Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with the British Business Bank on supporting access to capital for women‑led and ethnic minority‑led businesses.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The British Business Bank has numerous new and successful programmes to support access to capital for underrepresented groups, including:

• new £400 million Investor Pathways Capital initiative to reduce barriers to entry for new fund managers, with 50% of this ringfenced for women,
• new Diverse Angel Syndicate initiative to catalyse the growth of diverse angel groups,
• Start Up Loans programme which has delivered more than £1.2 billion in loans, with around 40% of its loans to female founders and 20% to ethnic minority-led businesses,
• £130 million invested into the Invest in Women Taskforce’s funding pool.

The Bank is also a founding signatory to the Investing in Women Code.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of regional distribution of venture capital investment; and what steps she is taking to increase investment flows to the North East.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The number of equity deals in the North East increased 8.6% year on year in 2024, to 63 deals. Comparatively, London’s dominance of the UK equity market reduced slightly in 2024, with the share of deals in the capital dropping from 50.8% to 47.1% year-on-year, while the proportion of investment was 61.2% in 2024 – a reduction from 61.9% in the previous year, and from 73.3% in 2020.

The Government is addressing regional disparities in access to finance through the Nations and Regions Investment Funds, with businesses in the North East eligible for debt and equity finance from the £660 million Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II.

North East businesses are also set to benefit from the British Business Bank’s Cluster Champions programme, which will help strengthen financial networks and connect high-potential firms in the eight Industrial Strategy priority sectors to investors, while also providing an additional £100 million of investment.

We have also expanded the Regional Angels Programme, helping improve access to early-stage equity across the UK.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether funding programmes are available to support inclusive founding teams in (a) technology, (b) creative industries, (c) green energy and (d) other high‑growth sectors.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Government provides a range of available funding programmes to support inclusive founding teams across high-growth sectors. For example, Innovate UK provides specialised funding through initiatives such as its £101 million Clean Growth Fund, and other sector-specific grant giving competitions for technology, and creative innovation.

Other programmes include the British Business Bank’s Future Fund for investment in Life Science and Deep Tech, and its Start Up Loans programme which has supported a high proportion of inclusive founding teams (with around 40% of its beneficiaries being women, and around 20% from ethnic minority backgrounds).

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of potential impact of science diplomacy in achieving UK technology sovereignty; and whether her Department intends to pursue shared leadership arrangements with international partners where appropriate.

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

Science diplomacy supports UK technology sovereignty by building international partnerships which strengthen our capabilities, resilience and security. This is underpinned by our Science & Technology Network covering 65 locations which strengthens UK growth, security and global influence.

DSIT regularly assesses the impacts of our international collaboration on our science and technology capability. For example, internationally coauthored UK papers consistently outperform UK only research on citation impact.

We have partnerships with a broad range of countries including the US and EU, Japan, India, South Korea, Switzerland, France and Germany. We are also active members of multilateral fora including OECD, G7 and G20.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of industrial electricity prices on inward investment in AI data centres since OpenAI’s decision to pause its UK Stargate project.

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

The Government is focused on continuing to create the right conditions for investment in the UK’s AI and data centre infrastructure.

Through the AI Energy Council, it is already bringing together energy system bodies and leading technology companies, including NESO, EDF, Microsoft and Google, to address the energy implications of AI growth and ensure the system is ready to support future demand.

Alongside this, the Government is bringing forward a consultation on discounting data centres' energy costs for eligible projects in areas with excess electricity supply, including Scotland, Cumbria and the North East.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the total untapped offshore wind generating capacity in the North Sea; and what proportion of that capacity could be brought forward through future Crown Estate leasing rounds.

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

In January 2026 the UK signed a clean energy pact with Germany, France, Belgium, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark and Norway. This noted that 300GW of offshore wind could be built across the North Sea by 2050. The Crown Estate has said publicly that they could bring 20-30GW of new offshore wind capacity to market by 2030.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of using generative AI to assist people making benefit claims.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

We are adopting artificial intelligence in the Department for Work and Pensions to help colleagues deliver better outcomes for customers and to improve productivity and efficiency. While generative artificial intelligence is not currently used to assist people directly in making benefit claims, the Department continues to explore how digital tools, including artificial intelligence, could improve and enhance the claimant journey and make it easier for people to access support.

This work is focused on improving access, usability and overall user experience. Any future use of artificial intelligence would be subject to robust safeguards and appropriate ethical, legal and governance controls.

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 impact of the decision by OpenAI to pause its Stargate UK investment on the AI Growth Zone in the North East of England, and what action her Department is taking to maintain confidence among international investors in the region.

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

Since the announcement of the North East AI Growth Zone, there has been no change to energy pricing or the regulatory environment in the UK. We engage regularly with developers and other stakeholders for the North East AI Growth Zone and are encouraged that Cobalt Park are in discussions with a number of alternative offtake customers. The success of the AI Growth Zones programme is not contingent on any single investor. Five AIGZs have been designated with the potential to deliver £28 billion of investment from a diverse range of developers.

The Government is delivering an ambitious policy package to support build-out of AI infrastructure in the UK. DSIT will set up a dedicated AI Growth Zone Delivery Unit providing a single point of contact for investors, accelerated planning and grid connection support, long-term business rates retention for host local authorities, and targeted energy pricing support.

We are continuing to create the right conditions for investment in the UK’s AI and data centre infrastructure work with leading AI companies to strengthen UK compute capacity.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the 2026–27 police funding settlement in enabling Northumbria Police to bring officer numbers remain back to pre-2010 levels; and how many police forces in England and Wales will have officer numbers above pre-2010 levels at the end of 2026-27.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government’s Safer Streets Mission sets a clear expectation for policing to deliver safer communities and improved public confidence. An effective, well-supported police service is central to achieving this. That is why forces should have the right resources to tackle crime and keep communities safe.

