Department for Business and Trade

Government is committed to ensuring that only safe products can be sold. Under the Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011, all toys placed on the market must meet essential safety requirements. Following the Government Response to the Product Safety Review, government intends to perform sector reviews of product regulation and will also consider how cross-cutting hazards may impact consumer safety.

Government recently introduced the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill. The Bill powers will allow us to reflect modern supply chains and create a proportionate regulatory framework to ensure UK consumers are protected from risk, regardless of product origin or where purchased.

The Competition and Markets Authority, the “CMA”, is responsible for investigating anti-competitive practices. As an independent authority, the CMA has discretion to investigate competition cases which, according to its prioritisation principles, it considers most appropriate.

Any concerns regarding anti-competitive conduct can be raised directly with the CMA. Details of how to submit information, along with general guidance, can be found on Gov.uk.

• The British Hallmarking Council currently employs one part time member of staff.

• In 2024 the annual operating cost of the British Hallmarking Council was £112,650.

• The British Hallmarking Council currently employs one part time member of staff.

• In 2024 the annual operating cost of the British Hallmarking Council was £112,650.

The Government expects directors to act lawfully and responsibly in respect of the companies they run and that includes ensuring that liabilities and other obligations are discharged before they apply for a company's voluntary dissolution. Those who fail to do so lay themselves open to the risk of personal liability, director disqualification and, potentially, imprisonment. The Government made a commitment in the Autumn Statement 2024 to increase collaboration between HMRC, Companies House, and the Insolvency Service to tackle those using contrived corporate insolvencies and dissolutions to exploit and defraud customers and creditors.

We have concluded a landmark economic deal with the United States, making the UK the first country to reach an agreement with President Trump. This deal protects jobs in the automotive, steel, aluminium, pharmaceutical and aerospace sectors - sectors that employ over 320,000 people across the UK. We are continuing talks on a wider UK-US Economic Deal which will look at increasing digital trade, access for our world-leading services industries and improving supply chains.

In April, Minister Alexander travelled to Beijing where he met ministers from the Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology to discuss a range of bilateral and global trade issues, including the trade tariffs.

The Department for Business and Trade recognises the challenges that junior mining companies face when fundraising for mineral exploration projects. A secure supply of critical minerals is vital for the UK's economic growth and security, industrial strategy ambitions, and clean energy transition. As we work through our industrial and critical mineral strategies, we will further explore funding mechanisms which will encourage UK companies to play a role in securing our supplies and capitalise on economic opportunities, as the demand for resilient and responsible sources of critical minerals grows. UK junior mining companies have already benefitted from HMG funding including grants available through the Automotive Transformation Fund.

The Department for Business and Trade does not hold the statistical information requested.

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade engages regularly with the US. On 8 May, we announced a landmark economic deal with the US, making the UK the first country to reach an agreement with President Trump.

We have agreed new reciprocal market access on beef - with UK farmers given a guaranteed quota for 13,000 metric tonnes of beef exports at a very low tariff rate. Imports of hormone treated beef will remain illegal. Our approach to this trade deal has ensured that any agricultural imports coming into the UK will meet the highest food standards.

Credit Unions offer vital support, advice, and affordable finance to members. While there are no immediate plans for a central finance facility for Credit Unions, the government is committed to supporting underserved communities in all the nations and regions of the UK. In December 2024, the British Business Bank launched the Community Enable Funding programme, which is aimed at Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) serving smaller businesses in underserved communities. Unlike Credit Unions, CDFIs are unable to raise customer deposits and so this central financial facility is expected to boost the growth of the social lending sector.

We intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including those on the high street, from 2026-27. Ahead of these changes being made, we have prevented RHL relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and frozen the small business multiplier.

The government is protecting the smallest businesses from changes to Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) by increasing the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This means that in 2025-26, 865,000 employers (43%) will pay no NICs at all.

Later this year we will publish our Small Business Strategy which will focus on, amongst other issues, what more we can do to support high streets.

A secure supply of critical minerals is vital for the UK's economic growth and security, industrial strategy, and clean energy transition. We recognise the importance of recycling critical minerals and as we work with DEFRA to develop the Circular Economy Strategy for England, we will consider the evidence for action and evaluate what interventions may be needed.

The South West of England is home to significant deposits of tin, tungsten and lithium, and the new Critical Minerals Strategy, which will be published this year, will set out how we will enhance the UK’s domestic capabilities, including mining, processing and recycling. The National Wealth Fund’s recent investment of £28.6m into the South Crofty tin mine will support our endeavour to onshore more of the value chain for critical minerals.

