Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the shared rural network is fully implemented in the Rushcliffe district council area by the end of 2025.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
According to the latest information published by Ofcom, outdoor 4G coverage in Rushcliffe, from all four operators currently stands at 99% and coverage from at least one mobile network operator is almost 100%. Consequently, there will not be any further coverage improvements from the Shared Rural Network in Rushcliffe.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department plans to offer (a) rural and (b) agriculture-specific digital skills training as part of its national digital inclusion initiatives.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government published its Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, which outlines the first five actions we are taking over the next year to boost digital inclusion in every corner of the UK, including rural areas.
These will be targeted at local initiatives for boosting digital skills and confidence, widening access to devices and connectivity, and getting support to people in their own communities so everyone can reap the benefits of technology. This includes supporting digital upskilling, and enhancing support for the Essential Digital Skills framework, which supports businesses and individuals to get the digital skills they need.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to reinstate the UK's membership of the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is considering options for UK access to a satellite-based augmentation system, following our withdrawal from the EU's European Geostationary Navigation Overlay (EGNOS) system. This work is ongoing and no decision has yet been made.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to limit phone line rental charges for analogue landlines; and what assessment he has made of the adequacy of phone-only line rental charges following the transition to Voice over Internet Protocol landlines.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department does not have plans to limit phone line rental charges for analogue landlines as this is a matter for industry. However, under Ofcom’s telephony universal service conditions, BT and KCOM (in Hull) are required to offer a voice service to everyone, on request, at an affordable price. The telephony universal service obligation (USO) does not specify the technology that providers should use to meet this obligation, therefore the migration to digital landlines does not change the telephony USO.
It is worth noting that many other telecoms providers offer fixed voice services, however unlike BT and KCOM (in Hull) they do not have an obligation to do so. Ofcom’s telephony universal service conditions can be found at this link:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/telecoms-infrastructure/universal-service-obligation
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to take steps to support small businesses whose intellectual property and trademarks are being challenged by large corporate firms; and to if he will make an assessment of whether legal fees for small businesses subjected to such unmeritorious claims should be routinely paid by the applicant where cases are successfully defended at Intellectual Property Office hearings.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the challenges faced by small businesses who become involved in litigation. Small businesses and unrepresented parties litigating at the IPO Tribunal have high levels of support available, including being able to email or phone expert staff directly, who can provide explanations and assistance. The Tribunal routinely awards costs in favour of the winning party, considering the merits of the case and the conduct of the parties. Costs are usually awarded on a standard scale but larger costs awards are made where appropriate. Claims which are totally without merit can also be struck out at an early stage.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to require (a) Instagram and (b) other social media channels to add posting dates to all posts.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is committed to making the internet safer. Media literacy can help users engage critically with online content, including contextual data and labelling. Since 2022, DSIT has provided £3 million in funding for media literacy projects that empower users to navigate the online world safely.
The Online Safety Act updated Ofcom’s statutory media literacy duty by placing targeted duties on the regulator to help the public assess the reliability, accuracy and authenticity of content on services. Ofcom has published a three-year media literacy strategy that emphasises collaboration with platforms. We look forward to working with them as they implement these strategies.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to review the use in the public sector of web tags to record data.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Public sector organisations are responsible for their own websites and DSIT has no plans to review or issue guidance on the use of web tags. All public sector organisations must comply with data protection laws.