Tag: Department for Business and Industrial Strategy

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 2 September 2022.

The government has appointed Nilesh (Neil) Sachdev as the new Chairman of HM Land Registry. The department maintains the register of ownership of land and property containing more than 26 million titles.

Neil brings a wealth of leadership experience at board level and strong commercial and business acumen. He is currently Chair of the East West Railway Company (EWR Co), overseeing the delivery of a new direct rail link between Oxford and Cambridge, as well as Chairman of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation Board for the Ministry of Defence. He is also a Non-Executive Director of Network Rail Property Limited.

Neil has also previously held a variety of senior leadership positions in the energy, property and retail sectors.

He replaces Michael Mire, who has served as HM Land Registry Chairman since 2016.

Business Minister Lord Callanan said:

I am pleased to announce Neil Sachdev as the next Chairman of HM Land Registry. Neil will bring strong leadership experience from both the private and public sectors to support HM Land Registry’s plans to modernise the property market, improve customer service, and reduce the backlog for registering properties.

I would also like to thank Michael Mire for his work over the last 6 years as the Chairman of HM Land Registry and wish him every success for the future.

Chairman of HM Land Registry Neil Sachdev said:

I am very pleased to be taking up the role of Chair of HM Land Registry at this pivotal time. I greatly look forward to leading the board in delivering its ambitious new Strategy to transform the process of land registration in England and Wales and enabling a world-leading property market with people at the heart of it.

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 1 September 2022.

Today (1 September 2022), the government has announced an extension to the financial support provided to Horizon Europe applicants, originally launched in November 2021. The extension will ensure that eligible, successful UK applicants will continue to be guaranteed funding, supporting them to continue their important work in research and innovation.

The guarantee will now be in place to cover all Horizon Europe calls that close on or before 31 December 2022, with the majority of grant signature dates expected before the end of August 2023. This extension will protect and support the UK sector during the ongoing delays while we continue to encourage the EU to formalise UK association, including through the recently launched consultation process.

Eligible, successful applicants will receive the full value of their funding at their UK host institution for the lifetime of the grant. Successful awardees will be able to remain in the UK to receive this funding, which will provide reassurance for future collaborations, and support UK researchers whether association is confirmed, or otherwise.

The UK cannot wait indefinitely for association to EU Programmes, and in parallel to these measures, we continue to develop plans for a bold and ambitious package of alternatives. The government released a publication on 20 July setting out further detail on these plans.

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 30 August 2022.

Pauline Wallace has been appointed as the first permanent Chairman of the UK Endorsement Board (UKEB).

The UK Endorsement Board was set up to endorse and adopt new or amended international accounting standards on behalf of the UK.

Pauline has held the role of Chairman on an interim basis since September 2020 and has led the establishment of the Board and its early work. This has included the UKEB’s adoption of International Financial Reporting Standard 17 Insurance Contracts, a major new international accounting standard relating to insurance contract accounting which was adopted for use in the UK on 16 May 2022.

Pauline’s 3-year term as Chairman will officially commence on 11 September 2022.

Lord Callanan, Minister for Corporate Responsibility, said:

I am delighted that Pauline Wallace will continue in her role as Chairman of the UK Endorsement Board. Pauline has demonstrated strong leadership during her interim appointment, including overseeing the UKEB’s endorsement and adoption of IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts, a transformative standard for the insurance industry. I look forward to the next 3 years of the UKEB’s work with Pauline at the helm.

Pauline Wallace, UK Endorsement Board Chairman, said:

It has been my privilege to serve as the UKEB’s interim Chairman and to lead it through a successful inaugural year. As permanent Chairman I look forward to working with the Board and all of our stakeholders to continue to build upon the solid foundations that we put in place in 2021 to 2022. I am proud of what we achieved in our first year and confident that the UKEB will continue to maintain the UK’s position as a thought leader and key influencer of international financial reporting.