Businesses in Northern Ireland exporting their goods benefit from our free trade agreements just as businesses elsewhere in the United Kingdom do. Businesses exporting from Northern Ireland will therefore benefit from the free trade agreement with India. India originating goods entering Northern Ireland will do so under the terms of the free trade agreement, provided those goods are not at risk of entering the EU. Northern Ireland businesses importing Indian goods can use the schemes established under the Windsor Framework to avoid unnecessary duties, such as the UK Internal Market Scheme or Duty Reimbursement Scheme.

Businesses in Northern Ireland exporting their goods benefit from our free trade agreements just as businesses elsewhere in the United Kingdom do. Businesses exporting from Northern Ireland will therefore benefit from the free trade agreement with India. India originating goods entering Northern Ireland will do so under the terms of the free trade agreement, provided those goods are not at risk of entering the EU. Northern Ireland businesses importing Indian goods can use the schemes established under the Windsor Framework to avoid unnecessary duties, such as the UK Internal Market Scheme or Duty Reimbursement Scheme.

On 8^th May, the UK Government announced a landmark economic deal with the United States.

We have agreed new reciprocal market access on beef – with UK farmers given a guaranteed quota for 13,000 metric tonnes of beef exports at a very low tariff rate.

Imports of hormone treated beef remain illegal. Our approach to this trade deal has ensured that any agricultural imports coming into the UK will meet the highest food standards.

On 8th May, the UK government announced a landmark economic deal with the United States.

The NHS will never be on the table for any trade agreement and the US trade deal will not lead to privatisation of the NHS. The NHS is not for sale under any circumstances, and this Government is firmly committed to keeping healthcare free at the point of use for everyone.

This Government will continue to act in Britain’s national interest – for workers, for business and for families.

The UK Internal Market Scheme enables businesses to move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland without customs proceses where products are not at risk of entering the EU.

From 1 May, new arrangements for parcels and freight movements have significantly simplified the process for providing information and moving relevant products, and the Government has also announced it will continue important Trader Support Service arrangements beyond 2026.

The Government will continue to guarantee unfettered access for Northern Ireland’s businesses to the rest of the UK market on a permanent basis, and take forward its manifesto commitment to protect the UK internal market going forward.

The government has committed to cut the administrative costs of regulation to business by 25% by the end of this Parliament. To do this, we must determine the cumulative administrative costs of regulation which has not been done for 15 years. At that time, the exercise took approximately 18 months, which was consistent with efforts of other countries that have undertaken similar exercises.

We are working in partnership with businesses to understand their real-life experiences of regulatory compliance to establish a robust regulatory baseline. We will publish an update on this baseline exercise and our expected timelines in due course.

A review of the impact of the Working Time Regulations on the UK labour market was undertaken by the Coalition Government in 2014. It found a decline since 1998 in the incidence of long-hours working despite the existence of the opt-out, and a general trend towards shorter working hours.

It also found that the vast majority of long-hours workers would not have wanted to work fewer than 48 hours per week if it meant less pay, and that long-hours working was generally more prevalent in high income and highly skilled occupations compared to lower income and medium and low-skilled occupations.

Language service needs and spend are assessed to ensure these services offer good value for money for taxpayers while maintaining high standards of service delivery.

DBT employ teams based in priority markets around the world and those teams often use local language skills to help UK businesses access opportunities to export their goods and services globally. Likewise, they will use local language skills to promote the UK to a global audience, and in particular to attract high value investment to the UK.

The Export Control Act 2002 and the Export Control Order 2008 provide the legal framework for the UK’s strategic export controls.

Through this, HM Government controls the export of a range of military and “dual-use” items in the UK Strategic Export Control Lists. Changes to the UK’s control lists are made periodically primarily to implement our obligations under multi-lateral export control regimes, but also to introduce or amend national controls.

Changes to the list are published on legislation.gov.uk.

The UK-US economic deal protects jobs in the automotive, steel, aluminium, pharmaceutical and aerospace sectors - sectors that directly employ over 320,000 people across the UK including Northern Ireland. What we have agreed will provide the foundation for a new reciprocal trading partnership between the US and the UK, as well as secure actions that will protect jobs and businesses across the country.

All along, we have continued to act in the best interests of all UK businesses which of course includes those in Northern Ireland, and we continue to engage with Northern Ireland counterparts to ensure the deal delivers for Northern Ireland business.

Government recognises that the business events sector is a machine for economic growth, local prosperity and international importance, helping to enhance the UK's global reputation and foster international business relationships.

The Business Events Growth Programme (BEGP) supported across government, including by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) , and led by VisitBritain, forms part of the UK Government's commitment to grow the business events sector across Britain. Every pound invested in the programme supported £33 of revenue being generated for the British economy through new events secured, or in additional delegate spend, during the five-year review period from 2018 to 2023.

