Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if his department will a) include sepsis research in its publication of areas of research interest for alternative methods to animal testing and b) end the use of sepsis research involving animal testing.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s strategy to support replacing animals in science commits to publish biennially from 2026 a list of alternative-methods research and development priorities.

Sepsis is a complex and multifaceted condition, and its study presents significant scientific challenges. We will consider sepsis during the development of our areas of research interest list to determine the best path forward for new model development that drives scientific innovation, supports improved therapy development, and reduces reliance on animals.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the role and remit of the Office for Life Sciences.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Office for Life Sciences (OLS) is a joint unit between the Department of Health and Social Care, Department of Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department of Business and Trade. It exists to support the UK’s life sciences sector by championing research, innovation and technology, helping everyone live well for longer and kickstarting economic growth.

OLS is committed to renewing the UK’s leadership in life sciences – a cornerstone of the UK's success – deepening ties between the public, private and third sector to ensure growth across every region of the country. OLS has responsibility for the oversight of delivery of the Life Science Sector Plan, which was published in July 2025, as part of the Industrial Strategy and developed in tandem with the 10 Year Health Plan.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much money has been distributed through the Life Sciences Innovation Manufacturing Fund grants in each of the last five years and of this amount how much was allocated to (1) small, (2) medium and (3) large businesses.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund (2025-30) launched in October 2024 has so far committed a total of £6 million in grant awards, 100% going to small and medium (SME) companies with fewer than 250 employees. Between 2022 and 2024, £69 million in grant funding was awarded through predecessor schemes, of which £3 million (4%) was awarded to SMEs and £66 million (96%) to larger companies. The LSIMF 2025-2030 scheme remains open and its pipeline contains applications from across the sector, and from companies of different sizes.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2025 to Question 906344 on Animal Experiments, whether she plans to enshrine the strategy targets into law.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s new strategy sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances, achieved by creating a research and innovation system that drives the development and validation of alternative methods to using animals in science. The legal framework in the UK already requires that animals are only ever used in science where there are no validated alternatives available, and we are speeding up the development of alternative methods.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has been informed of any Palantir contracts or U.S. federal agreements referencing UK data-sharing or joint programme work since 2020.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT is not responsible for holding information centrally on contracts or federal agreements that may be held in other government departments. Within DSIT there are currently no Palantir contracts or U.S. federal agreements referencing UK data-sharing or joint programme work since 2023 when DSIT was formed.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if the Prime Minister will appoint a space minister in the Ministry of Defence to lead cross-government space policy.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

My noble friend Baroness Lloyd of Effra is the Minister responsible for leading cross government civil space policy.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what engagement they have had with the data centre industry about the infrastructure and connectivity requirements associated with AI growth zones.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Ministers and officials frequently meet with the data centre industry to understand their needs. Details of Ministers' and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2025 to Question 92210 on Internet: Outages, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill on disruption to government services during the Cloudflare outage.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) recognises the importance of robust protections for the services essential to our society and economy. That is why we introduced the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill (CSRB) on 12 November - by enhancing protections for the most important digital services, Government services that rely on them will also benefit.

As the digital centre of government, DSIT also recognises that a step change in cyber and digital resilience is required across the government sector. However, we do not need to wait for legislation to take action.

We are acting in parallel with the approach of the CSRB through our mandate to set robust cyber security standards across government organisations. Government services have been subject to the National Cyber Security Centre’s Cyber Assessment Framework since 2022, which promotes resilience against both cyber attacks and the types of system failure that we saw with the Cloudflare outage.

Despite this progress, we are not complacent. DSIT will publish the Government Cyber Action Plan, which will lay out a detailed programme of work with clear expectations, targets, and milestones to enhance Government's cyber and digital resilience.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what is the Government's proposed timeline for implementing the Competition and Markets Authority's recommendation to designate Microsoft and AWS with Strategic Market Status under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 following the Cloud Services Market Investigation published on 31 July 2025.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Competition and Markets Authority (the CMA) has completed 3 Strategic Market Status investigations this year. The CMA is independent of the Government and decisions on which markets to investigate is for its Board. The CMA has published guidance on its website on how it will prioritise Strategic Market Status designations.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing an overall timeline for the phase out of animal experimentation.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to reducing the use of animals in scientific research, and on 11^th November published a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy).

It is not yet possible to replace all animal research due to the complexity of biological systems and regulatory requirements. Any work to phase out animal testing must be science-led, in lock step with partners, so we will move as quickly as possible to reduce their use in line with scientific discovery of alternatives.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many websites have been blocked by Internet service providers for failure to comply with the Online Safety Act 2023.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for online safety, Ofcom is responsible for enforcing the Online Safety Act.

Ofcom has a range of strong enforcement powers. These include imposing fines of up to £18 million, or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue, and in the most severe cases, applying to the courts to initiate business disruption measures.

Ofcom is actively enforcing the regime, and we are clear that they have our full backing to take whatever action is necessary to keep people safe online. Ofcom continues to monitor compliance and publish updates on enforcement activity.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the level of compliance by (a) mobile phone and (b) WiFi infrastructure installers with the Code of Practice for Wireless Network Development in England, published on 7 March 2022.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Code of Practice for Wireless Network Development sets out best practice guidance for mobile network operators and local authorities on deploying wireless infrastructure, including considerations for siting equipment.

It is to complement existing legislation and provide clear, practical advice to support all stakeholders involved in the deployment process.

We expect all parties to follow the principles set out in the Code of Practice, and all major mobile operators have committed to doing so. Concerns about compliance should be raised with Mobile UK, and we continue to engage with the sector in matters relating to the deployment of wireless network infrastructure.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment has been made of the potential implications for her policies of social media platforms (a) hosting extremist content and (b) using algorithms that enable radicalisation, exploitation and grooming of vulnerable users.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Online Safety Act requires services to tackle illegal content, including terrorist content, grooming content, and content which stirs up hatred based on religion or race. They must also protect children from certain forms of legal content, including hateful or abusive material.

Services are required to take proportionate measures to mitigate these harms, including where they are enabled by algorithms. These measures are designed to ensure user safety, particularly for children whilst protecting freedom of expression. The Act requires the Secretary of State to review and report to Parliament on the effectiveness of the regime 2-5 years after the Act is fully implemented.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the number of instances of (a) antisemitism (b) Islamophobia (c) other forms of race and religion based hate on social media platforms; and what discussions have taken place with platform owners on this issue since July 2024.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services must protect all users from illegal abusive and hateful content, and children from abusive content where it does not reach the criminal threshold.

In October, the Secretary of State wrote to Ofcom and asked it to use all its levers to tackle antisemitic content online and hate speech more widely.

