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 merits of using domestically sourced lithium in the manufacture of electric buses.

The new Critical Minerals Strategy will set out how the government will maximise the domestic production of key critical minerals like lithium, for which the UK has significant projects underway. As part of this, the government will continue to engage with downstream manufacturers- including the transport sector - to explore how the domestic production of critical minerals can support UK manufacturers.

Additionally, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) will support the Department for Transport (DfT) broader commitment to transitioning to zero-emission buses (ZEBs), which are central to delivering cleaner, quieter journeys and supporting UK manufacturing.