About Pauline Wallace

Pauline has over 30 years’ experience in accounting standards, both as a practitioner and as a national standard setter in the UK and Hong Kong. Prior to her work with the UKEB, Pauline was a partner in PwC where she established and led the global financial instruments team during the transition of EU listed companies to IFRS and throughout the global financial crisis. She was PwC’s UK head of public policy and regulatory affairs until her retirement in 2013. Since retiring from PwC, Pauline served 2 terms as a member of the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee and is currently a member of the Determinations Panel of the Pensions Regulator. Pauline was a member of the UK Accounting Standards Board from 2010 to 2016 and a member of the ICAEW’s Regulatory Board from 2015 to 2019.

About the UK Endorsement Board

• The UKEB is responsible for the adoption of international accounting standards (IAS) for use in the UK following the delegation of functions relating to IAS under the International Accounting Standards (Delegation of Functions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2021
• the UKEB currently consists of 11 Board members, including Pauline Wallace as its Chairman
• UK-adopted international accounting standards are mandatory in the UK for listed companies when preparing their consolidated financial statements
• further information on the UKEB and UK-adopted international accounting standards is available on the UKEB’s website

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 23 August 2022.

The acquisition by Altice of 5.9% shares in BT was called in for a full national security assessment by Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng on Thursday 26 May.

The government has powers under the National Security and Investment Act 2021 to scrutinise and, if necessary, intervene in qualifying acquisitions on national security grounds.

Following careful consideration, the government will take no further action on the acquisition of 5.9% shares by Altice in BT and the Final Notification has been issued to parties.

The government will always act to protect the UK’s critical national telecoms infrastructure if we judge action is necessary. Under the National Security and Investment Act, acquisitions are assessed on a case by case basis, so any future transaction could be subject to a separate assessment under the Act.

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 19 August 2022.

Smaller businesses across the whole of England received £21.3 billion through the government’s COVID-19 Local Authority Business Support Grants scheme, a new report has shown.

Micro, small, and medium sized firms across different business sectors benefited from the funds available under the scheme, which was created to support businesses during and to recover from the impact of the global pandemic.

The new data – which includes a sector breakdown for the first time – shows over one-third of all available funding was allocated to the accommodation and food services sector, a part of the economy hit hardest by the pandemic.

The grant scheme was created by the UK government and administered by local authorities, with all regions in England found to have allocated most of their total available funds to businesses in need.

Small Business Minister Jane Hunt said:

Our amazing small businesses are the backbone of our economy and their efforts both during and since the pandemic have been heroic.

In many cases, Local Authority Business Support Grants were essential to businesses who found themselves really struggling and who are now able to recover, grow, and look to the future.

By putting billions of pounds into business recovery, we have stood by our commitment to our small businesses and the communities, families, and livelihoods they form a key part of.

Data shows the accommodation and food services sector received the most funding. Businesses in this sector have also seen significant support from the government’s Hospitality Strategy, published in July 2021.

Firms operating in wholesale retail, arts and entertainment, recreation, and other services industries were also among the different business sectors to receive substantial help under the scheme. A full breakdown of allocations is below.

Sector	Percentage of funds	Value of funds
Accommodation and Food Services	36%	£8.2 bn
Other Services*	19%	£4.3 bn
Wholesale and Retail Trade	16%	£3.5 bn
Arts, Entertainment and Recreation	14%	£3.2 bn
Transportation and Storage	10%	£2.2 bn
Manufacturing	1%	£0.2 bn
All other sectors	4%	£0.9 bn

*Other Services includes the activities of membership organisations, the repair of personal and household goods and a variety of personal service activities not covered elsewhere in classifications.

Small businesses and others have also been supported through initiatives including the government’s Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS), which has backed almost 19,000 firms with average support of £202,0000 each, as well as the increase in Employment Allowance, slashing of fuel duty, and the introduction of business rates relief for high street businesses.

The government remains committed to supporting small businesses, and firms of all sizes, as they recover from the impact of COVID-19 and prepare themselves for a bright, prosperous, and innovative future.

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 12 August 2022.

High electricity using businesses like steel and paper mills could see further relief under new proposals to help subsidise their electricity costs.

The UK government is consulting on the option to increase the level of exemption for certain environmental and policy costs from 85% of costs up to 100%.

