Written question asked by Lord Fox (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 14 November 2022, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 28 November 2022. It was answered by Lord Callanan (Conservative) on Monday, 28 November 2022 on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Business Premises: Coronavirus

Question: To ask His Majesty's Government whether it was their policy that tenants’ confidential commercial information used as evidence in arbitration could then be used in rent reviews or renewals under the terms of the Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Act 2022.

Answer: Confidential information disclosed as part of the arbitration proceedings should be used only for the purposes of the proceedings and the making of the arbitration award. However, there are exceptions to the general principles of confidentiality applying to arbitration, including where disclosure to a third party is reasonably necessary to protect legitimate interests, which could include disclosure reasonably necessary to establish or protect a party’s legal rights.

Secondary information