Written questions by Anderson.

What performance indicators his Department uses to measure the extent to which the British Business Bank has reduced the scale-up financing gap of R&D intensive companies.

The indicator used to assess the financing gap is venture capital (VC) investment as a proportion of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the UK as compared to the US, measured over 3 years. This gap (across all sectors) has narrowed from 30% greater investment in the US in 2019-2021 to 10% for 2022-2024.The British Business Bank’s Small Business Equity Tracker report 2025 notes that the gap for R&D intensive sectors is wider. VC investment in these industries represented 0.25% of GDP in the UK during 2022-2024 against 0.31% in the US, equivalent to a gap of 30%.Between 2022 and 2024, 49% of Bank-supported deals were in the tech sector, compared to 42% of deals across the overall market.

What criteria his Department is applying to select rural pub diversification projects for the funding scheme.

Government recognises the important role rural pubs and those in deprived areas can play in supporting their communities and the work of Pub Is The Hub in helping them improve their resilience by providing additional community services.That is why the Government has provided £440,000 to help Pub Is The Hub continue this important work. In its 2025 report: PiTH-Social-Value-of-Pubsfinal.pdf, Pub Is The Hub highlighted over 40 diversification projects that could not be delivered due to a lack of funding. Pub Is The Hub operates across the UK and applications for funding are assessed using its criteria.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential for the recently announced funding for rural village pubs to support broader community-services provision in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

Government recognises the important role rural pubs and those in deprived areas can play in supporting their communities and the work of Pub Is The Hub in helping them improve their resilience by providing additional community services.That is why the Government has provided £440,000 to help Pub Is The Hub continue this important work. In its 2025 report: PiTH-Social-Value-of-Pubsfinal.pdf, Pub Is The Hub highlighted over 40 diversification projects that could not be delivered due to a lack of funding. Pub Is The Hub operates across the UK and applications for funding are assessed using its criteria.

Whether his Department has identified priority sectors for future trade co-operation with India.

The UK-India Trade Deal will open up new opportunities across a wide range of sectors, including in the high-growth sectors outlined in the Industrial Strategy. As part of his recent visit to India, the Prime Minister brought over 100 businesses to India to unlock further growth in the mutually agreed priority sectors of construction, infrastructure and clean energy, advanced manufacturing, defence, education, sport, culture, financial and professional business services, science, technology and innovation, consumer goods and food. The Department will continue to support opportunities for trade and investment across these sectors as we integrate the work of the Industrial Strategy with our Trade Strategy.

What mechanisms his Department plans to use to monitor the implementation of (a) funding and (b) job commitments announced following the Prime Minister’s visit to India in October 2025.

All companies involved in the announcements have a dedicated account manager from the Department for Business and Trade and the Office for Investment. Account managers actively engage with these companies on a regular basis to seek updates on the announced investments, assist with any challenges they face in their investment and discuss further expansion plans.

What plans his Department has to expand the UK’s investment promotion activities targeted at sovereign wealth funds.

As part of the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy, the government announced the creation of the Strategic Investment Opportunities Unit to shape and unlock investment opportunities for strategic investment. This includes originating new investment opportunities that can leverage private capital, including Sovereign Wealth Funds, and deliver government objectives, including to meet the UK’s infrastructure needs, and deliver our Industrial Strategy across the UK. This follows the OfI’s expansion last year, to strengthen our footing globally with the deepest pools of capital.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the UK’s investment screening regime supports responsible sovereign wealth fund investment.

The UK has close investment relationships with many of the world’s sovereign wealth funds, supporting mutually beneficial, strategic investment into the UK. The National Security and Investment Act (NSIA) 2021 gives the UK Government the power to scrutinise and, where necessary, intervene in a transaction that is captured by the act regardless of the acquirer. Every NSIA transaction is taken on its own merit, on a case-by-case basis. The legislation enables investment into sensitive sectors of our economy while providing robust protections to ensure the UK’s national security is not compromised.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that inward investment from India contributes to the UK’s net zero targets.

