Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the opening statement by the Secretary of State at the Lords Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024, whether the officials who alerted her to tweets posted by a EDI board member were part of the Counter Disinformation Unit.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
No.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the opening statement by the Secretary of State at the Lords Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024, what the total cost to the public purse was of legal fees including the (a) £15,000 settlement paid and (b) other legal expenditure.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
A sum of £15,000 was paid without admitting any liability. This approach is intended to reduce the overall costs to the taxpayer that could result from protracted legal action.
Costs relating to legal fees incurred by the department will be published as part of DSIT’s Annual Report and Accounts.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what her policy is on producing reports into the online activity of academics on UKRI boards.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Secretary of State is a staunch believer in free speech and would not authorise a sweeping collection of the views of academics.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to paragraphs 7.16 and 7.17 of the Ministerial Code, on how many occasions Ministers in her Department have informed the Law Officers that they are the defendants in a libel action in (a) their personal capacity, (b) their official position and (c) both since 7 February 2023.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As has been the practice under successive Governments, it is not the convention to comment on where the Law Officers have, or have not been, informed or advised on such legal matters. This is reflected in paragraph 2.13 of the Ministerial Code.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her letter of 28 October 2023 to UK Research and Innovation on that organisation's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion board, how much her Department paid to Professor Kate Sang.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
I refer the hon. Member to the opening statement by the Secretary of State at the Lords Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Britain to be made AI match-fit with £118 million skills package, published on 31 October 2023, what progress she has made on the creation of a new dedicated visa scheme for the world’s most talented AI researchers to come to the UK on internships and placements, early in their careers.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has invested over £290m in AI skills and talent initiatives as we’re committed to building a sustainable pipeline of skilled workers in the UK. My Department has been working closely with the Home Office on developing a new dedicated visa scheme for the world’s most talented AI researchers to come to the UK on internships and placements, early in their careers, to encourage them to build their careers, ideas and businesses here.
This will further strengthen the UK’s generous and points-based immigration system, which enables talented international researchers to come to the UK through a number of visa routes, including the approved Temporary Worker Government Authorised Exchange schemes for individuals interested in short-term internships, training and work experience.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many staff does the Responsible Technology Adoption Unit have.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Responsible Technology Adoption Unit has 31 staff members currently in post with 8 positions in active recruitment.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to appoint an advisory board to the Responsible Technology Adoption Unit.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Responsible Technology Adoption Unit (RTA) is a directorate within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. As such, RTA works with experts and stakeholders across the AI and data ecosystem. This ensures that a diverse range of opinion and insight, including from former board members, can continue to inform its work and support the government's AI and innovation priorities. An advisory board will not be appointed for the unit.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
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 (a) effectiveness of and (b) adequacy of the levels of industry co-funding for the AI and data science postgraduate conversion course scholarship programme.
Answered by Saqib Bhatti - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The £30 million AI and Data Science Conversion Course programme was established in 2020 to broaden the supply of talent in the UK AI labour market. It funded universities to develop masters level AI or data science courses suitable for non-STEM students and 2,600 scholarships for students from backgrounds underrepresented in the tech industry.
We are already seeing the positive impact the programme is having in addressing the AI skills gap. As of March 2023 6,300 students have enrolled on the programme, almost three times our targets. 73% of scholarships awarded to women, 35% awarded to Black students, and 26% awarded to disabled students. The courses are successfully converting non-STEM students to enter the AI labour market: 88% of employed graduates were in employment directly related to AI or data science, either in the public or private sector.
In 2023 an industry co-funding element was added, whereby industry could support the programme through in-kind support or scholarship funding. As of November 2023, this amounted to over £6.5 million in in-kind support and scholarship funding. The in-kind contributions directly support student employability and includes co-design and delivery of course content to ensure students gain skills to meet sector need; providing access to software and applications to support learning and skills development; and opportunities to engage with industry through employer-led talks and workshops, industry mentoring support, and provision of work-based projects and placements.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many times the National Science and Technology Council met in (a) 2021, (b) 2022 and (c) 2023 as of 23 November.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its Committees, and how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.