Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps (a) her Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps (a) her Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
The Department for Transport is committed to creating accessible communications for British Sign Language (BSL) users, as set out in our British Sign Language 5-year plan.
The Department and its public bodies have not yet directly taken steps to develop or use artificial intelligence (AI) approaches to British Sign Language. However, as described in both our Transport AI Action Plan and our Science Innovation and Technology Plan, the Department has used its First of a Kind funding programme to supported innovative AI projects like Signapse Ltd’s mobile app that uses AI to turn timetable and station information into British Sign Language for deaf customers. There are now several examples in the public domain of this kind of application of AI for providing passenger information in BSL being used by train operators and other transport providers.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps (a) her Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) utilise artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps (a) his Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Providing British Sign Language (BSL) translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages Departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year, DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps (a) his Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps (a) his Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Providing British Sign Language (BSL) translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to reduce digital exclusion in Thurrock constituency.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
We know that digital exclusion is a complex issue, and that a reported 6% of residents in the Essex region do not use the internet. That is why we launched the Digital Inclusion Action Plan which sets out the first five actions we are taking over the next year to boost digital inclusion in every corner of the UK, including in Thurrock.
One of those first five actions was launching the £9.5m Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund in August. It’s designed to support and expand local community initiatives to help get people online.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 July 2025 to Question 65933 on Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls, what estimate she has made of the change in the level of car journeys on that crossing due to (a) the change in charges and (b) other factors for the years 2025 to 2030 inclusive.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Our assessment is that average daily car journeys at the Dartford Crossing during the chargeable hours (0600-2200) for the first twelve months after the increase in charges will be between 4500-6000 fewer than would otherwise have been the case. We consider those figures should be treated with caution given the limitations of the assessment however, and consequently that it is the expected trends for changed traffic demand given in the answer of 11 July that are the more pertinent consideration. No estimates have been made for the other years or other factors.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 July 2025 to Question 65933 on Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls, on what evidential basis her Department expects there to be fewer car journeys due to higher charges on that crossing.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Our assessment of the impact on demand at the Dartford Crossing from changing the charges applied there drew on existing modelling work, including the Lower Thames Area Model, the National Trip End Model and National Road Traffic Projections.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 17 June 2025 on Dart Charge, HCWS708, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the fare to cross Dartford Tunnel on levels of demand on that crossing.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Our assessment is that the change in charges will mean there are fewer car journeys at the Crossing than would have been the case otherwise, and that this will enable more goods vehicle journeys to be made.