Inter-Departmental Business Register data indicates a 3% fall in UK business start-ups between financial years 2024-25 (308,700) and 2025-26 (298,655).

While business births data is not available by business size, the UK business population is overwhelmingly composed of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), accounting for 99.9% of firms.

Business start-up rates are influenced by a range of factors, including levels of entrepreneurial activity, the policy and regulatory environment, and broader economic conditions.

Inter-Departmental Business Register data shows that the number of UK businesses that ceased operation between financial years 2023-24 and 2025-26 is as follows:

• 2023-24; 312,940
• 2024-25; 292,095
• 2025-26; 285,075

While business deaths data is not available by business size, the UK business population is overwhelmingly composed of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), accounting for 99.9% of firms.

Business death rates are influenced by a range of factors, including business resilience and broader economic and financial conditions.

Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. The Act does not set out specific standards of maintenance, as it is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.

The Department does not hold data on the time taken by local highway authorities to repair reported potholes, but national guidance recommends that defects and potholes which require urgent attention should be made safe at the time of inspection or as soon as possible.

Local highway authorities have a wide range of tools and methods available to them to survey their networks and to monitor the condition of the roads they maintain over time. The Government does not prescribe which of these must be used to inform their asset management programme.

From 2025, all local highway authorities were required to publish transparency reports on their websites to increase transparency and ensure that both Government and local residents can see how record investment into local roads is being spent. Using the data from these transparency reports, the Department published a new traffic light rating system for all local highway authorities in England on 11 January. Under this system, each authority is rated red, amber or green based on the condition of their roads, how effectively they spend their record Government funding, and whether they do so using best practice. This system provides public accountability and reinforces the expectation that funding is used for its intended purpose.

Under this system, 10 local highway authorities scored a red on their spend scorecard, which means they have stated in their highways maintenance transparency reports that in the current financial year they are due to invest less capital to maintain their local highways than their DfT capital grant for local highways maintenance. A large portion of local highway authorities did, however, spend more than their allocation with 113 local highway authorities receiving a green rating for this scorecard.

DfT collects and collates a range of information about information about local roads from local authorities in England annually.

Official statistics on the condition of local roads in England are published annually on GOV.uk. These statistics have presented the percentage of road that should have been considered for maintenance (red), by road classification and local authority, since 2008. These statistics show that in England:

• The percentage of local ‘A’ road categorised as red has remained at 4% since 2020. Despite a slight increase from 3% in 2019, the proportion of ‘A’ road categorised as red is still below levels seen in 2008 to 2013.
• After reaching a peak in 2011 and 2012, where 10% of ‘B’ and ‘C’ road was categorised as red, the proportion fell to 6% in 2016 but has since increased to 7% in 2023 and 2024.
• The proportion of the unclassified road network categorised as red has fluctuated between 15% and 18% since current reporting started in 2008, and in 2024 stood at 17%, unchanged from 2023.

This financial year the Government has introduced transparency reporting for local highway authorities across England alongside making an additional £500 million available for highways maintenance. To qualify for their full share of this funding uplift, local highway authorities had to publish reports setting out how they comply with best practice, including in relation to the extent to which they prioritise preventative maintenance.

Further to this, on 11 January, the Department published a new rating system for every highway authority in England. Each local highway authority received a red, amber or green rating based on the condition of their roads, how much they are spending to maintain it, and whether they do so using best practice, including by adopting more preventative maintenance. The ratings, which will be updated periodically, provide an incentive for councils to adopt more preventative maintenance, and enable the Department to provide targeted support to authorities to help them adopt best practice.

To gain access to their full highways maintenance funding in the future, local highway authorities will have to continue to demonstrate that they comply with best practice, for example by adopting more preventative maintenance.

The Government recognises that historic underinvestment has meant that authorities have not necessarily had the resources to maintain roads in the way that they would want to. The Government has therefore announced a record £7.3 billion for the next four years. This is building on the c.£1.6 billion in capital funding for local highways maintenance in England for the financial year 2025/26, which includes £500 million of additional funding when compared to funding levels for 2024/25.

In 2025/26, 25% of the additional funding was designated as incentive funding and was contingent upon local highway authorities meeting certain reporting requirements. A portion of the £7.3 billion over the next four years will also be designated as incentive funding and will be subject to local highway authorities demonstrating that they comply with best practice in highways maintenance, for example by spending all the DfT’s capital grant on highways maintenance and adopting more preventative maintenance. Authorities that fail to meet these standards will have this incentive funding withheld.

In addition, on 11 January, DfT published a new traffic light rating system for all local highway authorities in England. Under this system, each authority is rated red, amber or green based on the condition of their roads, how effectively they spend their record Government funding, and whether they do so using best practice. Authorities that state their capital investment to maintain local highways is less than DfT’s capital grant for highways maintenance receive a red spend scorecard under this rating system.

On 8 April 2025 Companies House started a lengthy period of voluntary Identity Verification to assess the effectiveness of the solution before making Identity Verification mandatory from 18 November.

As of 9 December, 1.8 million people have successfully completed verification via GOV.UK One Login. Between 8 April and 9 December, Companies House received 355 official complaints regarding GOV.UK One Login. From September to November 2025, the period for which data is available of the Government Digital Service (GDS) received 75 complaints from Companies House customers using One Login to verify their identities.

The Post Office option is provided under the GOV.UK One Login Service. Companies House understands Government Digital Service undertook a robust analysis to ensure the option achieved the same identity verification standard as other identity verification journeys within the GOV.UK One Login service.

Companies House works closely with the GOV.UK One Login team to monitor success rates through this route, along with sharing customer feedback and insight where relevant to improve the service.

Companies House sought invitations from service providers and conducted a robust assessment against critical success factors concerning user experience, value for money, affordability for users and viability of delivery.

GOV.UK One Login was selected because it satisfied these critical success factors and aligned with wider government priorities to utilise cross government verification solutions where possible to streamline access government services as set out below:

www.gov.uk/guidance/use-govuk-one-login

To ensure that all customers were able to access identity verification, a secondary route was put in place in the form of Authorised Company Service Providers (ACSPs).

The government recognises the critical role the motor finance market plays in allowing people to own their own vehicle. The government is engaging with a broad range of stakeholders to monitor issues in the motor finance market.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

Please see the letter attached from the Acting National Statistician of the UK Statistics Authority.

Emma Rourke | Acting National Statistician

The Lord Mawson OBE

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

2 June 2025

Dear Lord Mawson,

As Acting National Statistician, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking how many small and medium-sized building companies have ceased trading in the financial years (1) 2024–25, (2) 2023–24, and (3) 2022–23; and what assessment has been made of the trend of these figures (HL7770).

Using the quarterly business demography release[1], we can show, in Table 1, the number of businesses which were classified to the construction industry which have ceased trading in the financial years listed. Figures for building companies are not separately available so the wider aggregation of the construction industry has been used. This consists of construction of buildings, civil engineering, and specialised construction activities. These figures are classified as ‘official statistics in development’.

Table 1: Number of businesses classified to the construction industry which have ceased trading in the financial years 2022/23 – 2024/25.

Source: Office for National Statistics

It is not possible to show these figures for small and medium sized enterprises only since this breakdown is not available from the quarterly release. However, figures from our 2024 UK Business: activity, size and location dataset[2] show that small and medium sized enterprises, taken to be businesses with employment less than 250, make up 99.9 per cent of businesses in the construction industry.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) makes no estimate of the trend of these figures.

Yours sincerely,

Emma Rourke

[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/bulletins/businessdemographyquarterlyexperimentalstatisticsuk/latest

[2]https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/bulletins/ukbusinessactivitysizeandlocation/2024

Construction is a cyclical industry, and the financial viability of firms can be affected by a range of factors, including the state of the market, commercial negotiations in relation to contracts, liabilities incurred, and the price of wages, products and materials. Small firms in the construction supply chain are also vulnerable to late or non-payment, which is why the Government has taken steps to improve payment reporting, and is committed to publishing a consultation on legislative measures to ensure prompt and fair payment.

The Government recognises and values the contributions hereditary peers have made to the House of Lords.

The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill delivers the Government’s manifesto commitment to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords, completing the work of the House of Lords Act 1999. In the 21st century there should not be places reserved in the legislature for people born into certain families.

The Government is supportive of the inclusion of individuals from all backgrounds in the House of Lords and believes the second chamber is enriched by members who bring diverse experience and expertise. This includes members with business experience.

The following table shows the total number of prescription items, quantities and Net Ingredient Cost (NIC) of spacer/holding chamber devices that were dispensed in England regardless of where prescribed from January 2019 to November 2024:

Source: NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA)

Notes:

1. Data was based on the information within the Prescription Cost Analysis published statistics, using Part IXA of the Drug Tariff for Spacer/Holding Chamber device as the basis to provide a list of spacer products held in the NHSBSA drn+d database
2. Items have been dispensed, but not necessarily prescribed, in England.

Information on how to look after a spacer device is included in the patient information leaflet that is provided to patients with their device. This can be found in the section on how to look after the device and includes cleaning and storage instructions as well as advice on when the device should be replaced. The general advice for the spacers available in the United Kingdom is that they should be replaced after one year.

Guidance for patients on device replacement can also be found on patient support websites such as Asthma and Lung UK which includes similar advice: ‘You should replace your spacer at least every year, especially if you use it daily, but some may need to be replaced sooner – ask your GP, nurse or pharmacist if you’re unsure.’

Guidance for healthcare professionals can be found on the Right Breath website and on the NHS clinical guidance page which recommend that all spacers should be replaced annually while the British National Formulary which provides healthcare professionals with up-to-date information about the use of medicines recommends that spacer devices should be replaced every six to 12 months.

NHS England is not aware of any additional clinical guidance it has issued, other than that contained in the product information, about replacing spacers.

The exact amount of statutory and mandatory training completed varies, depending on which organisation they work for, their role or roles, and the frequency of their movement between organisations, for instance resident doctors rotating between organisations may have to repeat some of the training.

On average, it is estimated that nationally defined statutory and mandatory training takes up to eight hours or one day per person per year and locally mandated training will add to this. This considerable investment of time has to be balanced against the fact that this training is both important, for instance safety training and emergency preparedness training, and often required by law.

In early 2024, NHS England commenced work in partnership with the Department, the Care Quality Commission, the Health Services Safety Investigations Branch, and NHS Resolution to reform statutory and mandatory training through a programme to optimise, rationalise, and redesign.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department for Transport allocates capital funding to local highways authorities to enable them to maintain and improve their respective networks, based on their local knowledge, circumstances, and priorities. The funding is paid out as a grant under section 31 of the Local Government Act 2003, and is unringfenced. It is up to each authority to decide how best to spend it to fulfil its statutory duty under section 41 of the Highways Act 1980.

Revenue funding for highway maintenance is provided to local authorities each year by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement. This funding is also unringfenced.

The Department publishes maintenance expenditure on local roads on gov.uk each year based on local authority outturn receipts. These show that capital expenditure on the local highway network is consistently higher than the funding provided by the Department for highway maintenance activities, which suggests that generally local authorities are not using the capital funding provided by the Department for other purposes.

The Department intends to introduce new reporting requirements on local highway authorities for the 2025/26 financial year, which will require them to provide further information to ensure residents can see how they intend to use the funding provided by the Government.