Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what support his Department is providing to UK companies in the (a) events and (b) logistics sectors affected by EU visa and travel restrictions under the Schengen 90/180-day rule.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) recognises the challenges UK businesses face in complying with the Schengen 90/180 day rule. I note many of these stem from the botched Brexit deal which he supported. Any changes to the rule are a matter for Member States and the EU. However, DBT publishes guidance for UK nationals travelling to the EU and EFTA countries for business purposes (Travelling to the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein for work - GOV.UK). DBT will continue to listen to concerns raised by businesses affected by these rules, to advocate for UK companies abroad, and to explore mutually beneficial improvements to short-term business mobility between the UK and EU.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the UK–US trade deal on bioethanol imports on the UK’s sustainable aviation fuel sector.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal, the UK created a preferential duty-free quota for imports of US ethanol of 1.4bn litres per year. The UK already imports a significant amount of ethanol from the US. DBT officials continue to work closely with other government departments to monitor and assess risks across the supply chain. The Government is actively supporting the Sustainable Aviation Fuel sector. We have allocated £63m in this financial year to support SAF producers through the Advanced Fuels Fund and committed further support throughout the Spending Review period.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with the kitchen manufacturing industry on (a) demand, (b) fixed costs and (c) access to (i) investment and (ii) restructuring support.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The department has not held recent specific discussions with the kitchen manufacturing industry regarding demand, fixed costs, or access to investment and restructuring support.
However, the department maintains regular engagement with manufacturing sectors across the economy through various forums and stakeholder meetings. This includes addressing broader business concerns such as energy costs, supply chain resilience, and access to finance.
The government remains committed to supporting UK manufacturing, including through the Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan and the British Business Bank's investment programmes and business support services that are available to all manufacturing sectors.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2025 to Question 62769 on Companies House: Databases, whether Companies House plans to remove entry 08881386 from the register.
Answered by Justin Madders
Companies House will take appropriate action using the powers available whenever suspicious information is brought to its attention or identified by internal checks.
The company in question was dissolved in 2018 and does not form part of the Register of Companies, though its records will remain available for 20 years.
Companies House will act to remove inaccurate information relating to the company in question from the public records.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate he has made of the cost to the civil service of the requirement in the Employment Rights Bill to provide (a) additional facility time to trade unions and (b) facility time for equality representatives.
Answered by Justin Madders
In October 2024 the government published impact assessments on the trade union-related measures within the Employment Rights Bill and these are available here: Employment Rights Bill: impact assessments - GOV.UK
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of new packaging regulations on the cost of producing draught and bottled beer; and whether those impacts were taken into account when setting beer duty rates.
Answered by Gareth Thomas
The Government has worked closely with industry, including the brewing and hospitality sectors throughout development of Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR). In October 2024, the Government published an updated assessment of the impact of introducing the pEPR scheme on packaging producers as a whole.
Decisions on tax policy, including beer duty rates, are made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer at fiscal events. The Treasury welcomes representations from the beer and pub sectors in advance of the Budget.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities in Essex to deliver place-based foreign direct investment strategies in line with the Harrington Review recommendations.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) promotes investment across the UK. At the International Investment Summit, we announced a major overhaul of how DBT will implement the Harrington Review - strengthening the Office for Investment (OfI) and aligning government efforts under a single strategic delivery plan.
We have established an expanded OfI at the heart of government to reduce duplication, offer a clearer 'single door' for investors, and increase our influence on regulation and policy across HMG. We continue working with local partners, including Essex Council, to support and showcase investment opportunities aligned with industrial and infrastructure strategies to global investors.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Strategic Investment Opportunities Unit within the Office for Investment supports SMEs and scale-ups to access investment in (a) Basildon and Billericay constituency and (b) other areas outside major conurbations.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
As announced in the Infrastructure Strategy the new Strategic Investment Opportunities unit will identify, shape and deliver on strategic projects and programmes with significant scope for private capital and investor interest. These will be aligned to investor demand and matched to relevant institutional investors.
Attracting investors and capital is crucial to driving growth across the country, and will ultimately benefit SMEs in locations outside major conurbations, where aligned to investor demand.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answers of 2 July 2025 and 11 July 2025 to Questions 62768 and 64918 on Pay: Publicity, whether he has considered releasing the (a) aggregate value of the payments made to and (b) the names of the six digital influencers hired for its campaign.
Answered by Justin Madders
I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 2nd July 2025 to question 62768 (Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament) and the answer I gave on 11th July to question 64918 (Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament).
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to prevent solvent companies from using Company Voluntary Arrangements to avoid meeting their (a) redundancy and (b) notice period obligations.
Answered by Justin Madders
Company Voluntary Arrangements (“CVAs”) are a restructuring process for insolvent or contingently insolvent companies. To be eligible, a company must meet the insolvent test as assessed by an insolvency practitioner and the CVA must be agreed by a majority of creditors and shareholders.
Where redundancies are necessary as part of a CVA, the Government ensures employees have appropriate safeguards through employment rights’ legislation. Redundancy payments (within statutory limits) are guaranteed from the National Insurance Fund. The Redundancy Payments Service makes these payments directly to the employees and will seek to reclaim the money back from the company as a creditor.