The government supports Ofcom’s intention to publish a report in December which will assess the impact of the Act’s duties so far. The government and Ofcom are carefully monitoring the impact of the Act.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, when her Department plans to publish the review on the impact of social media on young people’s wellbeing and mental health commissioned in November 2024.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The feasibility study into research on any causal impact of social media and smartphones on children’s mental health and wellbeing has been completed. My department is considering the study’s recommendations for further research, and the report will be published in due course.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the UK’s ranking within the G7 in terms of a) space sector growth, and b) global market share in each of the past three years.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As part of its ongoing space policy development, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is currently performing comparative analysis of the UK’s position in the global space sector. This involves the use of commercial data (primarily from Novaspace) to bring together economic data from a wide range of nations and international space organisations. Under our data access agreements, we cannot share any assessment using this data publicly. In its 2023 report Expanding Frontiers, the UKSA estimated that the UK accounted for 5% of global revenue in the space sector but has not published any data on the assessment of growth or market share in the context of other G7 countries.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of whether the UK’s global market share in the space sector is increasing or decreasing relative to other G7 countries.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As part of its ongoing space policy development, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is currently performing analysis of the UK’s global market share in the space sector. This involves the use of commercial data (primarily from Novaspace) to bring together economic data from a wide range of nations and international space organisations. Under our data access agreements, we cannot share any assessment using this data publicly. In its 2023 report Expanding Frontiers, the UKSA estimated that the UK accounted for 5% of global revenue in the space sector but has not published any data on the assessment of if the UK’s global market share is increasing or decreasing relative to other G7 countries.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the additional capacity Ofcom has provided for the administration of complaints and investigations relating to provisions within the Online Safety Act 2023.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government has ensured Ofcom has the resources it needs to deliver online safety regulation effectively, including its complaints and investigation responsibilities. £72.6 million has been allocated to Ofcom for its online safety functions and approximately 550 full time staff are working in its online safety directorate in 2025/26.

Ofcom regularly reports on its performance and activity, and the Government remains satisfied that it has the capability and capacity to carry out its complaints and investigative duties effectively. We will continue to engage with Ofcom to ensure resources remain proportionate to its remit.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many awards have been made to defence SMEs as part of the National Security Strategic Investment Fund since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

NSSIF invests in dual use companies across Quantum, Space, AI, and Emerging Technologies, on a range of cheque sizes, co-investing typically at Seed or Series A. NSSIF tends to take a minority stake and not lead the rounds. Details of many of the companies in NSSIF's investment portfolio are published on NSSIF's website (www.nssif.gov.uk).

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what is the average value of an award given to a Defence SME as part of the National Security Strategic Investment Fund.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

NSSIF invests in dual use companies across Quantum, Space, AI, and Emerging Technologies, on a range of cheque sizes, co-investing typically at Seed or Series A. NSSIF tends to take a minority stake and not lead the rounds. Details of many of the companies in NSSIF's investment portfolio are published on NSSIF's website (www.nssif.gov.uk).

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what is the maximum value of an award given to a Defence SME as part of the National Security Strategic Investment Fund.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

NSSIF invests in dual use companies across Quantum, Space, AI, and Emerging Technologies, on a range of cheque sizes, co-investing typically at Seed or Series A. NSSIF tends to take a minority stake and not lead the rounds. Details of many of the companies in NSSIF's investment portfolio are published on NSSIF's website (www.nssif.gov.uk).

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government, regarding Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November, whether they will consider including monoclonal antibodies as part of their priority areas for targeted replacement of animal tests; and how the target to replace the use of animal-derived polyclonal-type antibodies by 2030 will be enforced.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government’s strategy to support replacing animals in science commits to, from 2026, publish biennially a list of alternative-methods research and development priorities, to coalesce UK scientists and incentivise partnerships between research organisations, CROs and industry. These priority areas will be developed collaboratively between Government, academia, industry, and other partners. Monoclonal antibody testing will be considered as a potential area.

Enforcement of the target to replace animal-derived polyclonal antibodies is provided for by existing law which states animals cannot be used where a validated alternative exists. Therefore licences would not be granted once alternative methods have been validated and agreed.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of setting minimum quality standards for mobile phone connections.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

There are widely recognised international technical standards for mobile telecommunications services in place, developed through the International Telecommunications Union and Third Generation Partnership Project. These standards set out technical performance requirements and metrics.

Ofcom recently updated its definition of ‘good’ mobile coverage as part of the update to their mobile coverage checker tool, ‘Map Your Mobile’. This reflects the level of service required to carry out the tasks people expect to use their mobile device for today.

User’s expectations of what they expect to be able to do on their mobile device evolve over time. In the recent proposed Ofcom Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services, therefore, government asked Ofcom to keep under review its definitions of “good” 4G and 5G.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding has been allocated to startups developing dual-use technologies through the National Security Strategic Investment Fund since 5 July 2024.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

In the financial year 2024-25, NSSIF committed £14,863,000 for investments. Details of the portfolio are published on the NSSIF website.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the advisory assessment panel for the appointment of the new Chair of Ofcom will include a member who is independent of Government; and if she will publish the names of panel members.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The advisory assessment panel for the appointment of the new Ofcom Chair is constituted in line with the Governance Code on Public Appointments. In consultation with the Commissioner for Public Appointments, the panel includes a Senior Independent Panel Member who does not hold a ministerial or departmental role, and whose remit is to provide assurance that the process is fair, open and merit-based. The names of all panel members are included in the role advert which is published on gov.uk.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department is monitoring the number of ID-linked data breaches following the implementation of the Online Safety Act 2023.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the application of data protection legislation in the UK. As the independent regulator of the Online Safety Act (OSA), Ofcom may refer matters to the ICO if it has concerns that a provider has not complied with its obligations under data protection law.

The ICO has several powers under the data protection legislation to tackle the unlawful processing of personal data, including the power to serve substantial civil monetary penalties for serious breaches of the legislation. Details of the ICO’s enforcement activity can be found on its website.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to help ease restrictive licensing practices in relation to software by large cloud providers to ensure that there is fair and open competition in the sector.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to supporting a competitive and innovative digital economy. This is why we prioritised the commencement and implementation of the Competition and Markets Authority’s (the CMA) new powers in digital markets. The CMA is independent of Government, and any decisions on which markets it next investigates is for their Board.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help accelerate the process to designate cloud services with Digital Market Unit's Strategic Market Status to prevent anti-competitive practices in the sector.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Competition and Markets Authority (the CMA) has completed three Strategic Market Status investigations this year. The CMA is independent of the Government and decisions on which markets to investigate are for its Board. The CMA has published guidance on its website on how it will prioritise Strategic Market Status designations.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the level of systemic risk from reliance on two dominant cloud providers following recent outages.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

I refer the honourable member to the answer given on 24 November to UIN 92927. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) continues to monitor systemic risks to UK critical national infrastructure from reliance on cloud providers, including resilience measures and contingency planning following recent service outages.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department’s policies of the study undertaken by the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Bath, published on 5 September 2025.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to tackling the supply of illegal drugs. We are taking a coordinated approach to tackle harmful online content, including material associated with vapes containing illegal drugs. This combines law enforcement activity, education, and also measures compelling online platforms to act.