This reflects higher UK industrial electricity prices than those of other countries including in Europe, which could hamper investment, competition and commercial viability for hundreds of businesses in industries including steel, paper, glass, ceramics, and cement, and risk them relocating from the UK.

The proposal would help around 300 businesses supporting 60,000 jobs in the UK’s industrial heartlands. Looking at ways to reduce the cost of doing business for key industries would help secure the future of domestic manufacturing and maintain a competitive business environment in the UK, ensuring economic growth and protecting thousands of jobs across the country.

The Energy Intensive Industries Exemption Scheme provides businesses with relief for the costs of renewable levies, including Contracts for Difference, the Renewable Obligation and Feed in Tariffs, in their energy bills.

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said:

“British manufacturers are the lifeblood of our economy and central to our plans to overcome this period of economic uncertainty.

With global energy prices at record highs, it is essential we explore what more we can do to deliver a competitive future for those strategic industries so we can cut production costs and protect jobs across the UK.”

Director General of UK Steel Gareth Stace said:

“The publication of this consultation is a significant step forward in delivering competitive electricity prices for the UK steel sector and should provide some much-needed relief in the face of extremely challenging circumstances at the current time. While there remain difficulties, this announcement demonstrates that UK government understands the challenges of British industry and continues to support steelmakers and steel communities across the country.”

This is a consultation on a targeted support scheme for energy intensive industries, as announced in the British Energy Security Strategy. Launching this consultation now provides the future government with the option to introduce this scheme given current high electricity prices.

The government has provided more than £2 billion to support businesses in energy intensive sectors with the price of electricity bills since 2013.

The launch of the consultation follows the extension of the separate but similar Energy Intensive Industries Compensation Scheme for a further 3 years and a more than doubling of its budget.

The compensation scheme provides businesses with relief for the costs of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and Carbon Price Support mechanism in their electricity bills.

The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 11 August 2022.

The government has today (11 August 2022) launched a consultation on how to support the development of biomass energy generation with associated carbon captured in the UK over the next decade.

Known as BECCS (Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage), this technology generates energy from biomass, sustainable plant material, while storing the carbon released in the process through carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) technology. This uniquely offers the potential to produce home-grown energy with ‘negative emissions’ – removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, as the CO2 absorbed during the growth of the biomass can then be permanently removed from the atmosphere using carbon capture technologies.

The consultation launched today seeks views on how the government can help attract private investment to accelerate the development of this nascent industry, to help boost Britain’s energy security, while also supporting new job opportunities across the country including industrial clusters developing carbon capture networks.

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said:

“The government is fully behind biomass energy to provide more power in Britain, for Britain.

The more clean power we generate within the UK, the less exposed we’ll all be to volatile gas markets that are pushing up bills.

Today’s plans could create an entirely new industry in our country, using sustainable biomass in a way that absorbs harmful carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

With these reforms, we will boost domestically-produced, cheaper and cleaner sources of energy to power Britain into the future.”

The consultation launched today follows £37 million government funding awarded earlier this month to innovative biomass projects across the UK.

Biomass refers to sustainably derived plant material that can be used as fuel to produce energy for heating and powering homes and businesses. Backed by the independent Climate Change Committee, biomass will form an important part of the UK’s future renewable energy mix, which will be vital for ensuring the UK’s energy security and reducing reliance on expensive fossil fuels. Biomass generates enough renewable energy to power 4 million homes

The consultation launched today follows a commitment set out in the Net Zero Strategy to support the role of Greenhouse Gas Removal technology, including the ambition to remove 5 million tonnes of greenhouse gases per year from the atmosphere by 2030. It also builds on the Expression of Interest for greenhouse gas removal projects launched earlier this year as part of the government’s carbon capture and storage programme.

Power BECCS provides a significant opportunity to deliver negative emissions that will be crucial to offset emissions from some of the most difficult to decarbonise sectors, such as agriculture and aviation industries. It can also bolster energy security and support the delivery of a fully decarbonised power system by 2035.

The consultation, which will run until October, will seek views on our early proposals including the main design elements of the business model and actions the government can take to enable deployment of this technology at scale, including steps to encourage the development of this industry, and address any possible barriers to investment.