Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she plans to take to encourage continued private investment in rural broadband infrastructure.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
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.
The draft Statement also sets out how Ofcom can continue to support private investment across the UK, including in rural areas, by promoting competition.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding for the Mental Health Goals programme has been allocated; and what criteria she uses to distribute that funding.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government has allocated up to £50 million over five years to the Mental Health Goals programme. Funding decisions are guided by strategic direction from the programme’s expert co-Chairs and assessed through academic peer review and a representative Steering Committee. Selection criteria include scientific excellence, potential to advance precision psychiatry, meaningful involvement of people with lived experience, and likelihood of attracting industry investment.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to expand the Intellectual Property Office's Fake Toys, Real Harms campaign to (a) schools, (b) health services and (c) community networks.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Intellectual Property Office is committed to raising consumer awareness and understanding of IP crime and infringement and the risks surrounding it.
The Fake Toys, Real Harms campaign has demonstrated this through national media coverage and collaboration with law enforcement and the toy industry to share the message amongst consumers.
Its content is and will continue to be shared widely with partners, particularly during the Christmas shopping period.
This campaign supports the IPO’s education programme, which inspires young people to realise their ideas and better understand intellectual property.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department plans to take to protect people's (a) biometric and (b) personal data in any future digital ID scheme.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Privacy and security are integral to the Government’s proposals. People’s privacy and data will be protected in line with the UK’s data protection laws as well as using state-of-the-art encryption and authentication technology that’s already protecting millions of digital transactions daily - in the same way banking apps do.
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year, which will seek views on the design, build and delivery of the system. The Government will work closely with expert stakeholders, including the Information Commissioner’s Office and the National Cyber Security Centre, to make the programme as effective and secure as possible.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has made an assessment of financial risk for the introduction of digital ID cards.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year. The eventual total cost and savings will depend on the design, build and delivery of the system, matters which will be included in the consultation.
We expect the programme to be designed, built and run by in-house Government teams, not outsourced to external suppliers. In the event any specialist external services or expertise are procured to support the delivery of the new digital ID system, this will be subject to all the usual competitive processes to ensure transparency, and value for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she plans to take to ensure value for money in procurement contracts related to digital ID.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year. The eventual total cost and savings will depend on the design, build and delivery of the system, matters which will be included in the consultation.
We expect the programme to be designed, built and run by in-house Government teams, not outsourced to external suppliers. In the event any specialist external services or expertise are procured to support the delivery of the new digital ID system, this will be subject to all the usual competitive processes to ensure transparency, and value for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what engagement his Department has had with (a) teachers and (b) trade unions on the introduction of digital ID cards.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year and has begun engaging with several key stakeholders already. We will continue to engage with a range of organisations over the coming weeks and months, including as part of the consultation to be launched by the end of this year.
Throughout the development of the new digital ID, the Government will work closely with expert stakeholders to make it as effective and inclusive as possible.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the Government has conducted an Equality Impact Assessment of the introduction of digital ID cards.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will deliver a comprehensive inclusion programme to help ensure everyone eligible is able to access the new digital ID.
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year, setting out the proposed approach in more detail and seeking views on this. Views from the consultation will be used to inform future assessments on the impact on equality.
The Government will work closely with expert stakeholders from a range of organisations to make the programme as effective and inclusive as possible.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the estimated annual cost per user is of maintaining the digital ID system.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government will launch a public consultation on the new digital ID by the end of the year. The eventual total cost and savings will depend on the design, build and delivery of the system, matters which will be included in the consultation.
We expect the programme to be designed, built and run by in-house Government teams, not outsourced to external suppliers. In the event any specialist external services or expertise are procured to support the delivery of the new digital ID system, this will be subject to all the usual competitive processes to ensure transparency, and value for the taxpayer.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
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 potential impact of its Passive Infrastructure Access pricing model on the economic viability of rural gigabit-capable broadband network builds.
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.
For this reason, while my officials are engaging with Ofcom on this issue, the Department has not made any specific assessment of the merits of introducing fiscal incentives to reduce how much rural operators pay for PIA.
My officials are regularly engaging with Ofcom to ensure that we have the right regulatory environment in place to promote competition and investment in the fibre roll-out.