To this end, the illegal sale of drugs is a priority offence under the illegal content duties in the Online Safety Act 2023.Ofcom is closely monitoring compliance with the regime. The National Crime Agency also works with partners in the UK and internationally to identify offenders operating online, and to take down UK-based sites committing offences.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many staff in their Department have been on mental health leave for six months or more; and for what reason.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology routinely reports its sickness absence data on gov.uk alongside the rest of the Civil Service.

Information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence

This contains statistics for sickness absence by organisation and sickness reason, including Mental Ill-Health.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to improve the (a) regulation and (b) oversight of email service providers in relation to the use of (i) email diversion scams and (ii) impersonation fraud.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The government recognises the harm associated with scam emails and is taking action to protect the public and businesses from fraud and cyber crime. We strongly encourage the public and businesses to follow the advice from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) on how to protect themselves from cyber threats, including scam emails and business email compromise. The NCSC provides tailored advice for the public, sole traders and businesses of all sizes. The government also offers the highly effective Cyber Essentials scheme to help organisations protect themselves against common cyber attacks.

Scam emails can be reported to the NCSC's Suspicious Email Reporting Service, which has blocked billions of phishing attempts and removed 232,000 scams across 415,000 malicious web addresses. The NCSC offers guidance on how to spot and report scam emails at https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/phishing-scams. The police also offer advice on scam emails, including Action Fraud advice on payment diversion fraud and business email compromise, and the recent National Crime Agency campaign with the Law Society on payment diversion fraud in property sales. The government has committed to the publication of a new fraud strategy which will set out further details on how it will tackle fraud and protect UK residents and businesses.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether Ofcom still plans to consult on PIA pricing reform.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

Ofcom is finalising its Telecoms Access Review that will set PIA rental charges from 1 April 2026. It is for them to decide whether they need to consult further following their March 2025 consultation on their proposed TAR decisions.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will take steps to ensure that rural communities are not disadvantaged by the PIA pricing model moving forward.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

In July, we published our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices.

My officials regularly engage with Ofcom to ensure we have the right regulatory environment in place to promote competition and investment in fibre roll-out across the UK, including in rural areas.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department is still considering reforms to PIA.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

In July, we published our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices.

My officials regularly engage with Ofcom to ensure we have the right regulatory environment in place to promote competition and investment in fibre roll-out across the UK, including in rural areas.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that rural areas in Northern Ireland have equitable access to 5G and next-generation broadband.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The government wants all areas of the UK, including rural areas in Northern Ireland, to benefit from reliable and high-quality mobile coverage, and this is reflected in our ambition for all populated areas of the UK to have higher quality standalone 5G by 2030.

My department continues to work closely with the mobile network operators to deliver on this ambition, ensuring the investment committed by operators delivers benefits to such communities, including by removing barriers to deployment where they exist and it is practical to do so.

Regarding next-generation broadband access, Project Stratum received £199 million of UK government funding and delivered gigabit-capable broadband to almost 81,100 premises in Northern Ireland. This project, delivered by Fibrus, completed delivery in June 2025.

The Northern Ireland Department for the Economy (DfE) is currently undertaking a Project Gigabit procurement to help fill remaining gaps in gigabit broadband coverage predominantly targeting rural and hard to reach areas.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of appointing a UK Data Protection Ombudsman.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Data protection complaints are dealt with by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the independent regulator, which has a statutory duty to investigate data subject complaints to the extent appropriate.

The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 introduces reforms to the ICO as well as a new requirement for data controllers to respond to data protection complaints themselves, reducing premature complaints to the regulator. The ICO is also reviewing its approach to data protection complaints and has carried out a public consultation on changes to how it assesses and determines the level of investigation. It is now reviewing feedback from that consultation.

Given our recent legislative reforms and the ICO’s consultation, there are no current plans to consider a Data Protection Ombudsman. If individuals are dissatisfied with the ICO’s service (not its legal interpretation), they can escalate complaints to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many data protection complaints were filed with the Information Commissioner’s Office in each of the last five years.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The number of data protection complaints filed with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) are available on ICO’s Annual Reports, which can be viewed on their website at: https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/our-information/annual-reports/.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the strategy 'Replacing Animals in Science' published on 11 November 2025, what assessment she has made of the implications for this strategy of the use of foetal calf serum in the research and pharmaceutical industries; and what steps she is taking to promote its replacement with alternative methods.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. The strategy is intended to promote the use of any alternative method that is accurate and validated and so does not concentrate on every specific alternative. However, research and development priorities will be published biennially from 2026, developed collaboratively with industry and academic partners, to determine the best path forward to reduce reliance on animals in science.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what support her Department provides to small and medium-sized enterprises in Northern Ireland to improve their cybersecurity resilience.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Improving the cyber security of our nation’s small and medium-sized enterprises is critical to the resilience of our wider economy. We recognise many SMEs lack the resources to invest in their cyber security. As such, the government has developed a wide range of free tools, guidance and training to help SMEs implement cyber security measures, including the recently launched Cyber Action Toolkit which provides SMEs with tailored advice.

NCSC-certified Cyber Advisors are available to provide advice and guidance on commercial terms, including in Northern Ireland, and SMEs are eligible for a free 30- minute consultation. Additionally, the government’s Cyber Essentials scheme helps all organisations, including SMEs, implement critical cyber security controls, protecting them from most common cyber attacks. We recently completed a funding programme across the UK, which included supporting 170 organisations in Northern Ireland to get certified to the scheme.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her department is taking to ensure that developments in artificial superintelligence are carefully monitored and appropriate regulation is applied.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

There is considerable debate and uncertainty around Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) and Artificial Superintelligence (ASI), but the possibility of their development must be taken seriously. The increasing capabilities of AI may exacerbate existing risks and present new risks, for which the UK need to be prepared.

The role of the AI Security Institute (AISI) is to build an evidence base on these risks, so the government is equipped to understand them. AISI focuses on emerging AI risks with serious security implications, including the potential for AI to help users develop chemical and biological weapons, and the potential for loss of control presented by autonomous systems.

The government remains committed to taking further steps, where required, to ensure that the UK is prepared for the changes that AI will bring.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of AI technologies on early cancer detection.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology invests in cancer research via UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and the Department of Health and Social Care via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). UKRI and NIHR support research which explores the impact of AI on cancer diagnosis, including the NIHR £11 million Edith trial (using AI to assist radiologists in breast cancer screening). AI presents significant opportunities for improving outcomes and diagnosis for cancer patients and driving faster triage of patients with suspected symptoms. Evaluations of the impact of AI on cancer diagnosis are ongoing.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent steps have been taken to help protect UK businesses from cyber attack.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

On 12 November 2025 the government introduced the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill to Parliament. The Bill will bring into scope more of the core services relied on across the economy, such as managed service providers, data centres and critical parts of supply chains. UK businesses and public services will be more secure and resilient as a result.

On 24 November 2025 ministers wrote an open letter to small businesses and business representative organisations with details of government support and guidance on cyber security. The letter has been published on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-letter-on-cyber-security-to-small-businesses.

