Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has taken recent steps to help tackle the growth of (a) gain-of-function research and (b) any other research that modifies a virus or other pathogen to make it more transmissible, virulent and pathogenic in (i) the UK and (ii) other countries; and if he will make a statement.

The United Kingdom has extensive legislative controls to ensure the safety and security of biological research into human, animal and plant pathogens. All life sciences companies operating in the UK must adhere to UK ethics standards, research codes of conduct and associated legal obligations.