Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has made an assessment of the potential competitive implications of capping prescription fees while major veterinary corporate groups also own large online pharmacies.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade has not made a specific assessment of this issue. Competition issues in the veterinary services market are currently being examined by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as part of its market investigation into veterinary services for household pets. The CMA’s initial analysis of a potential cap on prescription fees can be found in its provisional decision report. It is expected to publish its final decision by March.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
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 locksmiths meet (a) legal, (b) professional and (c) security standards.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK’s framework for occupational regulation upholds public protection, while ensuring regulatory burdens on industry are proportionate. Although the locksmithing profession is not subject to statutory regulation, several self-regulating trade associations and accreditation schemes exist within the industry and provide training, conduct criminal record checks, and inspect their members.
The government keeps the occupational regulation regime under review and continues to monitor any concerns raised by the public or the industry, including those related to locksmithing.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with small and medium-sized enterprises on the potential impact of restrictive software licensing practices on their businesses.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Ministers regularly meet with businesses of all sizes.
Government is committed to delivering a competitive and prosperous digital economy. That is why we implemented the new digital markets regime on 1 January 2025. The Competition and Markets Authority now has bespoke powers to increase competition in digital markets.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 9 December 2025 to Question 97021, what proportion of his Department's expenditure on Microsoft Software licenses and services was allocated to a) new service implementations and b) renewal or maintenance of existing system; and how this compares to the previous year’s expenditure in each category.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department does not hold this information in the format requested. We do not routinely capture or report expenditure on Microsoft software licences and services split between new service implementations and renewal or maintenance of existing systems. A year-on-year comparison is therefore not available.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
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 ensure that veterinary clients are able to make informed choices in a market where many practices trade under local-sounding names despite corporate ownership.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The CMA is currently conducting a market investigation into veterinary services for household pets. The final report is expected early next year and will set out the actions the CMA has decided to take.
As the UK’s independent competition authority, the CMA is responsible for decisions relating to its investigations, including on remedies.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of vertical integration within large veterinary groups, including ownership of pharmacies, laboratories, out-of-hours providers, crematoria and referral centres on market competition and consumer choice.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Responsibility for investigating individual and market-wide competition issues, including vertical integration, falls to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as the UK’s independent competition authority.
The CMA is currently conducting a market investigation into veterinary services for household pets.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had recent discussions with the Competition and Markets Authority on the decision not to (a) require divestments and (b) impose penalties following its investigation into the veterinary sector.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Competition and Markets Authority’s market investigation into veterinary services for household pets is on-going. The final report is expected early next year and will set out the actions the CMA has decided to take.
As the UK’s independent competition authority, the CMA is responsible for decisions relating to its investigations, including on remedies.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of veterinary market consolidation by large veterinary groups on client choice, pricing and local competition.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Responsibility for investigating individual and market-wide competition issues, including consolidation, falls to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as the UK’s independent competition authority.
The CMA is currently conducting a market investigation into veterinary services for household pets.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much his Department has spent on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months; and what proportion this represents of his Department’s total technology spend.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade has spent £4.8m on software licences from Microsoft in the last 12 months, December 2024 to November 2025. This represents 5% of the Department's total Digital, Data & Technology spend.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
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 Competition and Markets Authority’s 5.6% budget reduction on (a) investigating and (b) challenging restrictive software licensing practices.
Answered by Justin Madders
The June Spending Review set out the CMA's budget from 2026/27. The CMA has embarked on an operational transformation programme to ensure it can continue to deliver impactful outcomes, including in digital markets, while operating within its multi-year funding envelope.
The CMA's priorities across its work are set out in its Annual Plan 2025/26, which commits to using the new digital markets competition regime flexibly, proportionately and collaboratively to unlock opportunities for growth across the UK tech sector and the wider economy.