The National Cyber Security Centre’s Active Cyber Defence service continues to protect UK people, businesses and public sector organisations from cyber attacks, including blocking billions of phishing attempts and removing 232,000 scams across 415,000 malicious web addresses.

I also refer the honourable member to the answer of 24 October 2025 to question 82366 which explained how the government has written to Chairs and CEOs of the largest UK companies asking them to take three key actions to protect themselves from cyber threats. The letter is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-letter-on-cyber-security-to-leading-uk-companies.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of artificial intelligence tools on employment levels, in the light of the finding in the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development Labour Market Outlook report, published on 10 November, that 17 percent of UK employers expect to reduce their workforce due to AI tools in the coming year.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

We want to ensure people have access to good, meaningful work. AI has the potential to transform the labour market and Government is working to ensure the UK is well prepared, so that AI drives growth and opportunities for workers, businesses, and communities.

We are closely monitoring data on the impact of AI on the workforce, such as the CIPD report, and actively preparing for a range of scenarios. We are supporting workforce readiness for AI through multiple initiatives. Including our commitment to give 7.5 million workers essential AI skills by 2030.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what funding they are providing to support initiatives such as the Solar Hospital Innovation for Energy Leasing Demonstrator project to provide power for healthcare in Africa.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Solar Hospital Innovation project was funded by DSIT through UKRI’s Energy Catalyst programme, as part of the up to £1 billion Ayrton Fund for clean energy innovation. DSIT provided £298,497 in funding for this project, alongside £79,343 in matched funding from local sources. This contributes to the wider Ayrton Challenge on Inclusive Energy and Leave No-One Behind. The installed 228KW solar system provided 158MW of clean energy over six months, displacing around 100 tonnes of CO2. This will save the hospital $75,000 per year which has been reallocated to a cancer drugs fund.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the positive impacts on health and the energy transition of initiatives such as the Solar Hospital Innovation for Energy Leasing Demonstrator project.

Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Solar Hospital Innovation project was funded by DSIT through UKRI’s Energy Catalyst programme, as part of the up to £1 billion Ayrton Fund for clean energy innovation. DSIT provided £298,497 in funding for this project, alongside £79,343 in matched funding from local sources. This contributes to the wider Ayrton Challenge on Inclusive Energy and Leave No-One Behind. The installed 228KW solar system provided 158MW of clean energy over six months, displacing around 100 tonnes of CO2. This will save the hospital $75,000 per year which has been reallocated to a cancer drugs fund.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to develop accessibility standards for AI-enabled assistive communication technologies used by people with disabilities.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations require most public sector organisations to ensure their services, websites, intranets, extranets, published documents, and apps are accessible to disabled people by meeting the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines v2.2 to level AA and by publishing a prescribed format accessibility statement. This includes requirements to work with assistive technologies. The regulations apply regardless of if the technology is AI enabled or not. The Government Service Standard requires Departments to make sure everyone can use the service. The standard doesn’t apply to the wider public sector.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that children are using artificial intelligence chatbots for mental health advice, in particular with regard to online safety and child protection.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

This Government is committed to improving NHS mental health services to ensure that children and young people receive the right support at the right time for their mental health.

The Online Safety Act requires all in-scope services, including AI chatbots, to proactively remove illegal suicide and self-harm content. Services likely to be accessed by children must take steps to prevent children from accessing suicide, self-harm, or eating disorder content.

DHSC’s 10 Year Plan has set out an ambitious reform agenda to transform mental health services to improve access and treatment and promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Lloyd of Effra on 28 October (HL10895), when will they publish a formal response to the Independent Review of Pornography, Creating a Safer World–the Challenge of Regulating Online Pornography (HC 592), published on 27 February; and whether its recommendations will feature in their Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Home Secretary announced in Parliament the decision to continue the Pornography Review, and we are grateful for Baroness Bertin’s work.

We welcome the findings of the Independent Pornography Review and the valuable insights it has provided into the online pornography landscape. The Review highlights a set of complex and challenging policy and regulatory issues.

Where relevant to violence against women and girls they are being considered by the Home Office in the development of the new Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, which aims to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade. The government will provide a further update on how it is tackling the issues raised in the Review as part of its mission to tackle VAWG in due course. The VAWG strategy sits with Home Office and DSIT has been feeding in.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding has been made available through the British Business Bank's National Security Strategic Investment Fund in each industrial sector in the (a) current financial year and (b) each remaining financial year of the current Parliament.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

NSSIF does not currently demark a portion of its allocation for solely defence investments, as investments are made in startups with technologies relevant across NS&D use cases. NSSIF invests in dual-use advanced technology companies to provide future capabilities to National Security and Defence (NS&D). Investments are made for the purpose of NS&D, though provide wider benefits to industrial strategy sectors. As part of the recent Spending Review process, NSSIF has been awarded up to £330m to invest in the financial years 2026-27 to 2029-30, as set out in the modern industrial strategy.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding has been allocated from the National Security Strategic Investment Fund to the defence sector in each financial year between 2025-26 and 2029-30.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

NSSIF does not currently demark a portion of its allocation for solely defence investments, as investments are made in startups with technologies relevant across NS&D use cases. NSSIF invests in dual-use advanced technology companies to provide future capabilities to National Security and Defence (NS&D). Investments are made for the purpose of NS&D, though provide wider benefits to industrial strategy sectors. As part of the recent Spending Review process, NSSIF has been awarded up to £330m to invest in the financial years 2026-27 to 2029-30, as set out in the modern industrial strategy.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department’s publication entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what steps she is taking to end the use of the LD50 and LC50 tests.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Strategy uses a ‘baskets’ approach to group animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. These initial baskets are not exhaustive and will be reviewed and refined in consultation with the research community on a regular basis, noting that two LD/LC50 tests are already in basket 1 and 2 (botulinum potency and fish acute toxicity tests respectively) meaning they are among the first targeted for phase-out.

In addition, the Government-funded National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) has ongoing work to replace, reduce and refine LD/LC50 tests.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department’s publication entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, if she will consider including all instances of the use of the LD50 and LC50 tests in Basket 1: Animal testing/models for which mature replacement technologies already exist and could be applied to phase out in all but exceptional circumstances.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Strategy uses a ‘baskets’ approach to group animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. These initial baskets are not exhaustive and will be reviewed and refined in consultation with the research community on a regular basis, noting that two LD/LC50 tests are already in basket 1 and 2 (botulinum potency and fish acute toxicity tests respectively) meaning they are among the first targeted for phase-out.

In addition, the Government-funded National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) has ongoing work to replace, reduce and refine LD/LC50 tests.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has considered funding industry training programmes on AI.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government recognises the importance of industry adopting AI tools to drive growth and innovation. We recently announced a joint commitment with industry leaders such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Google to upskill 7.5 million workers with the vital AI skills they need to thrive in their jobs. This will break down barriers to opportunity and unlock economic growth.

