Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of staff shortages in the hospitality sector, and if he will have discussions with representatives from the Hospitality Rising campaign in helping to addressing these shortages.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
We are in regular dialogue with the sector and are aware of the recruitment challenges facing businesses. The Hospitality Sector Council is actively looking at this issue, including working directly with the Hospitality Rising Campaign through our Hospitality and Tourism Skills Board.
The ONS publishes data on staff vacancy rates in the sector. This was most recently estimated at 7.2%, and this rate has fallen for the past 4 months.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to prevent the sale of unsafe electrical appliances on online marketplaces.
Answered by Paul Scully
Product safety legislation places obligations on manufacturers, importers and distributors to ensure that consumer products, including electrical goods, are safe before they are placed on the UK market. This applies equally to products sold online and offline.
However, Government recognises that – alongside its benefits – e-commerce has brought significant challenges. This is one of the reasons that the Government is currently reviewing the product safety framework. A Call for Evidence to inform the review ran last year, and the Government Response is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/uk-product-safety-review-call-for-evidence.
A consultation, including proposals to tackle unsafe products sold online, will be published later this year.
Alongside this, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) leads a national programme of regulatory action to tackle the risks from unsafe and non-compliant goods sold on online marketplaces. In 2021, 12,500 products were removed from supply due to OPSS interventions.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether it is Government policy to maintain the Universal Service Obligation for Royal Mail, including the obligation to deliver mail six days a week.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government remains committed to ensuring that the universal service obligation remains affordable and accessible to all users, and that it is financially sustainable in the longer-term. We have no plans to change the obligation to deliver mail six days a week.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
What assessment his Department has made of the effect of state aid limits on the distribution of covid-19 support for businesses in the hospitality and retail sectors.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
The Government is keeping under close review the impact of subsidy control rules on the ability of businesses to access Covid-19 support and will publish new guidance as and when the circumstances require it.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of covid-19 outbreaks that have been traced to (a) Cashino venues and (b) amusement arcades.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held in the format requested.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of (a) Saudi-based pirate broadcaster beoutQ and (b) piracy more widely, on the value of exports from the UK’s creative industries; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Graham Stuart - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Officials in the Department for International Trade work closely with their counterparts in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Intellectual Property Office on matters relating to the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights around the world.
Government ministers and our Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have raised this matter with the Saudi Arabian government and will continue to make representations about any alleged broadcast infringement activities of UK IP.
We understand broadcasting piracy in Saudi Arabia, through the pirate operator beoutQ, has now stopped. This followed pressure by the UK, the US, European countries, and major sports rights holders.
We remain vigilant for any further instances of illegal use of UK-owned intellectual property rights across all industries and will continue to raise these issues in territories where protection is not upheld.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions officials in her Department have had with their Saudi Arabian counterparts on that country's role in the operation of the pirate broadcaster beoutQ and the effect of that pirate broadcasting on exports of UK sports international broadcast rights.
Answered by Graham Stuart - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Officials in the Department for International Trade work closely with their counterparts in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Intellectual Property Office on matters relating to the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights around the world.
Government ministers and our Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have raised this matter with the Saudi Arabian government and will continue to make representations about any alleged broadcast infringement activities of UK IP.
We understand broadcasting piracy in Saudi Arabia, through the pirate operator beoutQ, has now stopped. This followed pressure by the UK, the US, European countries, and major sports rights holders.
We remain vigilant for any further instances of illegal use of UK-owned intellectual property rights across all industries and will continue to raise these issues in territories where protection is not upheld.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for International Development:
What steps she is taking to ensure that the most marginalised children in developing countries receive an education.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
Every child deserves a quality education, and the most marginalised children are central to our commitment. DFID’s Girls’ Education Challenge is supporting up to 1.5 million disadvantaged girls to get an education. We are global leaders on education in emergencies and founder of the Inclusive Education Initiative.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps the Government has taken to cooperate with other EU states on those countries' preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
We are committed to negotiating a successful exit. As a responsible Government we are also preparing for the unlikely scenario in which we leave without a deal. This includes cooperating with Member States to minimise disruption to citizens and businesses. We will continue to impress upon Member States our joint responsibility to work together.
The European Commission have also made clear Member States should take the steps necessary to prepare for this scenario.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Dudley South)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps the Government has taken to cooperate with other EU states on those countries' preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
We are committed to negotiating a successful exit. As a responsible Government we are also preparing for the unlikely scenario in which we leave without a deal. This includes cooperating with Member States to minimise disruption to citizens and businesses. We will continue to impress upon Member States our joint responsibility to work together.
The European Commission have also made clear Member States should take the steps necessary to prepare for this scenario.