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  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-01-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of functional areas of the existing HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) IT Aspire contract for which any HMRC plan to create a GoCo capability would not require TUPE transfers of staff.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has reviewed a number of options when considering the transition from Aspire. Due to commercial confidentiality, the Department is not in a position to give more details of its plans at this stage. HMRC’s ultimate aim is an operating model that has the right mix of technology, processes and skills, delivered in a multi-sourced model.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has to bring forward a revised procurement policy note for public authorities; and if he will make a statement.

    Matthew Hancock

    I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave to him on 1 February 2016 to UIN: 24475.

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how Government targets for the proportion of business created in supply chains for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) under public procurement contracts apply to companies subject to mergers, acquisitions or other changes in status that take those companies out of the SME category.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Government has a target that 33% of central government business, by direct spend and through the supply chain, will go to small and medium businesses by 2020.

    We assess progress against the overall target on a regular basis, including an assessment of those companies identified as Small or Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). Where companies no longer meet the statutory definition of an SME at the time of assessment, they are no longer counted.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons Bradford and Bingley, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Northern Rock as publicly-funded banks are exempted from the public sector exit payments cap in the provisions of the Enterprise Bill.

    Greg Hands

    The Government’s partial ownership of Bradford and Bingley, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Northern Rock as is a temporary measure following the financial crisis and they will be returned to the private sector in due course. The Government believes this is fundamentally different to public sector bodies that receive ongoing funding from the taxpayer.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what mechanisms he plans to put in place to measure and monitor (a) value for money for the public purse and (b) the effect on the green economy of a privatised Green Investment Bank; and if he will report regularly to the House on those aspects.

    Anna Soubry

    Details of why the Government believes moving UK Green Investment Bank plc (GIB) into private ownership represents the best way to enable the company to deliver its ambitious green business plan and have a greater impact on green investment while minimising burdens on the UK taxpayer are provided in our November 2015 policy statement on the future of GIB and are further set out in the Government’s response to the Environmental Audit Committee’s report on the future of GIB which was laid in Parliament on 2 February. Both documents can be found on the GIB pages of the GOV.UK website.

    The Government has committed to report to Parliament setting out our plans for a sale of GIB and will provide a further report following completion of a transaction and any subsequent transactions.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which provisions of the Regulatory Reform Act 2013 need to be removed in order to achieve balance sheet reclassification for the purposes of privatisation of the Green Investment Bank.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government’s proposals to amend and repeal provisions in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 relating to UK Green Investment Bank plc (GIB) are contained in clause 30 of the Enterprise Bill. The Government has explained the background to these proposals in paragraphs 62 – 73 of our November 2015 policy statement on the future of GIB which can be found on the GIB pages of the GOV.UK website.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, who authorised the report entitled, BIS 2020, What-why-when-how; and what the cost to the public purse was of that report.

    Joseph Johnson

    “BIS 2020: What-why-when-how” (September 2015) was one of a series of internal briefings for BIS staff. Staff are briefed on our change programme on a regular basis. The briefings are not formal documents and, as such, we do not publish them.

    The cost of this report to the public purse consists of the hours worked by Civil Servants on its development. These were not recorded at the time of production separately from the authors’ other work.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much public sector funding was spent on facilitating higher risk green investment in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the likely spend of this type in each of the next five years.

    Anna Soubry

    Government funding for green innovation is provided for private sector led technology R&D through grants, procurement approaches and to a lesser extent equity interventions. Additionally, DECC, Research Councils and InnovateUK are involved in European programmes that can leverage significant funding from the EC while ensuring cross border collaboration.

    Government spent ~£1.3billion on low carbon innovation for the period 2011-15. In addition, the Low Carbon Networks Fund which is funded by network operators is expected to allocate ~£440m over the period 2010-15. See table 1 attached:

    Separately, the British Business Bank has three main programmes for supporting early stage technology investment, including in the clean technology area: the Enterprise Capital Funds targeted at early stage venture capital investment; the UK Innovation Investment Fund (UKIIF) which supports creation of viable investment funds targeting UK high growth technology-based businesses; and the Venture Capital Catalyst Fund, launched in 2013.

    As part of the recent Spending Review, it was announced that the department for Energy & Climate Change will double its innovation program to £500 million over the next five years.

    UK Green Investment Bank plc (GIB) also invests in innovative green projects, though it does so on fully commercial terms and is focused on technologies ready for deployment at full commercial scale and capable of attracting additional investment from mainstream finance providers. Details of all GIB’s investments to date can be found on the company’s website.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether his Department plans to close the (a) Skills Funding Agency and (b) Insolvency Service in Sheffield.

    Joseph Johnson

    As part of the Department’s change programme, BIS2020, we anticipate reducing the number of our locations from more than 80 to approximately 7 centres plus a regional footprint. Beyond the announcement made about our Sheffield office at St Paul’s Place on 28 January, we do not yet know exactly which sites will be retained or closed over the course of the Parliament. By 2020 the majority of employees in BIS and its Partner Organisations will continue to be based outside London through a number of centres – such as in Birmingham, Glasgow, and Swindon – as well as a regional footprint for the provision of local services.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will publish his Department’s business case on the closure of his Department’s office in Sheffield.

    Joseph Johnson

    Since summer 2015 the Department has been reviewing its business model. By 2020, we want to simplify our structure, become more digital, be cheaper for taxpayers and better for users. As part of this we anticipate reducing the number of our locations from more than 80 to approximately 7 centres plus a regional footprint. The intention to close the BIS Sheffield office in St Paul’s Place was formed in light of these plans.