Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what evidence base the Government used in reaching the decision to provide a £1 million business fund for the use of technology to help reduce late payments.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
A £9 million Business Basics Programme was announced in the Industrial Strategy, to test innovative ways of encouraging SMEs to take up the proven technology and business practices that can boost productivity. I announced in the recent Government Response to the Call for Evidence on Creating a Responsible Payment Culture that, as part of that Programme, we will launch a Business Basics fund competition up to £1 million. This will provide funding to trial how to get businesses to take up proven technology and business practices, including a focus on payment technology.
Government has worked closely with trade bodies and businesses to develop this. Mike Cherry, FSB National Chairman, said of the recent announcement: “Small businesses will be delighted with today’s announcement” and “the measures today could finally see an end to poor payment practice. Changing our business culture will boost the small business community, productivity and growth.”
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how he plans to define late payments that the Small Business Commissioner will enforce.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Within the Small Business Commissioner’s (the Commissioner) remit to tackle late payment and help drive culture change in private sector payment practices, the Commissioner addresses small business complaints about their larger customers. The Commissioner will make non-binding recommendations as to how the issues could be resolved, remedied and mitigated.
Further detail of the Commissioner’s complaints handling scheme is set out in the Small Business Commissioner (Scope & Scheme) Regulations 2017.
I announced in the recent Government Response to the Call for Evidence on Creating a Responsible Payment Culture that we will consult on strengthening the Commissioner’s ability to assist and advocate for small businesses in the area of late payments.
Government has worked closely with trade bodies and businesses to develop this. Mike Cherry, FSB National Chairman, said of the recent announcement: “Small businesses will be delighted with today’s announcement” and “the measures today could finally see an end to poor payment practice. Changing our business culture will boost the small business community, productivity and growth.”
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing the maximum payment terms of the Prompt Payment Code from 60 days to 30 days.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The Prompt Payment Code (‘the Code’) encourages businesses to aim for 30-day payment terms as the norm, with 60 days as the maximum. Signatories commit to paying 95% of invoices within 60 days, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
In the recent Government Response to the Creating a Responsible Payment Culture Call for Evidence we announced that responsibility for the Code is to move to the Small Business Commissioner and that the Code will be reformed, following engagement with existing Code signatories. We are also keen to increase the number of businesses signed up to the Code.
UK legislation already establishes maximum 30-day payment terms for transactions with public authorities and 60-day payment terms between businesses, unless they agree longer terms and those terms are not grossly unfair to the supplier.
Government has worked closely with trade bodies and businesses to develop this. Mike Cherry, FSB National Chairman, said of the recent announcement: “Small businesses will be delighted with today’s announcement” and “the measures today could finally see an end to poor payment practice. Changing our business culture will boost the small business community, productivity and growth.”
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making the Prompt Payment Code compulsory for large businesses.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
In the recent Government Response to the Creating a Responsible Payment Culture Call for Evidence we announced that responsibility for the voluntary Prompt Payment Code (the ‘Code’) is to move to the Small Business Commissioner and that the Code will be reformed, following engagement with existing Code signatories.
Turning a voluntary code into a compulsory code would be further legislation respect of payment terms. UK legislation already establishes maximum 30-day payment terms for transactions with public authorities and 60-day payment terms between businesses, unless they agree longer terms and those terms are not grossly unfair to the supplier.
Government has worked closely with trade bodies and businesses to develop this. Mike Cherry, FSB National Chairman, said of the recent announcement: “Small businesses will be delighted with today’s announcement” and “the measures today could finally see an end to poor payment practice. Changing our business culture will boost the small business community, productivity and growth.”
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Scotland on businesses in Scotland deploying no-deal contingency plans as a result of the Government deferring the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Ministers in BEIS regularly speak to Scottish ministers about a wide range of issues including contingency planning.
We do not want or expect a no deal scenario. We have agreed in principle the terms of the UK’s smooth and orderly exit from the EU, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. However, it is the duty of a responsible government to prepare business for a range of potential outcomes, and, as such, Government published 106 technical notices over the summer. Businesses have told us they will continue with no-deal contingency planning in light of these, and further guidance, until the agreement is finalised.
