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100087

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	UK Export Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what proportion of successful applicants to the UK Export Finance buyer credit facility of credit guarantee scheme have been small to medium sized enterprises in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow North
tabling member printed	Ann McKechin
uin	211335
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2014 answer text <p>The table below shows the proportion, expressed as a percentage, of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the total number of exporters UK Export Finance (UKEF) has supported broken down by UKEF product for the last five financial full years.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>2009/10</p></td><td><p>2010/11</p></td><td><p>2011/12</p></td><td><p>2012/13</p></td><td><p>2013/14</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Buyer Credit</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>11%</p></td><td><p>7%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bond Support Scheme*</p></td><td><p>-</p></td><td><p>-</p></td><td><p>67%</p></td><td><p>78%</p></td><td><p>91%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Export Insurance Policy</p></td><td><p>20%</p></td><td><p>75%</p></td><td><p>75%</p></td><td><p>54%</p></td><td><p>63%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Export Working Capital Scheme*</p></td><td><p>-</p></td><td><p>-</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>83%</p></td><td><p>100%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Letter of Credit Guarantee Scheme</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>50%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Supplier Credit Facility</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td><td><p>50%</p></td><td><p>29%</p></td><td><p>33%</p></td><td><p>0%</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>*Products launched in 2011/12</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>SMEs are defined by the EU as companies that have fewer than 250 employees, and either a turnover of less than €50m or a balance sheet total of less than €43m.</p><p> </p><p>Information on UKEFs Bond Support Scheme has been included given that it was introduced specifically to support to smaller exporters, especially SMEs.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Suffolk answering member printed Matthew Hancock grouped question UIN 211331 211332 211333 211334 question first answered 27/10/2014 14:39:54 answering member 4070 label Biography information for Matt Hancock previous answer version 24216 answering member constituency West Suffolk answering member printed Matthew Hancock answering member 4070 label Biography information for Matt Hancock
tabling member	1419 label Biography information for Ann McKechin

100088

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	ACAS
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he plans to evaluate the effect of the ACAS early conciliation service on keeping workplace disputes out of court.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	211244
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2014 answer text <p>Early Conciliation was introduced in April 2014 and it is too early to make any meaningful assessment on the effect of Early Conciliation on Employment Tribunal cases at this stage. However, officials in the Department and Acas are already monitoring the impact of Early Conciliation and I will make an announcement on evaluation in due course, once we have a sufficient evidence base to do so.</p> answering member constituency East Dunbartonshire answering member printed Jo Swinson question first answered 24/10/2014 11:30:02 answering member 1513 label Biography information for Jo Swinson
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

100092

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Zero Hours Contracts
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to help workers on zero hours contracts who desire regular, contracted employment.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
uin	211362
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2014 answer text <p>Under the Flexible Working Regulations, brought in on 30 June, all employees with 26 continuous weeks of service have the right to request flexible working from their employer. Individuals on zero hours contracts, who are employees, can request a change in their contracts, which could also include a request to move to a fixed hours contract.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Dunbartonshire answering member printed Jo Swinson question first answered 27/10/2014 14:48:39 answering member 1513 label Biography information for Jo Swinson
tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

100093

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	STEM Subjects: Females
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps the Government is taking to increase the participation of women in STEM fields.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
uin	211363
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2014 answer text <p>The Government is backing the three-year Your Life campaign, which aims to increase the number of people participating in a wide range of careers that need skills in science, technology, engineering and maths, particularly women. To date more than 200 organisations have pledged action to the campaign to boost the role of women in STEM fields. A publicity drive to encourage young people, especially girls, aged 14 to 16 to take STEM subjects, will launch in November 2014.</p><p>We fund the Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering to run a joint STEM Diversity Programme to understand and address issues of diversity, including gender, in the STEM workforce. Actions include a 10 point plan to ensure that women in science, technology, engineering and manufacturing have the same opportunities to progress in their career as their male counterparts</p> answering member constituency Tunbridge Wells answering member printed Greg Clark question first answered 27/10/2014 15:01:24 answering member 1578 label Biography information for Greg Clark
tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

100102

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Video Games
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what funds distributed by the Technology Strategy Board were allocated to the video games sector in each of the last three years; and what proportion of the total funding from that Board this represented in each such year.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, Wavertree
tabling member printed	Luciana Berger
uin	211397
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2014 answer text <p>Innovate UK is the new name for the Technology Strategy Board.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In 2011/12 Innovate UK did not provide any funds to organisations in the video games sector. In 2012/13, it provided £277k (0.06% of its core budget) to organisations in the video games sector and in 2013/14 it provided £1.9m (0.4% of its core budget).</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The figures above do not include any awards made under Innovate UK’s Smart or Knowledge Transfer Partnership programmes, as this information can only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed Mr Edward Vaizey question first answered 24/10/2014 06:55:43 answering member 1580 label Biography information for Lord Vaizey of Didcot
tabling member	4036 label Biography information for Luciana Berger

