Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will take steps to bring forward legislative proposals to prevent charges in addition to the cost of a product from being imposed through online transactions.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 (CCRs) require that traders must give full information about the price of the product including any unavoidable extra charges before purchase. These must be given in a clear and comprehensible manner.
The Government has commissioned research on some of the wider issues around ‘drip pricing’ - i.e. traders who unfairly add fees late in the purchasing process. This looks at how widespread the practice is, and the various steps that could be taken to tackle those practices. As part of our review, the Government will consult on ‘drip pricing’ during passage of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill to seek views on which elements of ‘drip pricing’ might need tackling and if further action is required.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether it is her policy to increase the number of trade envoys.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
There are currently 36 Trade Envoys progressing our trade and investment agenda in 66 markets across the world and the Department is constantly reviewing suitable markets to identify where the appointment of a Trade Envoy can be of greatest benefit to the trade and investment aims of the UK alongside the Department’s other support for exporters and investors. The ultimate decision to increase the number of his Trade Envoys is the Prime Minister’s.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
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 reduce Royal Mail’s universal service obligation to five working days of Monday to Friday.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government currently has no plans to change the minimum requirements of the universal postal obligation which are set out in the Postal Services Act 2011, including the provision of a letter delivery service six days a week.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an estimate of the number of (a) companies that are involved in deep sea mining and (b) jobs supported by that industry.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
This information is not held centrally.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an estimate of the average wage of people employed in the deep sea mining industry in the UK.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
This information is not held centrally.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate she has made of the number of jobs created by deep sea mining in the UK in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
This information is not held centrally.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to secure a positive outcome on Rules of Origin for automotive companies.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The UK is negotiating new Free Trade Agreements with modern Rules of Origin that support market access, enabling our industries to benefit from global trade opportunities.
On Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) Rules of Origin, raw material costs for automakers have spiked due to the war in Ukraine, Covid pandemic and energy crisis since we signed the TCA. This is making it harder for UK and EU manufacturers to meet the 2024 transitional rules for electric vehicles, meaning they could face 10% tariffs. We want to work with the EU to fix this specific problem, and UK Ministers and officials are engaging with EU counterparts.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent assessment his Department has made of global demand for UK automotive exports.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Global demand and interest in UK automotive exports is high. 80% of all cars made in the UK are exported, with nearly 60% of those going to the EU, and just under 15% to the USA.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders reported that in 2022 the automotive industry contributed £32 billion in exports (10% of total UK goods exports). UK factories made record numbers of electrified vehicles, boosting their exports to £1.3 billion and British commercial vehicle exports surged by 63.4%.
Our trade deals will further increase export opportunities for UK automotive businesses through tariff removal, flexible rules of origin, and efficient customs procedures. This will ensure the UK automotive sector continues to meet the overseas demand for UK cars.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Automotive Transformation Fund on the competitiveness of electric vehicle manufacturing.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The impact of the Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) will be assessed at intervals over the next five years, with baselining work already underway.
Funding from the ATF has already helped secure key investments including £380m in the production of electric drive units at Ford Halewood, a £60 million investment by Johnson Matthey in Hertfordshire to develop hydrogen technologies, and the £1bn electric vehicle hub in Sunderland in partnership between Nissan and Envision AESC.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to issue guidance to vaping manufacturers on compliance with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Vaping products are in scope of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations and the Government has published comprehensive guidance on Gov.uk setting out what businesses, including manufacturers, need to do to comply with the legislation. The guidance can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/regulations-waste-electrical-and-electronic-equipment