Written questions by Griffith.

How many employment tribunals were heard relating to employees of his Department between 1 August 2024 and 1 December 2024.

During the period stated, the Department for Business and Trade had 1 Employment Tribunal heard.

What value of money assessment he has made of his Department's headcount and payroll data, published on 10 December 2024.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) publishes Workforce Management Information regularly on data.gov.uk. DBT does not publish value for money assessments on this headcount and payroll data.

Whether he has had meetings with the prosecuting authorities in relation to the Horizon scandal since July 2024.

The information requested will be released in the next publication of the transparency return. The latest version can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dbt-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

How many new businesses were registered on Companies House in each month since July 2024.

Official statistics on company incorporation are published quarterly. These are made publicly available online by Companies House. We have excerpted and reproduced the relevant figures for your convenience below:Monthly Incorporation VolumesMonthIncorporationsPublished Incorporations, QuarterlyJuly 202463,820 August 202462,956 September 202464,907191,683The most recent complete datasets can be found here:Incorporated companies in the UK July to September 2024 - GOV.UKStatistics for previous periods are available here.Companies House will publish the next quarterly release on 30 January 2025 which will cover the period from October to December 2024.

What consultation was undertaken before publication of the (a) Fair Payment and (b) Disability Finance Code.

A new Fair Payment Code which is more credible, enforceable, and ambitious was launched earlier this month to replace the former Prompt Payment Code. This followed feedback from small business stakeholder groups, including Federation of Small Businesses, Enterprise Nation and others. The Disability Finance Code for Entrepreneurship has been led in partnership with founding signatories: Barclays, HSBC UK, Lloyds Banking Group and NatWest, alongside delivery partners, UK Finance and the British Business Bank. This forms part of the government backed Lilac Review led by Small Business Britain which is examining ways to address barriers facing disabled entrepreneurs.

Whether he plans to update the guidance on the UK subsidy control regime.

The Department for Business and Trade keeps guidance on the subsidy control regime under regular review. The last substantive update to the statutory guidance was in December 2023 and the next update is planned for early 2025. The Department has also recently published two new guides to assist public authorities in completing subsidy control principles assessments.

How many applications for loans to the British Business Bank were made between July and November 2024.

Data from the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme should be publicly available in 2025. Other loan applications for British Business Bank products are managed through delivery partners, such as banks, leasing companies, venture capital funds and web-based platforms.

What assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the minutes of the meeting of the Consultative Committee on Construction Industry Statistics on 28 October 2024, published on 2 December 2024.

The Consultative Committee on Construction Industry Statistics (CCCIS) is a long running forum for producers and users of official statistics on construction to engage with expert users. The meetings are chaired by the Department for Business and Trade, and include cross-government statisticians, representatives of industry bodies and academics. Information from discussions at the meeting in October will contribute to improving the reliability of official statistics on the construction sector and drive policy development, alongside engagement with key stakeholders and evidence gathering.

How many searches have been made on his Department's subsidy database since July 2024.

The Department for Business and Trade does not have data for completed searches for this period. However, following recent improvements to the Department’s analytical capabilities, numbers of searches on the database will be available for periods starting on or after 1 December 2024.

Whether he plans to appoint any additional Special Advisers.

Currently, the Secretary of State has no plans to appoint additional Special Advisors.

How many times (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have visited businesses in the UK since 5 July 2024.

A) Since 5 July 2024, the Secretary of State has carried out 11 domestic visits across the UK. All domestic visits include substantive engagement with businesses, through multiple site visits, roundtables and meetings with business leaders.B) Since 5 July 2024, Junior Ministers in the Department for Business and Trade have carried out 15 domestic visits. These visits have also included substantive engagement with businesses, through site visits, roundtables and meetings with business leaders.These visits form part of an extensive business engagement that SoS and ministers have led since July, which helped addressing issues raised by business leaders.

What meetings he has had with representatives of sub-postmasters affected by failures of the Horizon Post Office IT system since July 2024.

The information requested will be released in the next publication of the transparency return. The latest version can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dbt-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

How many foreign trips (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have made since 5 July 2024; and where these trips were to.

