Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if she will publish the names of the organisations that applied for a Brexit Readiness Grant; and how much was awarded to each successful applicant.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
We have published a list of successful applicants to date for the Business Readiness Fund online at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/governments-business-readiness-fund-approves-101-million-in-grants-to-124-business-organisations.
We intend to publish an updated list in due course.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions she has had with Ofgem on energy bills being issued in error to customers of other energy suppliers by Spark Energy Ltd.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
Representatives of the department meet regularly with Ofgem on a variety of policy issues, including the retail energy market. It is for Ofgem to lead on erroneous billing and other breaches of supplier licensing conditions.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations she has received from events organisers on the cancellation of the May bank holiday in 2020 in order to commemorate VE Day.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
In making the decision to move the early May bank holiday to commemorate VE Day, options and implications were discussed between Government departments and with the devolved administrations. The Government recognises that some minor disruption has been caused to a small number of events but on this historic occasion we wanted to ensure as many people as possible have the valuable opportunity to pay a fitting tribute to our heroes of the Second World War.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to his oral contribution of 16 July 2019, Official Report, column 663, what the timeframe is for his Department to respond to the consultation on shared parental leave for the self-employed.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
We are currently evaluating the Shared Parental Leave and Pay scheme and are in the process of collecting data and information from a wide variety of sources. The evaluation will conclude later this year.
We expect to be in a position to report on the evaluation later this year.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
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 19 June 2019 to Question 264735 on Musicians: Intellectual Property, what steps the Intellectual Property Office take to verify that an individual who claims the rights to a well-known band name is entitled to do so, prior to its registration under the Trade Marks Act 1994.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
As referenced in the answer to Question 264735, where an application is made to register a trade mark, the application is examined in accordance with the Trade Mark Act 1994 and Rules 2008.
For trade mark applications that consist of the name of a well-known band, the examiner will consider the application based on the facts of the application before them and Section 3(6) of the Trade Marks Act 1994 will be considered. Section 3(6) of the Act states that a trade mark shall not be registered if or to the extent that the application has been made in bad faith. In addition to this, every trade mark application is published, before it is registered, for an opposition period of up to three months. During this period, anyone can oppose the registration of a trade mark including where a third party believes that an application has been filed in bad faith - where, for example, facts not visible or apparent to the examiner are known by that third party. This opposition procedure provides a robust mechanism for all parties to submit detailed submissions and evidence.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent representations he has received on protecting musical groups from having their names registered by third parties for intellectual property purposes without permission.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has responsibility for intellectual property and regularly receives a wide range of representations about rights across the intellectual property spectrum.
In the case of a trade mark application for a band name, the application would be examined in accordance with the Trade Mark Act 1994 and the Trade Mark Rules 2008. Any trade mark applications including the name of a famous individual or group would be considered in line with Section 3(6) of the Trade Marks Act 1994, which states that a trade mark shall not be registered if or to the extent that the application is made in bad faith. Anyone can oppose the registration of a trade mark once it has been published after examination through the Intellectual Property Office’s low-cost tribunal service. The government also provides a specialised Intellectual Property Enterprise Court to provide access to justice at an affordable cost for SMEs and entrepreneurs. This court has streamlined procedures, a limit on legal costs and a cap on damages. It also includes a specific small claims track for disputes up to the value of £10,000.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent estimate he made of the cost of electricity being supplied by utility companies without charge to the user.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Department does not hold data on the cost of electricity supplied by energy companies without charge.
Ofgem regularly reports on energy customer debt as part of the monitoring of their Consumer Vulnerability Strategy. Their latest report can be found online at:
https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/consumer-vulnerability-strategy
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with utility companies on reducing the number of instances where electricity is supplied without charge to the user.
Answered by Claire Perry
BEIS Ministers and officials meet energy companies to discuss a range of issues.
Ofgem rules require energy suppliers to engage with their customers when they become aware they may be in payment difficulty and offer the opportunity to repay money owed through a repayment plan.
Energy suppliers can ultimately disconnect customers who fail to agree, or stick to an agreed repayment plan. Alternatives to disconnection include recovery of debt directly from certain benefits or the installation of prepayment meter, either by agreement or under a warrant to recover the money owed, but only where it is safe and reasonably practicable to do so.
Vulnerable customers, eligible for the Priority Services Register, cannot be disconnected during the winter months (1 October- 31 March) and many suppliers have signed a ‘safety net’, a pledge to never knowingly disconnect a vulnerable customer at any time of year.
Suppliers should signpost vulnerable customers in debt to impartial advice and specialist support services, such as the Extra Help Unit, run by Citizens Advice.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
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 4 June 2018 to Question 147822, on lighting: EU action, if he will publish the representations made in writing to the European Commission by his Department.
Answered by Claire Perry
I recognise the impact this draft legislation could have, for both the short and long-term future of theatres across the country and BEIS officials will continue to work with the sector and the European Commission to find a solution that works for everyone.
As this proposal is still subject to ongoing negotiations, it would not be appropriate to publish written comments submitted to the European Commission. A final decision on the draft legislation is not expected until the end of the year.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations his Department made to the European Commission on the effect of the proposed EU Lighting Regulation 2020 to replace EU1194/2012 and associated regulation under the Ecodesign Working Plan 2016-19, on the use of different types stage lighting across the creative industries.
Answered by Claire Perry
Officials from the Department attended the EU consultation forum in December 2017, the most recent discussion of this issue in Brussels, to discuss the latest Ecodesign lighting proposals. The Department has subsequently made representations to the European Commission in writing and in person to discuss the issue of stage lighting and potential solutions. I understand that representatives from the industry have also met with the Commission and will be drafting an alternative proposal for stage lighting for their consideration.
It should be noted that this is only a proposal at this stage and remains open for discussion, with a final decision on the draft regulation likely to be made towards the end of the year. We will continue to engage with both industry and the European Commission in the meantime.