Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 Virgin Media’s PSTN switchover on the safety of vulnerable and telecare-reliant customers.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Virgin Media has been fined £23.8m following the conclusion of Ofcom’s investigation started in 2023 into Virgin Media’s breach of their General Conditions.
We take people’s safety during this switchover very seriously. In November 2024, the Government secured further commitments from the telecoms industry, including Virgin Media, to protect vulnerable customers via the non-voluntary migrations checklist. This includes telecare-reliant customers.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what estimate she has made of the number of vulnerable customers impacted by ongoing PSTN switchover programmes.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
There are an estimated 2 million telecare users in the UK, and many customers may be identified as vulnerable for other reasons, such as landline-dependency. The government does not hold data on the specific number affected by the industry led PSTN migration.
The Government is committed to keeping vulnerable people safe during the PSTN migration. In November 2024, the Government secured further commitments from the telecoms industry to protect vulnerable customers via the non-voluntary migrations checklist.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to provide guidance to (a) businesses, (b) schools and (c) universities on AI-driven recruitment processes.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In March 2024, we published guidance on Responsible AI in Recruitment. This focuses on good practice for the procurement and deployment of AI systems for HR and recruitment with a specific focus on technologies used in the hiring process. The guidance identifies key questions, considerations, and assurance mechanisms that may be used to ensure the safe and trustworthy use of AI in recruitment.
Alongside this, the ICO's AI and biometrics strategy outlines how they will ensure that automated decision-making (ADM) systems are governed and used in a way that is fair to people, focusing on how they are used in recruitment and in public services. The strategy can be read here: https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/our-information/our-strategies-and-plans/artificial-intelligence-and-biometrics-strategy/
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many and what proportion of properties have been connected to full fibre under the North Shropshire Project Gigabit contract.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As of 25 June 2025, Freedom Fibre delivered 2,500 out of an original contract of 12,000 premises, for a proportion of 21% of the original contract. Building Digital UK will publish more up-to-date data about contract delivery in the next few weeks.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if her Department take steps to deliver full fibre to 12,000 premises in North Shropshire following the integration of Building Digital UK into her Department.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In North Shropshire, Building Digital UK (BDUK) is seeking to agree the extent to which Openreach may be able to extend its network to reach premises that require support from Project Gigabit.
This work will not be impacted by BDUK’s integration into the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 adequacy of rural broadband coverage.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Rural broadband coverage is not good enough. We are delivering nationwide gigabit broadband, through Project Gigabit.
Between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025, 89% of premises benefitting from government broadband schemes were in rural areas.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what progress his Department has made on procuring a new supplier to deliver Project Gigabit connections in North Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Project Gigabit is designed to adapt in the event that a contracted supplier can no longer complete its planned delivery, utilising a mix of contracts and interventions to enable us to continue to bring fast, reliable broadband to hard-to-reach premises across the UK.
In North Shropshire, Building Digital UK (BDUK) will be seeking to agree the extent to which Openreach may be able to extend its network to reach premises that require support from Project Gigabit.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 the adequacy of the Project Gigabit procurement process for (a) north Shropshire, (b) mid west Shropshire, (c) Cheshire, (d) west Herefordshire (e) Forest of Dean and (f) the Peak District.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
All Project Gigabit contracts in all areas are awarded following a transparent, fair and robust procurement process, during which suppliers are required to prove they have the capability and capacity to meet their obligations.
If this subsequently changes, suppliers are required to inform Building Digital UK, so that the delivery of Project Gigabit can be adapted accordingly.
This is not always a simple process, as commercial operators’ plans and capacity vary, but the scheme is flexible.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will take steps to expedite the delivery of gigabit broadband to premises due to be covered by the Project Gigabit contract awarded to Freedom Fibre for north Shropshire.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Project Gigabit is designed to adapt if and when a contracted supplier can no longer complete its planned delivery.
Building Digital UK (BDUK) is already working to put in place alternative solutions for premises in North Shropshire that require support from Project Gigabit. This is likely to involve the cross-regional contract with Openreach.
BDUK will provide further information as these solutions develop over the next few months.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
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 the progress of the Project Gigabit rollout in North Shropshire constituency since 1 January 2025.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of Project Gigabit, Freedom Fibre was awarded a contract to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to premises in North Shropshire that were not expected to be reached by suppliers’ commercial rollout.
As of 1 May 2025, Building Digital UK (BDUK) had received reports from the supplier confirming the delivery for 845 premises under this contract in the North Shropshire constituency.