(a) Since 5 July 2024, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade has carried out four international visits. These were: Italy to attend the G7 Trade Ministers MeetingKingdom of Saudi Arabia to help progress GCC negotiationsBrazil to attend the G20 Trade and Investment Ministerial MeetingQatar to attend the GCC Trade Ministers’ meeting & UAE (joint visit) (b) Since 5 July 2024, Junior Ministers in the Department for Business and Trade have carried out fourteen international visits. These were: Minister Jones to Italy to attend the Ambrosetti ForumMinister Alexander to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Oman to progress GCC FTA negotiations, to Thailand for the Enhanced Trade Partnership and to Laos for the ASEAN Economic Ministers Meeting (combined visit)Minister Jones to France to visit Airbus ToulouseMinister Madders to France for the OECD for a Consumer Ministerial meetingMinister Alexander to Ireland for the British Ireland Chamber of Commerce Annual ConferenceMinister Alexander to Switzerland to visit the WTOMinister Alexander to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the Future Investment Initiative conferenceMinister Gustafsson to the Netherlands for the World Pension SummitMinister Jones to Poland for the Rebuild Ukraine conferenceMinister Alexander to Azerbaijan for COP29Minister Gustafsson to Spain for the UK-Spain Business AwardsMinister Thomas to Italy for PontignanoMinister Alexander to Vancouver for the CPTPP Commissioners MeetingMinister Gustafsson to Hong Kong & China for MIPIM Asia

How many applications for standard individual export licences were made between July and November 2024.

We will release statistics on export licensing outcomes relating to this period one quarter at a time via our regular Strategic Export Controls Licensing Statistical Releases.Export licensing statistics for 1 January to 30 June 2024 were published on 12 December 2024: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/strategic-export-controls-licensing-statistics-1-january-to-31-march-2024 and https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/strategic-export-controls-licensing-statistics-1-april-to-30-june-2024.Statistics for July to September 2024 will be available by March 2025, and statistics for October to December 2024 will be available by June 2025. In addition, we will publish data from 2024 as a whole in the 2024 Annual Report, including the number of licensing applications we have received during the year, which we will publish in the Summer 2025.

Whether he had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer prior to sending his letter dated 21 November 2024 to the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board.

My Rt. Hon. friend the Secretary of State works closely with all his Cabinet colleagues and has regular discussions with them, including the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

What steps he is taking to support the transition from SPIRE to LITE in relation to licence applications made to the Export Control Joint Unit.

The ‘apply for a SIEL’ service (Single Individual Export Licence) was launched on gov.uk on 17 September 2024, the first licence type introduced on our new export control platform, LITE. To ease the transition for exporters, a suite of training videos, webinars, and frequently asked questions are available online. Live demonstrations are provided, supported by regular engagement with trade associations. A dedicated helpline offers practical support, and users can flag technical issues. Approximately 70% of SIEL applications are submitted via LITE, up from 33% in June, 2024. Reducing processing times for all applications remains a priority of ECJU.

How many (a) desks and (b) chairs have been procured for use by his Department since 5 July 2024.

According to central records, 16 chairs and 10 desks have been procured since 5 July 2024. These have been provided to colleagues as reasonable adjustments and are in use in homes and offices.

What budget his Department has allocated for the first year of the process of assessing applications for awards as part of the new Fair Payment Code.

The Fair Payment Code is administered by the Office of Small Business Commissioner on behalf of the Department of Business and Trade. The Office of the Small Business Commissioner is grant in aid funded by the Department and in 2023/24 received £1.148m in grant funding. As had previously occurred with the Prompt Payment Code, applications to the Fair Payment Code’s will be assessed by the Office of Small Business Commissioner and funded from its existing budget.

How many businesses he expects to (a) apply for and (b) be granted awards under the new Fair Payment Code award tiers.

The Government would like to see as many businesses applying to the Fair Payment Code as possible, particularly larger businesses. Tackling late payments is a priority for the Department and the Fair Payment Code is one of a number of measures we are taking. Applying to the Fair Payment Code is a clear sign that businesses are prioritising paying their suppliers promptly and on time. The Office of Small Business Commissioner administer the Code on behalf of the Department and will announce the recipients in due course.

What budget his Department has allocated to the creation of the award tiers as part of the new Fair Payment Code.

The Fair Payment Code is administered by the Office of Small Business Commissioner on behalf of the Department of Business and Trade. The Office of the Small Business Commissioner is grant in aid funded by the Department and in 2023/24 received £1.148m in grant funding. As had previously occurred with the Prompt Payment Code, the Fair Payment Code’s operation will be funded from the Office of Small Business Commissioner’s existing budget.