We also recently announced further commitments to support AI adoption in industry. This includes a pledge to expand Innovate UK’s BridgeAI programme to sectors across our Industrial Strategy priorities, providing hands-on training and online programmes, as well as a £5 million local skills benefits package for each AI Growth Zone, to support local businesses adopt AI.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to being forward legislation to (a) ban and (b) limit mobile phone and broadband above inflation contract increases.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We have no current plans to legislate to ban or limit above inflation contract price increases for mobile and broadband. Ofcom, the independent telecoms regulator, introduced rules in January 2025 which required that any in-contract price rises must be set out prominently and transparently in pounds and pence so that consumers can make better informed choices. These rules banned in-contract price rises being linked to inflation.

On 25 November, the Chancellor and Secretary of State wrote to Ofcom to request an interim review of the new rules by spring 2026 and a full review in 2027.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what information her Department holds on the proportion of chatbots deployed in the UK that use search-based functionality as part of their responses; and what assessment she has made of the whether AI chatbot users in the UK are adequately protected from harmful content.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Generative AI services, including chatbots, that allow users to share content with one another or that search live websites to provide search results are regulated under the Online Safety Act and must protect users from illegal content and children from harmful and age-inappropriate content.

The Secretary of State confirmed in Parliament this week that the government is considering how AI chatbots interact with the Act and also urged Ofcom to use its existing powers to ensure that AI chatbots are safe for children.

Where evidence demonstrates that further action is necessary to protect children and the wider public, we will not hesitate to act.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to phase out the use of animal-derived biomaterials and promote non-animal alternatives in medical research.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

This Government’s recent strategy commits to reducing the use of animals in research and promotes the use of any validated alternative method. This includes replacing the use of animal-derived products, including for example, animal-derived polyclonal antibodies which we aim to replace by 2030. Other animal-derived substances/biomaterials generated in procedures regulated by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 may be considered as part of the alternative-methods research and development priorities that will be developed in consultation with stakeholders and published biennially from 2026.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department plans to monitor and report on its progress towards phasing out animal testing; and whether industry stakeholders will be involved in assessing the effectiveness of the strategy once implemented.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We will establish governance structures to oversee strategy delivery, including a cross-governmental Ministerial group on alternative methods, chaired by the Science Minister, key performance indicators (KPIs) and a publicly available dashboard of progress against the strategy’s key deliverables. From 2026 we will also report biennially on updated research and development priorities, alternative methods accepted by regulatory agency and priorities for future development and validation.

We will work closely with experts from across many fields including regulators, academics, industry and civil society organisations, to ensure that this strategy remains up to date, focused on the key issues and delivers on track.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has considered recommending changes to Ofcom’s Passive Infrastructure Access pricing structure as part of the Telecoms Access Review.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term. As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

We are engaging with Ofcom on this issue.

In July, we published a consultation on our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices. We are reviewing responses to the consultation and will publish our response in due course.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support fair competition in the broadband market between national ISPs and alternative network operators in rural areas.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Under the Communications Act 2003, Ofcom’s principal duty is to further the interests of citizens and consumers, where appropriate by promoting competition.

In July, we published a consultation on a draft updated Statement of Strategic Priorities to Ofcom that sets out the government’s view on the importance of competition to promote investment in broadband deployment across the UK, including in rural areas. We are currently reviewing responses to the consultation and will publish our response in due course.

Ofcom has powers to identify markets, determine whether a firm has significant market power (SMP) on those markets, and impose remedies as appropriate. Ofcom has not found any internet service provider to have SMP in the retail broadband market. However, in the wholesale fixed telecoms market, BT was found to have SMP and a range of pricing and non-pricing remedies were imposed on the company in order to promote network competition.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to ensure that the proposed digital verification process for the Government’s One Login system is compliant with Article 9 of the UK General Data Protection Regulation in the context of the processing of biometric data.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

GOV.UK One Login is fully compliant with all aspects of data protection law, including in relation to the processing of biometric data under the UK GDPR. DSIT relies on Article 9(2)(g) UK GDPR (substantial public interest) for the processing of biometric data. The appropriate safeguards and data minimisation procedures are applied throughout GOV.UK One Login’s biometric checks and special category data is processed only where lawful, necessary and proportionate. GOV.UK One Login provides an alternative route for individuals who do not wish to, or cannot, prove their identity using biometrics.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will commit to introducing Herbie's Law.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The UK’s legal framework already requires that animals are only used in science where no validated alternatives exist, and we are accelerating efforts to develop and adopt these alternatives. The Government’s new strategy sets out a long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated except in exceptional circumstances. This will be achieved by creating a research and innovation system that drives the development and validation of alternative methods.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what steps her Department is taking to expand Basket 3 to include additional animal tests for phase-out.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. The Strategy uses a ‘baskets’ approach to group animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. These initial baskets are not exhaustive and will be reviewed and refined in consultation with the research community on a regular basis, and research and development priorities will be published biennially from 2026.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has had recent discussions with Ofcom on the economic viability of rural broadband in South Suffolk using Openreach’s Passive Infrastructure Access.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term.

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

For this reason, while officials are engaging with Ofcom on this issue, the Department has not made any formal assessment of the impact of the current PIA rental charges on investment in rural areas, including in South Suffolk. We have also not made any formal assessment of the economic impact of introducing changes to PIA rental charges.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential economic impact of changes to Passive Infrastructure Access pricing models on private and public investment in rural broadband in South Suffolk.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term.

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

For this reason, while officials are engaging with Ofcom on this issue, the Department has not made any formal assessment of the impact of the current PIA rental charges on investment in rural areas, including in South Suffolk. We have also not made any formal assessment of the economic impact of introducing changes to PIA rental charges.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made an assessment of the impact of current Passive Infrastructure Access pricing models on private investment in rural broadband infrastructure in South Suffolk.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term.

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

For this reason, while officials are engaging with Ofcom on this issue, the Department has not made any formal assessment of the impact of the current PIA rental charges on investment in rural areas, including in South Suffolk. We have also not made any formal assessment of the economic impact of introducing changes to PIA rental charges.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of online safety protections for vulnerable residents in West Dorset.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Online Safety Act has come into effect. As of March this year, services must remove illegal content such as child abuse material or terrorist content. As of July this year, children must also be protected from age-inappropriate content such as pornography and self-harm content. Children and others will be starting to see the effects of this.

Monitoring and evaluation are key to understanding how effective the online safety regime is. DSIT and Ofcom have developed a framework to monitor the implementation of the Act and evaluate its core outcomes.

This monitoring and evaluation work is already tracking the impact of the online safety regime and will feed into a Post Implementation Review of the Act.

We are committed to making the online world safe, particularly for children, so people can seize the opportunities it brings.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department is working with the Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority on a strategy to help tackle digital exclusion in financial services, particularly for older or disabled people who do not use mobile devices.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Tackling digital exclusion, which disproportionately impacts certain demographics including older and disabled people, is a priority for Government. That’s why we published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, which sets out our immediate actions to boost digital inclusion.