DBT’s recently published Industrial Strategy sets out the Government’s ambition to be a global leader in clean energy by 2035, doubling investment levels across our frontier clean energy industries to over £30billion per year and creating good jobs across the country. To support this, the Office for Investment acts as a dedicated unit and proactive sales force for the UK, working internationally to secure transformational investment in line with HMGs strategic priorities. It has the commercial knowledge and expertise to originate and land deals, including working to land investment from India.

What assessment he has made of the potential contribution of foreign sovereign wealth funds to the Government’s strategy for attracting long-term investment into the UK economy.

The Government recognises the important role that foreign sovereign wealth funds play in supporting long-term investment in the UK. The UK continues to attract significant investment from sovereign wealth funds, including through strategic partnerships with funds from the Gulf region. This includes a recent £2 billion investment partnership with Bahrain to support sectors such as clean energy, technology, and manufacturing. This investment contributes to economic growth, job creation, and the development of key infrastructure across the country.

What steps his Department is taking to strengthen the UK’s institutional relationships with major global sovereign wealth funds.

This government expanded the Office for Investment (OfI) including pursuing deeper investment collaboration with global sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) in support of our first Modern Industrial Strategy. The OfI manages multi-billion-pound Sovereign and Strategic Investment Partnerships with SWFs and provides a channel for collaboration. The OfI has already facilitated multi-billion-pounds in commitments and multi-billion-pounds in capital deployed from these partners, contributing to growth and prosperity across the country. This effort continues; The Government is sending a senior delegation to the Future Investment Initiative in Saudi Arabia later this month to strengthen ties further with Saudi and global SWFs.

Whether his Department has undertaken analysis of barriers to inward investment from sovereign wealth funds into UK (a) infrastructure and (b) growth sectors.

This government maintains strong relationships with leading sovereign wealth funds, engaging in regular dialogue to understand barriers they face when investing in UK infrastructure and growth sectors. The UK's 10 Year Strategy Infrastructure aims to restore confidence and drive growth with £725 billion for infrastructure, transforming project delivery. The Industrial Strategy White Paper identified key investment barriers including planning delays, infrastructure gaps, regulatory burdens, and skills shortages. Government reforms to address these barriers include the Strategic Sites Accelerator, regulatory innovation, planning improvements, and targeted support for industrial clusters and skills development.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement on trade for small and medium-sized enterprises in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

Although the Department for Business and Trade has made no such specific assessment, it continuously monitors the impact of leaving the EU on costs to businesses across the UK through our business surveys, ONS reports, and other intelligence sources, as well as through regular direct engagement with exporters. The Trade and Cooperation Agreement allows UK businesses to access the EU market and the EU-UK summit earlier this year identified areas where this can be enhanced.Alongside this, DBT continues to offer a range of support for SMEs, with our Small Business Plan setting out the most comprehensive package of support for SMEs in a generation. This includes Unlock Europe, a programme from UK Export Academy designed to help businesses build relationships with European customers and increase exporting potential to the EU.

What estimate his Department has made of capital inflows from the United States over the next five years under agreements announced during President Trump's state visit in September 2025.

We have not made any such specific estimate, but the commitments made as part of the state visit will be over the lifetime of this Parliament and beyond.

What plans his Department has to monitor UK export growth arising from agreements made during President Trump's state visit in September 2025.

The US is the UK’s largest single country export market and President Trump’s State Visit was a valuable opportunity to further strengthen our economic relationship with the US. We launched a new technology partnership that will build on the foundations of the economic deal we agreed in May and announced a record breaking £150 billion of new US investment into the UK. It is too early to detect specific increments, but the Department for Business and Trade continues to monitor the level of exports with all countries, and through our Trade Strategy, Industrial Strategy, and Small Business Plan, we are putting in place the policies, support, and services needed to drive export-led business growth.