According to the World Steel Association, world crude steel production totalled 1,884 million tonnes (Mt) in 2024. Of this, China produced 1,005Mt, representing around 53% of world crude steel production. The UK produced 4Mt of crude steel, representing around 0.2% of world crude steel production.

Since 2020 the only changes made to the ML10d & 9A001 control entries were, respectively, to exclude aero engines originally manufactured prior to 1946 and to delete the control on aero gas turbine engines for aircraft able to cruise above Mach 1. It is considered that these changes do not substantively alter the extent of the controls that apply to engines designed for unmanned aerial vehicles.

The Secretary of State and I regularly meet stakeholders from the Auto sector to discuss net zero related issues, including imports of electric vehicles from China. China has rapidly become a major automotive manufacturer and brings competitive challenges for the sector. Government is closely monitoring the monthly data and analysing how this impacts the UK automotive sector, especially given our ambitious policies on Zero Emission Vehicles.

To ease the transition to Electric Vehicles, we announced significant changes to the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate on 7 April, allowing for greater flexibility in meeting ZEV targets and extending the sale of hybrid vehicles.

The requirement for an export licence for military and dual-use goods is set out in the Export Control Order 2008. Export licence applications for all controlled goods are rigorously assessed on a case-by-case basis against strict assessment criteria, the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria.

The Export Control Joint Unit does not issue exemptions from requirements for export licences except those specifically prescribed in law (e.g. the list of controlled goods under the 2008 Order exempts any engine manufactured before 1946). Where individual licence applications include items that are not covered by the 2008 Order, exporters can be informed that no licence is required.

The Secretary of State and I frequently engage with stakeholders to discuss automotive sector issues, including the potential impacts of US tariffs on manufactured components and raw materials for domestic EV production. On May 8, a landmark economic deal with the US was announced, protecting jobs in key sectors such as automotive. This deal reduces tariffs on UK car exports from 27.5% to 10%, which is positive news for British car manufacturers. We are also providing additional support for the sector; the 2024 Autumn Budget allocated over £2 billion for zero-emission vehicle manufacturing and supply chains.

Whenever a trade agreement of any sort is agreed, there will be domestic impacts if our trading partners have requested further access to the UK market. That is the case for the agreement on bioethanol. Senior officials from the Department for Business and Trade have been meeting representatives of the domestic bioethanol industry, and the Secretary of State has met with bioethanol businesses. We are committed to working with the domestic bioethanol industry about their concerns.

Whenever a trade agreement of any sort is agreed, there will be domestic impacts if our trading partners have requested further access to the UK market. That is the case for the agreement on bioethanol. Senior officials from the Department for Business and Trade have been meeting representatives of the domestic bioethanol industry, and the Secretary of State has met with bioethanol businesses. We are committed to working with the domestic bioethanol industry about their concerns.

Canada is one of the UK’s closest allies and we are taking various steps to increase UK-Canada trade. Our trading relationship was worth £28 billion in 2024, up 10% in current prices on 2023, and is underpinned by the UK-Canada Trade Continuity Agreement.

The Prime Minister spoke to Prime Minister Carney on 12th May and discussed ways to increase cooperation further to deliver for working people in both the UK and Canada. This includes our discussions with Canada on their ratification of the UK’s membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Once ratified, this will provide additional benefits for UK firms seeking to do business in Canada, building on our existing bilateral trade agreement with Canada which already supports trade between our two countries.

A trade deal with India will deliver on this Government’s core mission of economic growth and unlock new opportunities for businesses in every corner of the UK, including in Northern Ireland, increasing bilateral trade by £25.5bn, UK GDP by £4.8bn, and wages by £2.2bn each and every year in the long run.

We will set out further information on the sectoral impacts of this agreement in our impact assessment.

The UK-Morocco Association Agreement, which entered into force in January 2021, facilitates our trading relationship. HM Government is keen to strengthen trade ties with Morocco. In January 2025, Ben Coleman MP was appointed Trade Envoy for Morocco and Francophone West Africa. Total trade in goods and services (exports plus imports) between the UK and Morocco was £4.2 billion in 2024, up £0.6bn in current prices from 2023.

In March 2025, Gareth Thomas MP, Minister of State for Services, Small Business and Exports, visited Morocco with a delegation of businesses to showcase UK support for major infrastructure projects and signed a declaration of intent with the Head of the World Cup Committee to progress UK-Morocco collaboration on Morocco’s co-hosting of the Men’s Football World Cup in 2030. The UK looks forward to working with Morocco on this event and other infrastructure projects.