Alongside this, DSIT is working closely with HM Treasury on the implementation of the Financial Inclusion Strategy to address the barriers consumers face in accessing the financial services products they need.

The Government is working closely with industry on the commitment to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK by the end of this Parliament, which will provide individuals and businesses across the country with cash and banking services. Over 240 hubs have been announced so far, and more than 190 are already open.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what the evidential basis was for including the reduction of the use of fish endocrine disruption tests by the end of 2035 in Basket 3.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. Multiple stakeholders and experts in this area, including Defra and the Veterinary Medicine Directorate, were consulted during the development of the three baskets approach, which groups animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. They concluded that basket 3 was the most appropriate timeline for fish endocrine disruption tests.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to support investment in rural gigabit broadband networks in South Suffolk.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Project Gigabit is the government’s programme to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to UK premises that are not included in suppliers' commercial plans.

As part of Project Gigabit, CityFibre is delivering a contract across Suffolk. This contract currently includes approximately 5,800 premises in the South Suffolk constituency, predominantly in rural areas.

We will aim to cover the remaining premises that are not currently included in Project Gigabit or suppliers’ commercial delivery plans as far as possible as funding becomes available, in line with the objective of achieving nationwide gigabit coverage by 2032.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made an assessment of using the Price Per Premise model rather than the Passive Infrastructure Access model with regard to rural broadband infrastructure pricing.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term. As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

We are engaging with Ofcom on this issue.

In July, we published a consultation on our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices. We are reviewing responses to the consultation and will publish our response in due course.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department plans to include recommendations relating to Passive Infrastructure Access pricing structures in the next Statement of Strategic Priorities to Ofcom.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise competition is key to promote investment and will help ensure low prices and more choice for consumers in the long term. As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

We are engaging with Ofcom on this issue.

In July, we published a consultation on our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for telecommunications, the management of radio spectrum, and postal services that sets out the Government’s view on infrastructure sharing in the fixed telecoms sector, including asking Ofcom to demonstrate greater transparency in how they calculate and set PIA prices. We are reviewing responses to the consultation and will publish our response in due course.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to keep people safe online in West Dorset.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Online Safety Act has come into effect. As of March this year, services must remove illegal content such as child abuse material or terrorist content. As of July this year, children must also be protected from age-inappropriate content such as pornography and self-harm content. Children and others will be starting to see the effects of this.

Monitoring and evaluation are key to understanding how effective the online safety regime is. DSIT and Ofcom have developed a framework to monitor the implementation of the Act and evaluate its core outcomes.

This monitoring and evaluation work is already tracking the impact of the online safety regime and will feed into a Post Implementation Review of the Act.

We are committed to making the online world safe, particularly for children, so people can seize the opportunities it brings.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the requirement to amend the Electronic Communications Code (2017), a reserved matter, to enable access to multi-dwelling units (MDUs) for broadband installation in Scotland; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of not including Scotland in the scope of any forthcoming consultation on the rollout of this digital infrastructure in Scotland compared to England and Wales.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We recognise the importance of gigabit-capable broadband connectivity for residents of multi-dwelling units (MDUs) across the UK. We continue to engage with the Scottish Government to understand if any measures are required to aid deployment in these property types in Scotland.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Ofcom on the impact Physical Infrastructure Access costs have on the deployment of fibre optic broadband in rural areas.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

My officials are regularly engaging with Ofcom, including on PIA, to ensure that we have the right regulatory environment in place to promote competition and investment in the fibre roll-out across the UK, including in rural areas.

Ofcom is finalising its Telecoms Access Review that will set PIA rental charges from 1 April 2026. In the Review, they will set out whether they will introduce changes following their consultation on their proposed TAR decisions.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she expects Ofcom to review Physical Infrastructure Access pricing in the Telecoms Access Review.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for telecommunications, Ofcom is responsible for making regulatory decisions in the fixed telecoms sector, including on the Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product.

My officials are regularly engaging with Ofcom, including on PIA, to ensure that we have the right regulatory environment in place to promote competition and investment in the fibre roll-out across the UK, including in rural areas.

Ofcom is finalising its Telecoms Access Review that will set PIA rental charges from 1 April 2026. In the Review, they will set out whether they will introduce changes following their consultation on their proposed TAR decisions.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many organisations and companies (a) reported cyber incidents in the last 12 months and (b) had adopted the Cyber Essentials scheme beforehand.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

While we do know which organisations are certified to the Cyber Essentials scheme, we do not hold data on whether they reported a cyber incident in the past 12 months.

We are confident that the controls are effective with insurance data indicating that organisations with Cyber Essentials are 92% less likely to make a claim on their cyber insurance than those without it.

That is why we have written to businesses and organisations encouraging them to use the Cyber Essentials scheme. We have been pleased with the positive feedback on this. The number of live certifications as of October 2025 was 54,678, representing an increase of 8,335 certificates on the previous 12 months (an 18% increase).

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with respect to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland regarding the Technology Prosperity Deal published on 18 September 2025, what assessment has the Government made of the role that Northern Ireland companies and universities can play in delivering the eight component parts of its Accelerating AI Innovation Strategy, and what steps has it taken to secure full Ireland engagement in this aspect of the Technology Prosperity Deal.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Technology Prosperity Deal supports businesses, universities and research organisations across the whole of the UK, including in Northern Ireland, to unlock growth for our most strategically important tech companies and harness R&D to tackle some of the most pressing problems we face. The Deal was informed by experts from across the United Kingdom.

Northern Ireland’s universities and companies are recognised as key partners in delivering the UK’s AI Opportunities Action Plan. Recent government investment of £2 billion from the AI Opportunities Action Plan aims to target and benefit all regions of the UK and highlights Northern Ireland’s growing strengths in artificial intelligence and next-generation networks. We are also working closely with the Northern Ireland Executive on the delivery of our flagship TechFirst programme.

Last week I had the pleasure of speaking to several NI tech firms and universities in Belfast, to make sure the business ecosystem is meeting the needs of NI AI and tech companies to international markets, including the United States. We continue to engage with the Northern Ireland Executive on matters relating to growth to ensure we are working collaboratively to achieve the best results for the people of Northern Ireland.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment the Government has made of the feasibility of replacing animal testing in the UK with Non-Animal New Approach Methodologies (NAMs); and if this will be reflected in the upcoming strategy to phase out animal testing.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

I refer the hon. Member for Birmingham Northfield to the answer of 01.12.2025 to Question 92600.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will make an assessment of the potential merit of redirecting existing funding and resources to support the transition to Non-Animal New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) to support the phasing out of animal testing.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” is supported by new funding from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology including £30 million to set up a translational hub and £30 million for the UK centre for the validation of alternative methods.

