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 support tech innovation in (a) Hexham constituency and (b) the North East.

As set out in the Digital and Technologies Sector Plan, part of the UK’s modern Industrial Strategy, the department is committed to supporting the UK’s city regions and clusters.

UKRI invested £355 million in the North East in 2023-24. UKRI’s funding is supporting projects such as the North East Digital Technologies Launchpad that has funded innovative technology businesses such as RareCan in Hexham, who are using AI to support recruitment for rare cancer clinical trials.

Building on this we have earmarked at least £30 million for the North East through our new Local Innovation Partnerships Fund. This will empower local leaders to grow high-potential innovation clusters and unlock their potential to create the businesses and jobs of the future.