Draft Square Kilometre Array Observatory (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2020

Amanda Solloway Excerpts

Wednesday 9th September 2020 General Committees

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Amanda Solloway)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the draft Square Kilometre Array Observatory (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2020.

It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Edward. The order was made and laid before the House on 14 July 2020 under the affirmative process. I will explain the rationale behind it. The order confers immunities, privileges, reliefs and exemptions to the new intergovernmental organisation, the Square Kilometre Array Observatory, the SKAO, under the International Organisations Act 1968. If the Committee agrees, the order will complete the UK’s ratification of the convention signed in March 2019 and laid in Parliament in July of that year under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.

Before I go into detail, I would like to set the context with a few words about the Square Kilometre Array project and the new intergovernmental organisation, the SKAO, which is being established to deliver and operate it. The Square Kilometre Array is an international megascience project to build the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope. It is truly a global effort, involving 11 member countries and the participation of about 100 organisations across 20 countries. The SKA is one of the most ambitious international science projects of the 21st century, co-located in South Africa and western Australia. It will use hundreds of dishes and thousands of antennae connected together by optical fibre to monitor the sky in unprecedented detail. The SKA is many times faster and significantly more sensitive than any current radio telescope and of a scale never seen before, which will enable scientists to test some of the key questions in physics about the nature of the universe. For example, was Einstein right about gravity? What is dark energy and why is it so important in our universe, and where did magnetism come from?

The SKA will deliver significant technological advances in data processing and opportunities for business innovation. It will help to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers. The SKAO, based in the United Kingdom at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, will be the inter- governmental organisation building and managing the SKA. It will manage the construction, operation and data processing of the telescopes.

The SKA is a flagship project for the UK Government and underlines our commitment to worldwide partnerships as part of the modern industrial strategy ambition, to ensure that the UK remains a global leader in science, research and innovation. The Government have already committed £100 million to the construction of the SKA—we are one of the largest contributors—and a further £85 million for running costs over a 10-year period to 2026-27. Such investment gives the UK a leading role in the project during the construction and operation phases. That investment and the UK’s hosting of this new intergovernmental organisation at its Jodrell Bank headquarters is a demonstration of our world-leading position and influence in radio astronomy and wider scientific collaboration and exploration.

On the details of the order, the convention was formally laid in Parliament under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act in July last year and was completed in October. The order is part of the UK’s ratification and provides the privileges and immunities to enable the SKAO to function as an intergovernmental organisation in the United Kingdom.

It is standard practice for intergovernmental organisations and their staff to be accorded privileges and immunities by member states, but I reassure the Committee that the privileges and immunities afforded to officers of the SKAO in the UK are limited to those required for them to conduct their official activities and are not for their personal benefit. They are in line with those offered to officers of other intergovernmental organisations of which the UK is a member and include limited immunity from jurisdiction and inviolability for its officers and employees, including immunity from legal process in respect of their official acts, and tax exemption. They do not include immunity from UK road traffic law. The SKAO convention also requires that the SKAO has legal capacity so that it can enter into contracts and take such other action as may be necessary or useful for its purpose and activities.

The order applies to the whole UK. However, some provisions of the instrument do not extend to, or apply in, Scotland. A separate Scottish Order in Council has been prepared to deal with those provisions within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament. That was laid before the Scottish Parliament on 10 August.

This order confers on the new SKAO and its staff the privileges and immunities that are necessary for the organisation to function effectively and conduct its official activities. The order will enable the UK to complete its ratification of the SKAO convention and make the global SKA project a reality. Completing ratification of the SKAO convention will bring us closer to answering some of the most important questions in advancing our understanding of the universe. The SKA will provide huge opportunities for technological advances and innovation, notably in the field of big data processing and in areas in which UK industry and research establishments are poised to benefit.

--- Later in debate ---

[Amanda Solloway]

I acknowledge all the enthusiasm and passion expressed by the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central. As she knows, we share a passion for the subject. I will attempt to answer most of the questions that have been asked but, if there are any I do not answer, we have already organised a further meeting.

I thank the Committee for its consideration of the draft order. We are looking at all the negotiations, and clearly, as the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central mentioned, we have been talking to the Netherlands, Italy and South Africa. We are making sure that we have those continuing conversations. It is likely and expected in respect of those that we shall ratify shortly.

The hon. Member for Rhondda made many interesting points, and I was writing down some answers as I went along. We are working on all of the points that he raised, and we are more than happy to share that work as we do it. He is right that we have an international obligation. We have been working towards our roadmap, in which we have put all the things that we hope to do, and the UK Space Agency is at the heart of much of what we seek to achieve.

The hon. Gentleman mentioned diplomatic immunity. Clearly, what happened with Harry Dunn was unacceptable and I assure the hon. Gentleman that we are pursuing that in the best way that we can. The order confers privileges and immunities on the new Square Kilometre Array Observatory only as far as is necessary for its function as an intergovernmental organisation in the UK.

It is enormously exciting for the UK and our astronomy community to be a key partner in a global project. As the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central said, we want to be the best in the world and unlock all the secrets of the universe. We remain committed to strengthening our position as a world leader in astronomy and space exploration. The order takes us one step closer to bringing the SKAO into operation. As one of the host countries, the Government remain committed to bringing the SKAO into being as soon as possible. By hosting the intergovernmental organisation in the UK, the UK will play a key role in bringing the project to fruition. Therefore, I commend the order to the Committee.

Question put and agreed to.