out in the published terms of reference (www.gov.uk/government/publications/prompt-payment-and-cash-flow-review/payment-and-cash-flow-review-terms-of-reference), we anticipate delivery of a conclusions document in 2023 which would:

• summarise our findings in response to the engagement undertaken, and next steps;
• respond to the consultation on the Payment Practices and Performance Regulations 2017;
• set out the findings of the statutory review on the performance of the Small Business Commissioner.

The Government recognises the important role the steel sector plays in the UK economy and we continue to work with the sector to understand and support its decarbonisation investment plans. To this end, we have already established various funding schemes such as the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund and the Industrial Decarbonisation and Hydrogen Revenue Support. Further proposals, including the approach to the Clean Steel Fund, will be unveiled as soon as possible.

Growth is one of the Prime Minister’s top five priorities. The Government has a plan to grow the economy, capitalising on both the UK’s world-leading position in the sectors of the future and the regulatory and trade opportunities of leaving the European Union. This Department plays a vital role in this cross-Government effort, and we are committed to working in partnership with the private sector.

For example, Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government Chief Scientific Adviser, is leading a review of regulation in five high-potential sectors – digital technology, green industries, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, and creative industries – to identify barriers to innovation and catalyse growth.

Section 70 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 requires Local Weights and Measures Authorities in Great Britain to report on their Weights and Measures enforcement work over a twelve-month period.

The most recent report for 2021-22 was published on GOV.UK on 31 October 2022 and includes information on staffing levels and numbers of inspections.

Local authorities make resourcing decisions relating to the delivery of their statutory duties and local priorities.

Section 70 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 requires Local Weights and Measures Authorities in Great Britain to report on their Weights and Measures enforcement work over a twelve-month period.

The most recent report for 2021-22 was published on GOV.UK on 31 October 2022 and includes information on staffing levels and numbers of inspections.

Local authorities make resourcing decisions relating to the delivery of their statutory duties and local priorities.

Table 2.1d in Business Demography, UK shows the number of business closures by district, county, and unitary authority in England, and can be found here: www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/datasets/businessdemographyreferencetable.

The Cabinet Office has published guidance to departments on the use of private email that covers how information is held for the purposes of access to information, and how formal decisions are recorded for the official record. This guidance is being updated to reflect changes in technology and ways of working, and will be published by the Cabinet Office in due course. It is Government policy not to comment on individual Ministers’ security arrangements. Ministers receive support and expert advice to help them meet their obligations in the most appropriate and secure fashion. That includes regular security briefings for Ministers, and advice on protecting their personal data and mitigating cyber threats.

There is a place for the use of a variety of digital channels in fast moving modern environments. Ministers will have informal conversations from time to time, in person or remotely, and relevant content from such discussions is passed back to officials. They will also use a variety of digital communications channels for personal, political and Parliamentary matters.

The Government was pleased to sign the Heads of Terms agreement back in June, and since then has been working at pace with Moderna to negotiate a strategic partnership to support the UK’s vaccine resilience. During this time, relevant Ministers have been regularly kept informed of progress, and will continue to receive full briefings as the contract progresses.

We intend to publish data on costs of both the Help to Grow programmes on the GOV.UK website by Spring 2023.

We intend to publish data on costs of both the Help to Grow programmes on the GOV.UK website by Spring 2023.

The new polar research vessel was named Royal Research Ship Sir David Attenborough in 2019 and came into service in 2021. Annual operating costs are in the region of £20 million. The ship is operated by the British Antarctic Survey a wholly owned research centre of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). All UKRI’s budget is considered capital in the national accounts.

The amount allocated to the Met Office Supercomputing 2020+ Programme over the 2022-2025 Spending Review period is £349.1 million. This is part of the total business case approved investment of £1.2 billion. The Programme is funded through the BEIS R&D Capital budget. The Met Office annual report and accounts are published on metoffice.gov.uk.

The Taskforce on Innovation, Growth and Regulatory Reform’s (TIGRR) report shows how, with ambition and vision, the UK can deliver on the opportunities of Brexit. The Benefits of Brexit paper outlines how the government is driving forward our commitments in response to TIGRR, including forging ahead to reform our data laws, setting out a 10 year plan to make Britain a global AI superpower, building on the successes of the Vaccine Taskforce to ensure we have the world’s most innovative life sciences sector, as well as reforms to the financial services and agriculture sectors. These reforms will create a new pro-growth, high standards regulatory framework that gives businesses the confidence to innovate, invest and create jobs.

The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill, introduced to Parliament on 22nd September, will help to accelerate delivery of the recommendations from TIGRR.

We intend to publish data on take up of both the Help to Grow programmes on the gov.uk website by the end of December.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy uses both imperial measures and metric units in internal documents and briefings.

The Office for National Statistics has calculated that the UK’s business investment was £207bn in 2021. This amounted to 14.3% of GDP, the lowest of all nations in the G7 by this measure.

The Government is committed to boosting business led growth and investment across all parts of the UK.

The Government will prepare and publish a draft Bill on audit and corporate governance during this session of Parliament. The Government will bring forward legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.

There are 19 BEIS officials working on legislative proposals on reform of audit and corporate governance.

Given the recent changes in government, we are still in the process of finalising ministerial portfolios. We will make further updates in due course.

We intend to publish data on take up of the Help to Grow programmes later this year on the GOV.UK website. Help to Grow: Management will support up to 30,000 small business leaders to improve their leadership and management capability and enhance their growth through world-leading business schools. Help to Grow: Digital could help up to 100,000 eligible SMEs adopt new digital technologies over three years as it offers businesses targeted financial support.

The consultation ‘Choice on units of measurement: markings and sales’ closed on 26 August. We are reviewing the responses to the consultation and will respond in due course.

The Government monitors the economy using a range of data sources. In a dynamic and competitive economy, a proportion of businesses will cease trading each year, for a range of reasons.

The recently announced Energy Bill Relief Scheme (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-outlines-plans-to-help-cut-energy-bills-for-businesses) all businesses and other non-domestic customers are protected from excessively high energy bills over the winter period. The Government will publish a review of the scheme after 3 months to inform decisions on future support after March 2023. The review will focus in particular on identifying the most vulnerable non-domestic customers and how the government will continue assisting them with energy costs. Continuing support to those deemed eligible would begin at the end of the initial 6-month support scheme, without a gap.

The Government remains determined to secure a competitive future for our energy intensive industries (EIIs), providing them with extensive support, including over £2 billion to help with the costs of energy and to protect jobs. As part of our British Energy Security Strategy we recently announced an extension of the EII Compensation Scheme for a further three years and its budget will be more than doubled.

The Government announced a new six-month scheme – the Energy Price Guarantee for Businesses (EPGB) – to protect all businesses and other non-domestic energy users from soaring energy costs. It will offer comparable support to that being provided for consumers and we expect the scheme to be available in the autumn. After this initial six-month scheme the Government will provide focused support for vulnerable sectors, targeted to make sure those most in need get support.