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will make an estimate of the number of businesses deploying no-deal contingency plans as a result of the Government deferring the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
We do not want or expect a no deal scenario. We have agreed in principle the terms of the UK’s smooth and orderly exit from the EU, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement. However, it is the duty of a responsible government to prepare business for a range of potential outcomes, and, as such, Government published 106 technical notices over the summer. Businesses have told us they will continue with no-deal contingency planning in light of these, and further guidance, until the agreement is finalised.
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on the renewables industry of the UK exiting the single market.
Answered by Claire Perry
As set out in my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s Mansion House speech on 2 March 2018, the UK is seeking the broadest and deepest possible agreement – covering more sectors, and co-operating more fully than any Free Trade Agreement anywhere in the world today – for its future economic partnership with the European Union.
Whatever our future relationship with the EU, we remain committed to delivering dependable, secure and low-carbon energy. Leaving the EU will not change any of our domestic statutory commitments to reduce our emissions, as laid out in the Climate Change Act 2008 – indeed, those targets are more ambitious and challenging than those set by EU legislation.
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on the oil and gas industry of the UK exiting the single market.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Government is undertaking a wide range of ongoing analysis in support of our EU exit negotiations and preparations. For example, a sector report on oil and fossil fuel production produced by the Department for the House of Commons Committee on Exiting the European Union was published by the Committee in December 2017: https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/exiting-the-european-union-committee/inquiries/parliament-2017/department-sectoral-analyses-17-19/publications/.
Ministers have a specific responsibility, which Parliament has endorsed, not to release information that would undermine our negotiating position.
The Government engages with oil and gas businesses and stakeholders on a regular basis, helping to ensure that the views of the offshore oil and gas industry are represented and will continue to do so as EU exit negotiations develop.
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the UK leaving the single market on the carbon capture and storage industry.
Answered by Claire Perry
We want the UK to become a global technology leader in Carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) and to maximise the associated economic opportunities for the UK.
CCUS has a potentially important role in decarbonising industry, power and heat in the UK. The Clean Growth Strategy sets out a range of actions – domestically and internationally – that we will take to unlock the technology’s potential, including investing £100 million in innovation for industry and CCUS.
The Government is considering all aspects of its future relationship with the EU, including the arrangements for transport and geological storage of carbon dioxide, as well as how to continue development of CCUS technologies.
Cost effective decarbonisation remains a priority for the UK, and across Europe. We will work domestically and with our trading partners to reduce costs, accelerate deployment and maximise the UK opportunities of CCUS.
Asked by: Kirsty Blackman (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure that all carbon capture and storage-related R&D investment received by UK educational institutions and businesses from the EU will be secured in the long-term.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The Government wants the UK to be the go-to place for researchers, innovators and investors across the world. As we exit the European Union, we intend to secure the right outcome for UK research and innovation. In our future partnership with the EU, the UK will look to establish an ambitious future agreement on science and innovation that ensures the valuable research links between us continue to grow. As part of this, my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister has said that we want the option to fully associate to the excellence-based European science and innovation programmes, including Horizon Europe.
The UK continues to be eligible to fully participate in all aspects of Horizon 2020, the EU’s Research and Innovation Framework Programme, while we remain a member of the EU. This includes aspects of the programme related to carbon capture and storage. The UK and EU negotiators’ Joint Report, reflected in the draft Withdrawal Agreement, envisages that UK entities’ right to participate will remain unaffected by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU for the duration of the programme. On this basis, the UK Government encourages the UK research and innovation community to continue to bid for Horizon 2020 funding and participate in Horizon 2020 projects.
In addition, the UK Government has committed to underwrite Horizon 2020 funding if necessary. This guarantees funding for UK participants in projects ongoing at the point of exit, as well as any successful bids submitted before the UK leaves the EU.
Furthermore, in order to promote research in the UK, we are investing an additional £7 billion in R&D funding over five years to 2022 and as part of the Industrial Strategy the Government made clear our ambition to increase R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027.