Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 13 in his Department's policy paper entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan: government response, published on 13 January 2025, what discussions he has had with the (a) Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, (b) creative industries and (c) technology sector on the potential for a copyright cleared British media asset training data set, which can be licenced internationally at scale.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Industrial Strategy outlines important activity the Government is taking to grow our world-leading Creative Industries in clusters across the UK. This builds on the AI Opportunities Action Plan recommendations and includes a proposal for a Creative Content Exchange to become a trusted marketplace for selling, buying, licensing, and enabling permitted access to digitised cultural and creative assets. As part of this, and on an ongoing basis, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology and DSIT officials are actively working with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in engaging with a range of organisations, including from the creative industries and technology sectors.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 28 of the report commissioned by his Department entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan, published on 13 January 2025, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on how regulators have enabled AI innovation in their sectors.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Artificial intelligence is the defining opportunity of our generation, and the Government is taking action to harness its economic benefits for UK citizens. As set out in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, we believe most AI systems should be regulated at the point of use, with our expert regulators best placed to do so. Departments are working proactively with regulators to provide clear strategic direction and support them on their AI capability needs. Through well-designed and implemented regulation, we can fuel fast, wide and safe development and adoption of AI. I regularly engage with Cabinet colleagues on this matter.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 3 in his Department's policy paper entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan: government response, published on 13 January 2025, when he plans to outline his mission-focused plans.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government agreed to take forward all the recommendations in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, including to set out a long-term plan for compute. The Government will set out this plan by the end of the summer.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 14 of the report commissioned by his Department entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan, published on 13 January 2025, when he plans to publish an updated assessment of skills required.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Reducing the AI skills gap is critical for increasing the UK’s productivity and delivering long-term growth. In June, the Department for Education published an analysis of the skills needs for 10 priority sectors, including digital technology, and we are working with them and Skills England to further assess the skills gap and map pathways to fill it. We additionally announced a joint commitment with industry to upskill 7.5 million workers with vital AI skills. DSIT also regularly reviews the status of the UK’s AI labour market and has commissioned a survey of the labour market, which will be published later this year.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 6 in his Department's policy paper entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan: government response, published on 13 January 2025, what steps he plans to take to agree international compute partnerships with likeminded countries to increase the types of compute capability available to researchers and catalyse research collaborations.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the importance of international collaboration to unlock AI’s potential, including through compute partnerships. We are engaging likeminded countries to explore partnerships that expand access to compute infrastructure and catalyse joint research. This includes maximising our membership of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and working with other likeminded partners to support researchers.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 14 of the report commissioned by his Department entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan, published on 13 January 2025, what steps he is taking to (a) maintain and (b) further the UK’s position as a leader in AI innovation through international compute partnerships.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the importance of international collaboration to unlock AI’s potential, including through compute partnerships. We are engaging likeminded countries to explore partnerships that expand access to compute infrastructure and catalyse joint research. This includes maximising our membership of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and working with other likeminded partners to support researchers.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 1 in his Department's policy paper entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan: government response, published on 13 January 2025, when he plans to publish a long-term compute strategy for the UK's AI infrastructure.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government agreed to take forward all the recommendations in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, including to set out a long-term plan for compute. The Government will set out this plan by the end of the summer.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to recommendation 5 in his Department's policy paper entitled AI Opportunities Action Plan: government response, published on 13 January 2025, what steps he plans to take to ensure the secure use of AI infrastructure while protecting users' privacy.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is delivering on its commitment to secure AI infrastructure through the designation of UK data centres as Critical National Infrastructure and the creation of AI Growth Zones to fast-track development. Alongside this, with the fast growth of the UK’s AI sector, the National Data Library will provide trusted data foundations needed to support the delivery of a modern digital economy and the Government’s Plan for Change, AI Opportunities Action Plan, and Blueprint for Modern Digital Government. These measures ensure that AI infrastructure is both resilient and trusted, supporting innovation while protecting the public’s privacy.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will list the (a) project titles, (b) amount awarded, (c) date of award and (d) recipients of UKRI funding since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Gateway to Research (GtR) website https://gtr.ukri.org/ has been developed by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to enable users to search for and analyse information about funded research and innovation.
GtR publishes award data quarterly, and the website is open and free for all to use, and has been developed using open source, open standards and an Open Government Licence (OGL) to enable the code to be reused by third parties.
Asked by: Alan Mak (Conservative - Havant)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the life sciences strategy.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology and their officials have been in regular engagement with the Chancellor, HM Treasury, and colleagues across government on the Life Sciences Strategy and the wider Industrial Strategy. Health and life sciences are key drivers of economic growth, productivity, and global competitiveness—making close collaboration with HM Treasury essential to ensuring the strategy aligns with the government’s broader Plan for Growth. The strategy sets out targeted action to strengthen world-class R&D, attract investment, and accelerate healthcare innovation—supporting high-growth businesses, improving health outcomes, and reinforcing the UK’s global leadership in life sciences.