Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much Official Development Assistance his Department has disbursed in (a) Least Developed, (b) Other Low Income, (c) Lower Middle Income and (d) Upper Middle Income countries in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was formed in July 2016. The data provided here shows the combined BEIS Official Development Assistance (ODA) cash spend position for both Climate ODA and R&D ODA, on a calendar year basis.
Country Type | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 |
a) LDCs | 21,754,998 | 47,625,316 | 50,249,793 | 55,334,226 | 174,964,333 |
b) Other LICs | 1,516,915 | 9,053,023 | 870,122 | 1,690,737 | 13,130,797 |
c) LMICs | 30,574,472 | 47,217,944 | 76,697,348 | 93,034,109 | 247,523,872 |
d) UMICs | 66,782,481 | 185,059,596 | 164,686,185 | 142,735,916 | 559,264,178 |
Other | 601,816,475 | 476,361,051 | 557,209,148 | 667,036,187 | 2,302,422,861 |
TOTAL | 722,445,342 | 765,316,930 | 849,712,595 | 959,831,174 | 3,297,306,042 |
In the above table, ”Other” covers spend that is categorised as regional / global / multi-country or spend that is unable to be categorised by country. Some of this “Other” spend would likely have been disbursed to the country categories listed in a) – d), but it is not possible to quantify the amount.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
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 publish guidance for businesses affected by a local lockdown due to the covid-19 outbreak on whether employees who live within a lockdown zone but work or trade outside that zone can continue to work.
Answered by Paul Scully
Public Health England, the Joint Biosecurity Centre and NHS Test and Trace constantly monitor levels of infection across the country, and will work with local authorities to implement additional measures if needed.
The Government has published advice for workplace areas to factor in local outbreak measures. For example, the ‘Shift patterns and outbreaks’ section can be found at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5eb97e7686650c278d4496ea/working-safely-during-covid-19-offices-contact-centres-110520.pdf. This advises that shift groups, where contact is unavoidable, happens between the same people.
It is, however, for each business to carry out its own risk assessment, in consultation with their workers, to inform the actions they should take to reduce the risks of COVID-19. All companies have the same obligations to protect the health and safety of their workers and other people who may be affected by their business.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations he has made to his Brazilian counterpart on the (a) continued deforestation of the Amazon rainforest, and (b) effect of that deforestation on UK businesses operating in Brazil.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
I am concerned by data that suggests a recent increase in deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, and am aware of concerns raised by UK business and consumers on risks to supply chains. Government officials working in London and Brazil routinely monitor deforestation rates and risks.
We have a long-established government partnership with Brazil to tackle deforestation, promote sustainable growth and mitigate climate change, and supported by £200m of UK International Climate Finance. This includes promoting business models that can be scaled up, like a proposed green bond to help Brazilian farmers avoid moving into pristine territory, under our UK Partnerships for Forests programme, and international partnerships to incentivise at scale the protection of standing forests through REDD Early Movers. This complements UK diplomatic and technical dialogue in Brazil, working at the Federal and State levels of Brazilian Government. The HMG-convened UK Roundtable on Sustainable Soy has also been an important forum for UK businesses and consumers to work together to engage Brazilian partners on ensuring resilient, sustainable trade.
The UK stands ready to support Brazil’s current and future efforts to counter increasing deforestation rates, including as new global ambition is considered for a successful UK COP26 Presidency.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
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 21 May 2020 to Question 46121, what support is available to businesses with highly perishable stock that have been forced to close or delay reopening as a result of a local covid-19 lockdown.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has made an unprecedented amount of support available to businesses in response to the Covid-19 crisis including grants, loans, self-employed income support and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). We will carefully monitor need in relation to local lockdown and determine if additional support is required.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to Government guidance entitled Holiday entitlement and pay during coronavirus (COVID-19), published 13 May 2020, whether NHS staff contracted with a third party will be able to carry forward their annual leave entitlements for up to two years, in line with their front line colleagues.
Answered by Paul Scully
Any individual who is a worker under the Working Time Regulations 1998 is entitled to 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave. 1.6 weeks of this annual leave can be carried forward into the next leave year if provided for in a binding written agreement between the worker and their employer.
The Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 provide for the remaining four weeks of annual leave to be carried into the following two leave years if, due to the effects of coronavirus, it is not reasonably practicable for a worker to take this leave in the year to which it relates. This applies to all workers who are unable to take their annual leave due to the coronavirus, including non-medical NHS staff.
It is a matter for individual employers and their workers to consider whether it is possible to facilitate a worker taking annual leave. In these unprecedented times, the Government urges employers to carefully consider the guidance and the welfare of their workforce.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to Government guidance entitled Holiday entitlement and pay during coronavirus (COVID-19), published 13 May 2020, whether non-medical NHS staff will be able to carry forward their annual leave entitlements for up to two years in line with their front line colleagues.
Answered by Paul Scully
Any individual who is a worker under the Working Time Regulations 1998 is entitled to 5.6 weeks of statutory annual leave. 1.6 weeks of this annual leave can be carried forward into the next leave year if provided for in a binding written agreement between the worker and their employer.
The Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 provide for the remaining four weeks of annual leave to be carried into the following two leave years if, due to the effects of coronavirus, it is not reasonably practicable for a worker to take this leave in the year to which it relates. This applies to all workers who are unable to take their annual leave due to the coronavirus, including non-medical NHS staff.
It is a matter for individual employers and their workers to consider whether it is possible to facilitate a worker taking annual leave. In these unprecedented times, the Government urges employers to carefully consider the guidance and the welfare of their workforce.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department's share of the Official Development Assistance budget will be reduced in the event of a decrease in GNI.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The UK has a legal commitment to spend 0.7% of its gross national income (GNI) each year on Official Development Assistance (ODA). HM Treasury allocates ODA budgets to Departments and is responsible for decisions on changes to these budgets.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department is signing new funding agreements for projects funded by Official Development Assistance.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
In the short term, we are agreeing our future work in close cooperation with other Official Development Assistance (ODA) spending Departments, such as Cabinet Office and HM Treasury, to ensure the best value for money and that decisions are taken in the national interest.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
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 publish the criteria his Department plans to use for prioritising Official Development Assistance spending in the event of a decrease in GNI.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
In order to tackle climate change and advance our Global Britain objectives, the Department takes evidence-based spending decisions and maintains high standards of programme delivery that are consistent with the Government’s best practice.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that banks are providing fair advice in the interests of small businesses on whether they should apply for financial support through the (a) Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme or (b) Bounce Back Loan Scheme.
Answered by Paul Scully
Accredited lenders are responsible for providing loans under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS). Businesses should approach accredited lenders in the first instance, providing information about the type and amount of finance they need to access. The lender will determine the right type of finance for a business’s needs. A full list of accredited lenders can be found on the British Business Bank website.
The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) allows business with a turnover of less than £45 million to access working capital (including loans, overdrafts, invoice finance and asset finance) of up to £5 million for up to six years.
The Bounce Back Loan Scheme helps small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and up to 25% of their turnover. The maximum loan available is £50,000.
Full details of both the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) can be found on GOV.UK and the British Business Bank websites.
Decision-making on whether a business is eligible to access the CBILS or the BBLS is fully delegated to the accredited lenders, and individual lending decisions remain at the discretion of these lenders.
The Government continues to work closely with lenders to help SMEs access the finance they need.