Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many businesses the Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education met in each of the last 12 months.

I meet with representatives from businesses and business representative bodies in a variety of ways and on a regular basis in this role. For example, through Ministerial visits, roundtables, stakeholder events and formal meetings.

The exact information requested is not held centrally. The department does, however, publish a list of all external meetings and overseas travel of department Ministers. This can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dfe-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-july-to-september-2023.