100103

registered interest
date	21/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Minimum Wage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 25 June 2014 to Question 201383, how much was spent on national minimum wage enforcement in 2013-14.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	211245
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2014 answer text <p>£7.5m was spent by HM Revenue and Customs on the enforcement of the National Minimum Wage in 2013/14.</p><p>We have increased the budget allocation for National Minimum Wage enforcement in 2014/15 to £9.2m. This extra funding will enable HMRC to increase the number of compliance officers working in this area who, as well as continuing to respond to every complaint made to the Pay and Work Rights Helpline, will also undertake targeted enforcement, focusing on the worst offending employers in the highest-risk sectors.</p><p>Anyone who believes they are entitled to the National Minimum Wage and has not received it should contact this free and confidential helpline on 0800 917 2368.</p> answering member constituency East Dunbartonshire answering member printed Jo Swinson question first answered 24/10/2014 11:29:09 answering member 1513 label Biography information for Jo Swinson
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

99775

registered interest
date	20/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	NHS: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of including the National Health Service in the negative list of exclusion for negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment partnership.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	211053
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2014 answer text <p>The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) will not change the fact that it is up to UK Government alone to decide how UK public services, including the NHS, are run. The UK has insisted on maintaining the same safeguards for the NHS in TTIP as it has in all recent trade agreements.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>This position was confirmed by the European Commission</p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Suffolk answering member printed Matthew Hancock question first answered 23/10/2014 17:00:03 answering member 4070 label Biography information for Matt Hancock previous answer version 24061 answering member constituency West Suffolk answering member printed Matthew Hancock answering member 4070 label Biography information for Matt Hancock
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

93091

registered interest
date	14/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Small Businesses: Civil Proceedings
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to protect small businesses from vexatious claims by employees; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Tewkesbury
tabling member printed	Mr Laurence Robertson
uin	210557
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/10/2014 answer text <p>The new Employment Tribunal rules of procedure, which implemented the recommendations of the Underhill Review, were implemented on 29 July 2013. These rules allow tribunals to identify weak or vexatious claims at an early stage through an initial sift and to manage them effectively through measures such as deposit orders. Greater flexibility to apply a deposit order to parts of a claim or response helps to manage the expectations of claimants as to the strength of their claim and encourage them to consider more carefully what parts of their claim they want to take forward.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Dunbartonshire answering member printed Jo Swinson question first answered 17/10/2014 13:29:29 answering member 1513 label Biography information for Jo Swinson
tabling member	253 label Biography information for Mr Laurence Robertson

92787

registered interest
date	13/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Directors: Equality
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made with achieving diversity on corporate boards; and what percentages of (1) women, (2) disabled people, and (3) black and minority ethnic people there are on the boards of FTSE 100 companies.
tabling member printed	Lord Ouseley
uin	HL2023
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2014 answer text <p>Government has been supporting Lord Davies’ voluntary business-led strategy for the advancement of all women, irrespective of ethnicity or disability. These measures are working. Women now account for 22.8% of board members in FTSE100 companies, up from 12.5% in February 2011.And there are no all-male boards in the FTSE 100 down from 21 in 2011.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We do not collect statistics for, and FTSE 100 companies do not have to report on, the number of disabled or ethnic minorities on their boards.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In September 2014 The Financial Reporting Council published an updated UK Corporate Governance Code, including changes to the preface highlighting the importance of diversity on the board. This includes gender, race and a wide range of other factors including difference of approach and experience.</p><p> </p><p>On 30 September the Secretary fo Business Innovation and Skills also announced his support for a business led initiative to support wider ethnic diversity on boards.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 23/10/2014 16:37:38 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
tabling member	2170 label Biography information for Lord Ouseley

92988

registered interest
date	13/10/2014
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Small Businesses: Stafford
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to support small and medium-sized businesses in Stafford constituency.
tabling member constituency	Stafford
tabling member printed	Jeremy Lefroy
uin	210227
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/10/2014 answer text <p>Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and our small business owners have driven this economic recovery. Stafford has benefitted from a number of support schemes. The Start-Up Loan Scheme has provided business advice and 16 loans with a value of almost £60,000 to people starting a business. Since May 2010, 7 companies have benefitted from the Government’s Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme with a drawn down value of over £1 million.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We are committed to making Britain the best place in the world to start and grow a business, and are doing this in a number of ways:</p><p> </p><ul><li>£10 billion of financing will be unlocked for smaller business over the next 5 years by our British Business Bank;</li><li>Government grants of up to £3000 for better internet connectivity are available to small businesses;<br> <br></li><li>The Business Support Helpline is available to provide bespoke information and advice;</li><li>Cuts to corporation tax from 28% to 21%; and</li><li>£2,000 cut from the National Insurance bills of small firms from the new Employment Allowance.</li></ul><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Suffolk answering member printed Matthew Hancock question first answered 22/10/2014 15:43:03 answering member 4070 label Biography information for Matt Hancock
tabling member	4109 label Biography information for Jeremy Lefroy