£11.4m has also been committed by the Medical Research Council (MRC) and Innovate UK’s core budgets and £4.5m from the Wellcome Trust to support strategy implementation to build a world-class UK research system by enhancing investment.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of artificial intelligence chatbots on the mental health of children.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

DSIT is conducting a range of research projects to advance evidence around the impacts of AI chatbots on users, including on their mental health. The Secretary of State has also confirmed this week that the government will further consider chatbots and how they interact with the Online Safety Act as part of its approach, urging Ofcom to use its existing powers to ensure they are safe for children.

Alongside this, DHSC’s 10 Year Plan sets out an ambitious reform agenda to transform mental health services to improve access and, treatment and promote good mental health and wellbeing for the nation.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for artificial intelligence chatbots being regulated as search services under the Online Safety Act 2023.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Last year, Ofcom published a letter that set out that if an AI service searches the live internet to return its results it will be regulated under the Act as a search service.

The Secretary of State has also confirmed in Parliament this week that the government will further consider the role of chatbots and how they interact with the Online Safety Act as part of its approach, urging Ofcom to use its existing powers to ensure they are safe for children.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has formalised reporting requirements for departments that experience repeated cyber incidents.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government Cyber Security Policy Handbook sets clear expectations for departments to follow in the event of a cyber incident, including the communication plans that departments need to have in place to notify relevant bodies and organisations.

The Government Cyber Coordination Centre (GC3) will shortly publish the Government Cyber Incident Response Plan (G-CIRP) which reiterates departmental responsibilities during cyber incidents, including reporting.

Furthermore, DSIT expects to publish the Government Cyber Action Plan this Winter, which sets out clear structures and actions to improve our collective response to fast-moving incidents. It also articulates how the Government Cyber Coordination Centre will provide departments with more support in understanding, detecting and responding to threats.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has a framework for evaluating cyber-security workforce shortages within the public sector.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

DSIT has a number of different mechanisms for evaluating the public sector’s cyber workforce.

DSIT completes an annual Cyber Security Skills in the UK Labour Market Survey, which identifies key challenges facing the public sector’s cyber security workforce, including skills gaps.

Additionally, DSIT expects to publish the Government Cyber Action Plan this Winter which will set out our approach to tackling cyber skills across Government. To develop this approach, DSIT considered a range of data sources, such as the cross government Security Profession Workforce Commission, the People Survey, the recent National Audit Office report on Government Cyber Resilience, and Civil Service Jobs databases to understand where we are facing cyber workforce shortages, why these shortages exist, and how best to tackle them.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what procedures are in place for cross-border data exchange within UK-EU institutional partnerships.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

UK and EU organisations that transfer personal data in the context of institutional partnerships can rely on respective applicable arrangements that facilitate the free flow of such data. These are known as adequacy decisions

Following EU exit, the UK legislated to deem the EU institutions adequate while in 2021 the EU also adopted its own adequacy decisions for the UK. Some exchanges of personal data are also governed by the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement or arrangements for specific areas of cooperation.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what mechanisms the Government uses to assess public sector compliance with national cyber security standards.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

GovAssure is the cyber security assurance scheme for assessing the critical systems of government organisations. The scheme was launched in April 2023 and DSIT recently initiated the scheme’s third year of operations.

GovAssure requires government organisations to self-assess the cyber resilience of their critical systems using the NCSC’s Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF). Outcomes are independently verified by accredited third-party reviewers and returned to the Government Cyber Unit, providing DSIT with a clear and objective understanding of cyber resilience levels across government, including the systemic issues preventing organisations from achieving target resilience levels.

DSIT expects to publish the Government Cyber Action Plan later this Winter. The plan sets out how we will adopt a radical shift in our approach to cyber and digital resilience risks across the public sector, with a focus on strengthening accountability. It sets out the underlying milestones and a performance framework for measuring Government’s progress towards these goals, providing DSIT with a further mechanism for assessing compliance.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what arrangements exist for sharing threat intelligence between central Government and local authorities.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government Cyber Coordination Centre (GC3) shares intelligence across government and the public sector, enabling organisations to better understand and defend against the cyber threat

GC3 and the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) work closely together - alongside the National Cyber Security Centre and law enforcement - to share cyber threat intelligence with local authorities.

DSIT will publish the Government Cyber Action Plan this winter which will set out clearer responsibilities and structures for sharing intelligence across Government.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether Innovate UK will resume its Smart Grants funding stream to support innovation-led start-ups.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Smart grants programme has been paused while Innovate UK redesigns its funding programmes to best suit the needs of innovative businesses and align to the objectives of the Government’s Industrial Strategy.

However, Innovate UK has launched a new £130 million ‘Growth Catalyst’ Innovate UK scheme focused on scaling innovative businesses in Industrial Strategy growth sectors. This offers grants, aligned private sector investment, and tailored support to companies, and this approach has a track record of driving 10:1 follow-on investment.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps the Government is taking to safeguard individuals in response to rapid developments in artificial intelligence, including protecting 1) the general public and 2) Members of Parliament from deepfakes, digital impersonation, and the misuse of personal identity.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government takes the threat posed by harmful deepfakes, including to MPs, very seriously. Deepfakes are captured by the Online Safety Act where they are shared on an in-scope service and constitute illegal content or content harmful to children.

Sharing a deepfake intimate image without consent is a criminal offence under the Act. Government has also legislated to criminalise the non-consensual creation of sexually explicit deepfake images.

The AI Security Institute (AISI) works to build an evidence base on the potential risks advanced AI systems could pose, to inform government decision making and help make AI more secure and reliable.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme will be reintroduced in Henley and Thame constituency.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Our priority currently is to provide gigabit-capable coverage to as many premises as possible in Henley and Thame constituency through our Project Gigabit contracts, rather than through other schemes.

Project Gigabit contracts give better certainty of delivery than voucher projects, and also involve lower administrative overhead for suppliers and communities as well as the government. Future delivery is therefore much more likely to be through contracts rather than voucher delivery in most areas.

We will continue to monitor progress and review the need for further support as delivery continues. If gaps in coverage are identified, further interventions, including reopening the voucher scheme, may be considered.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to support the life sciences sector.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

This summer the Government published the Life Sciences Sector Plan, setting out how we will strengthen one of the UK’s most important sectors. The Plan focuses on enabling world-class R&D, making the UK an outstanding place to start, scale and invest in life sciences, and driving healthcare innovation and reform. Backed by up to £2 billion of public investment alongside funding from UKRI and NIHR, the UK is already securing multibillion-pound private investment, expanding manufacturing, streamlining regulation and clinical trials, and building new research infrastructure. The recent UK-US trade deal on pharmaceuticals will also ensure that British-based pharmaceutical and medical technology firms have the lowest-tariff access to the US market in the world, a major competitive advantage. The deal will also allow more NHS patients to access cutting edge new innovations.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to support the development of Quantum Computing, including research at Universities.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government’s Digital and Technologies Sector Plan outlined £670 million of investment to accelerate the development and adoption of quantum computing through our quantum computing mission. It also backed our flagship National Quantum Computing Centre with a 10-year budget, providing them with long term certainty to expand activity and demonstrating Government’s commitment to the sector.