What steps his Department plans to take to identify UK priority sectors for trade expansion with Brazil.

The UK’s new Industrial Strategy sets out ambitious plans for eight growth-driving sectors - Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy Industries, Creative Industries, Defence, Digital and Technologies, Financial Services, Life Sciences, and Professional and Business Services. I am keen to integrate the Industrial Strategy with the Trade Strategy so as to build export markets for our key growing sectors. These sectors are also the focus of my department’s work with Brazil. The Department’s new Ricardo Fund – announced in the Trade Strategy – is funding interventions on Offshore Wind and in the Life Sciences sector to help create new opportunities for UK exporters, and I signed agreements on customs and regulatory cooperation aimed at boosting UK exports on my recent visit to Brazil, where I met with several UK businesses who are keen to expand their work in the country.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of proposed UK-Brazil trade measures on small and medium-sized businesses in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

The Government is committed to putting small and medium sized businesses at the heart of our Growth Mission. Our recently published plan for small and medium sized businesses sets out a long-term approach for how we will help small and medium sized businesses to grow and realise their export potential. I recently visited Brazil to strengthen our bilateral trade relationship and sign agreements on customs, regulatory cooperation and export credit. We expect these agreements and future collaboration with Brazil to benefit businesses of all sizes across the UK.

What recent discussions he has had with his Brazilian counterpart on removing non-tariff barriers to UK exports.

I visited Brazil in September 2025 with the objective of strengthening our two-way trade. I signed agreements on customs, good regulatory practices and export credit aimed at tackling non-tariff barriers. I also progressed discussions on digital trade, mutual recognition arrangements and clean energy cooperation, which are referenced as non-tariff priorities for the UK’s relationship with Brazil in the UK’s new Trade Strategy. I also urged Brazil to ratify the Double Taxation Agreement. This built on discussions that former DBT Secretary of State, The Rt Hon Jonathan Reynolds MP, had with his Brazilian counterpart last year, when they both committed to identifying ways to boost two-way trade by tackling non-tariff barriers.

How many new UK-US regulatory alignment agreements he plans to make in the next 12 months.

Following the landmark economic deal with the US which we signed in May, we are continuing talks on a wider UK-US Economic Deal which will look at addressing specific non-tariff barriers, increasing digital trade, and unlocking new commercial opportunities that benefit both nations. We cannot comment on the specifics of live negotiations, but we are discussing mutual recognition agreements. We will only make any mutual recognition agreements if we believe they benefit UK businesses.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential barriers to UK investment in Singapore.

UK companies and investors experience relatively few barriers to investment in Singapore. At the end of 2023, the stock of Foreign Direct Investment from the UK in Singapore was £15.9 billion, a 23% increase on the end of 2022. UK investors can benefit from provisions in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which provides guarantees on market access and treatment they will receive when accessing and operating in Singapore. This includes ensuring that they are not discriminated against relative to domestic investors. The Government continues to invite business views and feedback regarding any potential barriers.

What mechanisms his Department has put in place to track the potential impact of UK-Singapore co-operation on digital trade.

The UK-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement (DEA), and associated Memoranda of Understanding (MoU), support cooperation on key themes of digital trade. We monitor impact via regular dialogue with the Singaporean government, as part of the UK-Singapore free trade agreement subcommittee, and through regular engagement with businesses. Recent business engagement resulted in analysis (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/identifying-new-growth-opportunities-within-the-uk-singapore-dea/identifying-new-uk-growth-opportunities-within-the-uk-singapore-dea-and-future-digital-partnerships) showing that stakeholders believe these MoUs support collaboration and lead to tangible benefits as seen, for example, in pilot projects conducted under the Digital Trade Facilitation MoU. For more on the DEA’s impact on reducing non-tariff barriers, I refer the hon. Member to the answer to UIN 44934: Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament.