Industry and Exports (Financial Assistance) Bill Committee: Amendment 1
161
Ayes
—
272
Noes
Defeated · Government won
211 did not vote
Analysis
Commons
Commons
**What happened**: On 23 February 2026, MPs voted on Amendment 1 to the Industry and Exports (Financial Assistance) Bill during its Committee stage -- a line-by-line scrutiny phase held unusually on the floor of the House of Commons rather than in a smaller committee room. The amendment, which sought to modify the criteria or processes governing how the government can provide financial assistance to businesses and exporters, was defeated by 272 votes to 161. **Why it matters**: The Industry and Exports (Financial Assistance) Bill's central purpose is to raise the cap on financial assistance the government can provide under existing legislation -- specifically increasing the aggregate limit from £12 billion to £20 billion under Section 8(1) of the Industry Act. This amendment represented an attempt by opposition parties to impose additional constraints or accountability requirements on how that expanded financial firepower could be used. Its defeat means the government retains its preferred, more flexible approach to directing support to businesses and exporters, without the additional restrictions the amendment would have introduced. **The politics**: The division fell sharply along government-versus-opposition lines. All 272 No votes came from Labour and Labour-Co-operative MPs, while the 161 Ayes were drawn almost entirely from opposition parties -- Conservatives (78), Liberal Democrats (52), SNP (6), Reform UK (5), DUP (5), Plaid Cymru (4), Greens (4), and five Independents. Only one Labour MP voted with the opposition. The result mirrors a companion vote held the same day on New Clause 2, which was similarly defeated 273 to 156, suggesting a coordinated set of opposition amendments all of which the government resisted and defeated comfortably.
Voting Aye meant
Support blocking UK export finance for goods likely to be re-exported to sanctioned countries like Russia, and for exports linked to modern slavery or human trafficking
Voting No meant
Oppose this restriction, likely arguing existing sanctions law and due diligence requirements are sufficient without additional legislative constraints on export finance
433 voting MPs. Each dot is one vote; left-to-right by party. Grey dots in the centre are the 211 who did not vote.
Aye
No
Absent
Labour PartyWhipped No
1
246
115
Conservative and Unionist PartyWhipped Aye
78
0
38
Liberal DemocratsWhipped Aye
52
0
20
Labour and Co-operative PartyWhipped No
0
26
16
Independent
5
3
5
Scottish National PartyWhipped Aye
6
0
3
Reform UKWhipped Aye
5
0
3
Sinn Féin
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist PartyWhipped Aye
5
0
—
Green Party of England and WalesWhipped Aye
4
0
—
Plaid CymruWhipped Aye
4
0
—
Social Democratic and Labour Party
0
0
2
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
0
0
1
Speaker
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
1
0
—
Ulster Unionist Party
1
0
—
Your Party
1
0
—
Supports the Bill to increase financial assistance limits and backs UK Export Finance's existing human rights and environmental oversight; rejects amendments as duplicative of current safeguards but commits to ongoing responsible business conduct review.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (2,569 words) →
Supports the Bill's principles but proposes amendments to prevent export finance where goods may be re-exported to sanctioned destinations and to require annual steel industry impact reporting for transparency and accountability.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,692 words) →
Strongly advocates for amendments to prohibit UKEF support for businesses with modern slavery or human trafficking in supply chains, citing past failures where UKEF funded sanctioned Chinese entities and calling for zero-tolerance legislative approach.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,344 words) →
Argues Northern Ireland faces unequal treatment under Windsor Framework EU state aid rules and proposes new clause for annual transparency reporting showing how financial assistance is distributed across UK nations.DUP · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,468 words) →
Supports the Bill but advocates for amendments on annual reporting of impact on GDP, SMEs and EU trade; expresses concern that UKEF's eligibility criteria lock out first-time exporters and that structural barriers to EU trade remain unaddressed.Liberal Democrat · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,477 words) →
Supports the Bill but raises practical concerns about SME access to trade finance, downstream steel processors being overlooked, and defence exporters' access to finance amid ESG-related restrictions.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (280 words) →
Supports new clause 1 for transparency, arguing Northern Ireland faces economic disadvantage due to Windsor Framework constraints and Irish Sea border, requiring equal access to state aid as rest of UK.DUP · Voted aye · Read full speech (932 words) →
Supports amendments on modern slavery safeguards, noting inconsistency with protections already established in health and energy sectors; calls for alignment across government.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (298 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0