Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that products subject to an OPSS withdrawal notice, such as the UPP U004 e-bike battery, cannot remain listed for sale on online marketplaces months after the notice is issued.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
Under UK law, businesses are responsible for only placing safe products on the market, and must act to protect consumers where a product poses a risk. In 2024, the Office for Product Safety and Standards OPSS issued Withdrawal Notices, including eight to online marketplaces, to prevent the sale of dangerous models of UPP-branded e-bike battery. OPSS holds businesses, including online marketplaces, accountable for removing unsafe products from supply.
My department also recently consulted on reforming the Product Safety Framework, including to introduce requirements for online marketplaces to take proactive action to identify, prevent and remove non-compliant products from sale.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what plans he has to use secondary legislation under the Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025 to mandate independent third-party certification of e-bike and e-scooter batteries before they can be sold in the UK.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
Battery safety is covered by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 which require all consumer products sold in the UK to be safe. Batteries are also subject to traceability requirements. Through our recent product safety framework consultations, we have sought views on the risks associated with lithium-ion batteries and potential measures to strengthen consumer protections. Defra is also reviewing the UK’s extended producer responsibility scheme for batteries.
Given the complexity of the issues in the consultation, we will carefully consider stakeholder feedback and intend to publish our response in the autumn.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what plans he has to introduce mandatory registration of e-bike and e-scooter batteries at the point of sale, to improve traceability in the event of a recall, fire or safety incident.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
Battery safety is covered by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 which require all consumer products sold in the UK to be safe. Batteries are also subject to traceability requirements. Through our recent product safety framework consultations, we have sought views on the risks associated with lithium-ion batteries and potential measures to strengthen consumer protections. Defra is also reviewing the UK’s extended producer responsibility scheme for batteries.
Given the complexity of the issues in the consultation, we will carefully consider stakeholder feedback and intend to publish our response in the autumn.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to monitor how accredited lenders are applying the Growth Guarantee Scheme, including the use of personal guarantees, the interest rates being charged, and the criteria used to assess applications from viable small businesses; and whether he will require the British Business Bank to publish annual performance data for the Scheme, including application volumes, approval and decline rates, average APRs, and the proportion of facilities supported by personal guarantees.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Accredited lenders must operate within Growth Guarantee Scheme (GGS) rules and the British Business Bank (BBB) monitors lenders to ensure compliance with those requirements.
Decisions on individual lending applications, including the assessment of whether a business meets GGS eligibility criteria, the use of personal guarantees and the interest rates charged, are decisions for accredited lenders, undertaken in accordance with the Scheme's rules and each lender's own credit and risk assessment processes.
The BBB publishes quarterly performance data for GGS, including information on the number and value of facilities, sectoral and regional distribution, the characteristics of supported businesses, and portfolio performance.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, when he plans to publish the response to the consultation on trade union right of access to workplaces.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
Officials are in the process of reviewing the responses to the consultation, and the government will publish a formal response in due course.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to help encourage the manufacture of new zero-emission aircraft.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
As part of the Jet Zero Strategy, government co-invests in zero-carbon aircraft technology through the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) Programme. To date, it has supported collaborative R&D projects totalling over £500m which will help develop new and enabling technologies for zero emission aircraft.
Government provided a £15m grant to the ATI-led FlyZero project, which found that green liquid hydrogen offers the greatest potential to power future zero-carbon emission aircraft. Building on FlyZero, government is funding the ATI-led ‘Hydrogen Capability Network Phase 0 Project’ to accelerate the development of liquid hydrogen propulsion aircraft technologies, capabilities and skills in the UK.
Government also set up the Jet Zero Council, a partnership with industry to drive the ambitious delivery of new technologies and innovative ways to cut aviation emissions. It includes a focused Zero Emission Flight Delivery Group to advise on how government and industry can put the UK in a leading position in the race to achieve zero emission flight.