Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment the Government has made of the opportunities presented by the provisions included in the Space Industry Bill [Lords] for (a) specialist manufacturing and (b) other businesses in the UK.

The UK Space Agency publishes regular assessments of the size and health of the UK space sector. In 2014/15 it was worth at least £13.7 billion and has grown at an average 8% per year over the last decade - three times faster than the average non-finance sector over the last five years. Global small satellite launch and servicing could exceed £25bn in revenues over 20 years.

The Government is committed to grow the UK’s share of the global space market to 10% by 2030. As part of this, the Space Industry Bill will lay the foundation for a new commercial market for small satellite launch and sub-orbital spaceflight in the UK. Manufacturing, engineering and other businesses around the country stand to benefit from new value chains for launch vehicles and components, spaceport infrastructure, and related services in the skills, logistics, finance and tourism sectors. Low cost and reliable access to space will also help to grow the UK’s world-leading small satellite sector. Our regional LaunchUK events are demonstrating strong industry interest, including in Northern Ireland’s important specialist manufacturing sector.

More information is available in the Impact Assessment for the Modern Transport Bill (now the Space Industry Bill), published at http://www.legislation.gov.uk.