In 2024 we launched five quantum technology hubs, including a dedicated hub for quantum computing based at the University of Oxford. This brings together researchers from universities across Great Britain with industry partners, collaborating to progress quantum computing research and develop a skilled workforce.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department plans to review the legal and regulatory framework governing the domestic use of CCTV, with particular reference to protections for individuals whose homes or private spaces are captured by neighbouring security cameras.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The department has no plans to review the current legal and regulatory framework governing the domestic use of CCTV, which can play a useful role in making householders feel safe and helping the police to prevent crime.

Individuals that use CCTV to film outside their property boundary have to comply with the UK’s data protection laws. This means that any personal data captured, such as images, recordings and footage of identifiable individuals, should be processed fairly, lawfully, transparently, and securely.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent regulator for data protection, has published practical guidance to help people concerned about intrusive use of CCTV: Home CCTV systems | ICO. Regardless of whether or not the use of CCTV falls within the data protection legislation, the ICO recommends that people use it responsibly to protect the privacy of others.

Where the use of a domestic camera system constitutes harassment or stalking, other, criminal laws will apply.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much and what proportion of funding allocated to AI and semiconductor growth zones will be spent in Wales; and over what timeframe.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The AI Growth Zones programme aims to attract billions of pounds in private investment into AI data centres and drive economic growth through job creation. The programme will create opportunities for skills development and apprenticeships, forge research and development partnerships with local universities, and enable British businesses to participate in major AI projects.

We have announced four AI Growth Zones, two of which are Welsh sites, with one in Anglesey and another in South Wales. These sites will benefit from major private investment, including Vanguard's planned £10 billion investment in the South Wales AI Growth Zone. In addition to this private capital, we are providing £5 million for each AI Growth Zone through UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) to support skills development and AI adoption, ensuring that local communities benefit directly from the programme. This funding will be available from April 2026 for all AI Growth Zones.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Online Safety Act 2023 in protecting children in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Online Safety Act requires services to protect children in the UK from both illegal and age-inappropriate content. These protections are now in force, as of 25 July, children in Northern Ireland should be seeing a tangible difference in their online experiences.

Ofcom are already taking robust action against non-compliant services failing to fulfil their duties. Since the children’s safety duties have been in force, over 6,000 services have implemented highly effective age assurance to prevent children seeing the most harmful online content; improving protections for millions of children online.

We will continue to monitor the Act’s effectiveness and will not hesitate to take further action to protect children online if evidence shows this is necessary.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to protect the elderly and most vulnerable from unsolicited calls selling mobile phone upgrades or contracts.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Unsolicited direct marketing calls are regulated by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR). Under PECR, companies must not make live marketing calls to a number that is registered on the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) list. Organisations must not make automated marketing calls unless the recipient has specifically consented to receive this type of call from them.

PECR are enforced by the Information Commissioner who can impose financial penalties for breaches of the regulations. Once commenced, provisions in the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 will significantly increase the maximum fine that can be imposed by the Commissioner. Details of enforcement actions are published at: https://ico.org.uk/action-weve-taken/.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department takes to record UK public sector participation in EU-linked research consortia.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Information on European Commission-led programmes, such as Horizon Europe, is collected by the Commission. This data is publicly available and includes details on successful consortia, including UK public sector organisations. It can be found in the R&I Projects section of the Funding and Tenders Portal under the Key Figures page using the relevant filters: R&I Proposals - Summary | Sheet - Qlik Sense. DSIT uses this and other relevant sources to assess UK participation and measures to keep improving this.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to encourage people skilled in AI research not to leave the UK to work elsewhere.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government is taking decisive steps to attract and retain world-class AI researchers. We have expanded the Turing AI Pioneer Fellowships to build our expertise at home. We are also funding up to 100 Spärck AI scholarships for master’s degrees at leading UK universities, as part of the wider £187 million TechFirst digital skills programme.

To draw global talent, our new Turing AI Global Fellowships offer relocation packages for leading academics. These initiatives form part of a £1 billion AI R&D portfolio, which also includes doctoral training centres and research hubs – strengthening the UK’s research base and ensuring we remain a global leader in AI innovation.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to support job creation and infrastructure development in the AI Growth Zone in South Wales.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government is establishing AI Growth Zones (AIGZs) to deliver the infrastructure needed for the UK to develop and deploy advanced AI at scale.

Following the announcement of the fourth AI Growth Zone in South Wales, we are working with national and regional government, businesses and local skills providers to address key barriers to investment in the area and accelerate benefits for communities across South Wales. Our AI Growth Zone policy package unlocks £5 million for each site to invest in local benefits and capitalise on the AI economy. This additional funding can support initiatives such as expanding data centre-focused skills pathways, creating more high-skilled, high-paying jobs and strengthening the local research environment.

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UK ICF was launched in 2011 as Official Development Assistance (ODA). It plays a crucial role in fulfilling the UK’s obligations under the Paris Climate Agreement and advancing the Government’s wider ambition to establish the UK as a global leader in international climate action. In 2019, the previous Government announced its commitment to spend £11.6 billion in ICF in the five years to 2025-26. The UK’s 2023 ICF strategy outlined four priority areas for the funding: clean energy; nature for climate and people; adaptation and resilience; and sustainable cities, infrastructure and transport. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and three other Government departments – the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ); Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra); and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) – have responsibility for funding and delivering ICF.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that switchovers of legacy technology, such as digital terrestrial television, support uptake and inclusion amongst digitally excluded citizens.

Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Digital inclusion is a priority for this Government. It is foundational to delivering on our five Missions and essential to unlocking economic growth.

The Department is leading a project to assess the future of TV distribution and we are committed to maintaining access for all, regardless of how audiences receive their television. Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) is protected until at least 2034, safeguarding access for millions of households.

The project is working closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to ensure that any opportunities to support digital inclusion is at the heart of policy development.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of electricity demand from AI-related data centres on electricity prices.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Government is committed to ensuring electricity networks can meet rising electricity demand, including from data centres, and to protecting consumer bills. Locating data centres where there is excess renewable generation could lower constraint costs, thereby reducing overall system costs and consumer bills. The Government has set up the AI Energy Council jointly chaired by the Secretary of State for DESNZ and Secretary of State for DSIT to look strategically at the energy case for AI and data centres across the UK.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to replicating the Office for Investment: Financial Services model for other key strategic sectors identified in the Science and Technology Framework.

Answered by Lord Stockwood - Minister of State (HM Treasury)

The OfI: Financial Services is a bespoke concierge service partnership involving HM Treasury, the OfI, the Financial Conduct Authority, the Prudential Regulation Authority, and the City of London Corporation. It was created to address the particular investment-related needs of the FS sector but was deliberately branded as the OfI to reflect its commonality with the OfI’s remit of sourcing and securing transformational investment. Whilst the Government will always consider the optimum approach to attracting investment, the OfI remains the single front door investment delivery body for the UK. The OfI works closely with DSIT to maximise investment in the Tech sector.

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