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4,729 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDScientific Advisory Group for EmergenciesThe committee includes many of the experts in all those fields. They are brought in, as recommended by the Chief Scientific Adviser, when their expertise in particular fields is…28 Apr 2020HANSARDScientific Advisory Group for EmergenciesMy Lords, I certainly agree with the noble Baroness about transparency. I can give her a commitment that the minutes of the SAGE meetings will be published at the end of the…28 Apr 2020HANSARDScientific Advisory Group for EmergenciesThe noble Baroness should really direct that question to the Chief Scientific Adviser. This is a changeable pandemic. The science is changing and is being updated. Scientists will…28 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansThe noble Lord makes a very good point. As I have said, we have already introduced a number of technical changes to the scheme—obviously it was introduced very rapidly. We are…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansMy noble friend makes a very good point. As I said in response to an earlier question, we are looking to expand the pool of lenders as quickly as possible and at Funding Circle.…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansMy Lords, we are constantly reviewing the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to make sure that businesses can access loans quickly and easily. This includes looking at…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansMy noble friend asked two good questions. We are aware of her first point about vetoes, and are considering it closely as we work out the further details of the scheme. As regards…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansWe are aware of the issue that the noble Baroness raises. Typical insurance policies offer cover against business interruption due to specific or notifiable diseases listed in the…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansWe have made some changes to the scheme so that no personal guarantees are permitted for loans of below £250,000. For loans above that level, lenders are permitted, at their…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansIt is important to remember that not all SMEs will want debt finance. There is a wide range of different support schemes available to businesses, including the job retention…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Business Interruption LoansI thank my noble friend for his question. Of course, the issue of 100% guarantees has been raised by a number of other contributors. It is something that we are keeping under…22 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsI thank the noble Lord for his question. He is right to draw attention to the profiteering from a small number of retailers. We are aware of that and are looking urgently at what…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsA ban has already been imposed on the short selling of stocks because regulators in their own individual countries have imposed bans. A small number of European countries like the…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsI thank my noble friend for his comments but taking short and long positions allows for the hedging of risks, and short selling can therefore benefit a wide range of investors,…25 Mar 2020HANSARDHorizon Accounting SystemOn the noble Lord’s last point, I believe it was published this morning and is on GOV.UK; I will send him a link so that he can access that. With regard to the review, I am afraid…25 Mar 2020HANSARDHorizon Accounting SystemThe noble Lord makes a very good point. Everybody can make mistakes—we have to accept that things go wrong—but the refusal to admit that a mistake had been made and the dogged…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsThe noble Lord makes a good point. I am sure that the FCA and the regulators are closely watching what is happening in all markets. As I mentioned, when short selling, certainly…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsI certainly did not dismiss that activity; I said that it was appalling and callous, and obviously I wish that people would not indulge in it. However, criminal law and sanctions…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsPerhaps it would be helpful to the House if I set out what powers the FCA has in this area. Under the short selling regulation, the Financial Conduct Authority has a range of…25 Mar 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Financial MarketsThere are competition issues involved in doing that, as the noble Lord will be well aware of, given his experience. We have some powers in certain sectors and at the moment we are…25 Mar 2020