Through the police funding settlement, a total of £442.4 million will be available to Northumbria Police in 2026/27, an increase of £20.2 million compared to 2025/26. This represents a 4.8% cash increase.

We are focused on what police officers are doing, rather than achieving arbitrary officer headcount targets and are putting officers where people want to see them.

We have scrapped arbitrary officer headcounts, which has led to forces hiring officers and, in some cases, putting them in back-office roles. Some 12,000 warranted police officers are now working in support roles across England and Wales. We are instead focussed on putting 13,000 additional policing personnel in neighbourhood roles across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament. By February 2026, we had delivered more than 3,100 additional police officers and PCSOs into neighbourhood roles. (Growth under the Neighbourhood Policing Programme, as at 28 February 2026: management information - GOV.UK)

We are also expanding police use of AI and automation technologies. In the Police Reform White Paper we announced £115m over the next three years, led by the creation of “Police AI”, a new national centre for AI in policing focused on supporting police forces rapidly but responsibly use AI to improve their efficiency and effectiveness, resulting in better public safety outcomes for local communities. Taken together this investment package is expected to free up at least 3,000 FTE (or 6 million officer hours) a year by 2028/29.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what role science diplomacy plays in the Government’s strategy for achieving UK technology sovereignty; and whether the UK intends to pursue shared leadership arrangements with international partners where appropriate.

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

Science diplomacy plays an important role in building UK technology sovereignty through international partnerships with partners which strengthen our shared capabilities, resilience and security.

Our Science & Technology Network, covering 65 locations, is a core pillar of the UK’s science diplomacy toolkit, which aims to develop and strengthen our partnership with international partners.

We have science and technology partnerships with a broad range of countries including the US and EU, Japan, India, South Korea, Switzerland, France and Germany. We are also active members of multilateral fora including OECD, G7 and G20. These partnerships are part of helping us ensure sovereign strengths and strengths through stable collaboration.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what support is being provided to regional creative‑industry organisations in the North East, including writing and publishing bodies, as part of the Government’s Creative Industries Sector Vision.

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

Unleashing the potential of our regions is a core objective of the Creative Industries Sector Plan. The Plan commits £25 million to the North East Combined Authority (NECA) as a high-potential Mayoral Strategic Authority, via our new Creative Places Growth Fund (CPGF). The CPGF will drive growth, innovation, and support greater access to growth capital for regional creative-industry organisations. Local Mayors can use it to drive the growth of their creative sectors, including those in the publishing sector. Additionally, the Sector Plan includes a universal offer to drive UK-wide growth with cross-cutting measures like IP protection and export support that will benefit regional writing and publishing bodies.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the electricity demand of large‑scale data centres, in (1) the UK and (2) those located in the North East; and what plans exist to ensure adequate grid capacity to support future digital growth.

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

The Department’s energy and emissions projections include growth in power demand from computing services like data centres. To ensure a comprehensive view of the system, the methodology projects at a broader sector level, not disaggregating specific estimates for data centres.

The Government is committed to ensuring electricity networks can meet rising electricity demand, including from data centres, by deploying new renewable and low-carbon generation in line with the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan. The Capacity Market ensures supply continuously meets demand, balancing cost and reliability to maintain adequate electricity security.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure that new offshore wind developments deliver long‑term skilled jobs and supply‑chain opportunities for communities in the North East.

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

The Government has set out a package of support for offshore wind supply chains and infrastructure of up to £1bn, including £300m from Great British Energy, £400m from The Crown Estate and £300m from industry. Allocation Round 7 secured a record 8.4GW of offshore wind capacity, supporting investment across the UK. This is already translating into local jobs and investment, including the recent offshore foundation fabrication contract at Smulders worth more than £60 million. The Crown Estate recently announced that their next seabed leasing round (Round 6) will be launched in 2027 and will focus on sites off the coast of the North East of England.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how Green Book appraisal criteria are used to assess investments in energy infrastructure in regions with high industrial and renewable potential, including the North East.

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

HM Treasury’s Green Book sets out the framework for assessing value for money for taxpayers across different policy proposals. It is applied consistently across all regions. However, it also uses place-based analysis to account for differences between towns, regions and countries, including areas such as the North East.

When assessing infrastructure proposals, officials consider the full range of societal costs and benefits, including upfront and operating costs, changes in energy use, and impacts on greenhouse gas emissions. These are quantified and monetised using the best available evidence and standardised assumptions, ensuring consistent and robust assessments for ministers.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to ensure that national economic policy does not disproportionately impact the Oxford‑Cambridge growth corridor over regions with industrial, technology and energy capacity such as the North East.

Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The Government’s economic strategy aims to spread growth across Britain, supporting all regions by investing in transport, housing, skills, and key industrial sectors. The Chancellor has repeatedly emphasised that regional growth, including in the North and North East, is central to her plans, highlighted by ongoing work on the Northern Growth Strategy. These measures are part of a place-based approach to boost the UK’s productive capacity and living standards, ensuring national policy promotes growth in every region rather than focusing on a single area.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help tackle content advising individuals to misrepresent health conditions for financial gain though the benefits system.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

I refer the Hon. member to the answer I gave on 24^th March 2026 to PQ 123138.

Found: Current membership Dame Chi Onwurah (Labour; Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West) (Chair) Emily Darlington

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Submit Evidence (by 14 May 2026)

AI model sizes and data volumes are growing significantly. At the same time, areas like quantum computing and protein synthesis also require increasing amounts of computational power.