The UK-Morocco Association Agreement, which entered into force in January 2021, facilitates our trading relationship. HM Government is keen to strengthen trade ties with Morocco. In January 2025, Ben Coleman MP was appointed Trade Envoy for Morocco and Francophone West Africa. Total trade in goods and services (exports plus imports) between the UK and Morocco was £4.2 billion in 2024, up £0.6bn in current prices from 2023.

In March 2025, Gareth Thomas MP, Minister of State for Services, Small Business and Exports, visited Morocco with a delegation of businesses to showcase UK support for major infrastructure projects and signed a declaration of intent with the Head of the World Cup Committee to progress UK-Morocco collaboration on Morocco’s co-hosting of the Men’s Football World Cup in 2030. The UK looks forward to working with Morocco on this event and other infrastructure projects.

A summary document of the trade agreement between the UK and India is already on the Gov.uk website. This Government plans to publish the full agreement when the deal is signed, which will then be subject to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. The Act provides Parliament with the opportunity to scrutinise new trade agreements that are subject to ratification and, if it wishes, to resolve against them.

Additionally, any changes to UK legislation will need to be scrutinised and passed by Parliament in the usual way.

According to the World Steel Association, UK demand for finished steel products totalled 9.1 million tonnes (Mt) in 2023 (the latest year for which consumption data is available). World Steel Association data also shows that in 2024, the UK produced 4Mt of crude steel. As a proportion of domestic demand in 2023, this represented around 44%.

The Office for Product Safety and Standards received reports of 161 UK e-bike fires in 2023, of which 46% were post-market conversions. Data for 2024 is being complied and will be published in due course.

The Department for Business and Trade do not hold this information. Information in relation to statutory parental payments are based on HMRC Real Time Information (RTI) system, HMRC do not provide further breakdown of regional information as it risks disclosing individual taxpayer information.

The Investment Fund for Northern Ireland aims to tackle an identified funding gap by increasing the supply and diversity of early-stage finance for smaller businesses in Northern Ireland. The criteria for success includes number of investments, overall deployment of capital, amount of private sector capital leveraged, geographical spread of investments, ensuring distribution across the whole of Northern Ireland, and providing funds to firms that might not otherwise receive investment.

In addition, an interim evaluation of the fund will be commissioned during the first five years of the Fund’s operation, and we expect it to assess the gross value added, turnover growth rates, and finance additionality.

Adoption of technologies like cybersecurity is important to protect businesses and increase productivity.

The National Cyber Security Centre publishes a range of expert guidance, including the Small Business Guide, which contains practical and affordable advice for businesses to improve their cybersecurity. Small businesses can also benefit from advice and support from the regional Cyber Resilience Centres across England and Wales, which are a police-led collaboration with government, private sector and academia.

The industry-led SME Digital Adoption Taskforce will soon publish recommendations on ways to increase SME adoption of digital technology like cybersecurity software. These will inform our upcoming SME Strategy.

The Taskforce Terms of Reference and membership is published Terms of Reference and taskforce member list - GOV.UK

Members were selected by Department for Business and Trade, Home Office, Ministry of Housing Communities Local Government and Department for Culture Media and Sport officials. The Taskforce brings together representatives from government, industry, police and local government, including mayoral areas.

DBT does not hold records of final exports of strategically controlled goods, and the fact that a licence is granted does not mean that an export takes place. For specific goods export data, you should refer to HMRC.

The Government has however published extensive information relating to export licensing decisions in relation to Israel. On 10 December, an ad hoc data release was published on ‘Export control licensing management information for Israel’ (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/export-control-licensing-management-information-for-israel/israel-export-control-licensing-data-6-december-2024https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/export-control-licensing-management-information-for-israel/israel-export-control-licensing-data-6-december-2024) which provides information on export licences to Israel to 6 December 2024.

The Office for Product Safety and Standards leads a programme of activity to tackle the fire risks from unsafe lithium-ion e-bike batteries. All e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries placed on the UK market must be safe and producers are responsible for ensuring their products comply with the law. Last year, the Government published statutory guidelines on lithium-ion batteries for e-bikes, setting out the safety mechanisms they must contain.

The UK regularly engages with international partners regarding trade and investment policies, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora such as the World Trade Organisation.

With regards to China specifically, the UK's overall approach is to cooperate where we can, compete where we need to, and challenge where we must. During my visit to China in April, I held frank and honest discussions with my counterparts on the opportunities and challenges in the bilateral trade relationship, including improving overall reciprocity in market access, raising UK concerns on level playing field issues and market distorting practices and discussing economic security issues.