Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2025 to Question 29583 on Apprentices: Artificial Intelligence, what funding her Department has provided to support adult AI literacy and reskilling programmes through (a) pilots via Skills England and (c) adult education providers in the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We fund post-16 education, training and qualifications through 16-19 funding, the Adult Skills Fund and apprenticeships. This can support people at all stages of their lives to train and reskill in a range of sectors – including in response to changes in technology such as AI.
Skills England will provide the single authoritative voice on the country’s current and future skills needs, and co-design new approaches with industry and regional partners
to improve the skills of our workforce, collaborating with a wide range of interested
parties across the skills system.
We are investing £187 million to bring digital and AI learning into classrooms and support over 4,000 graduates, researchers, and innovators in areas like AI, cyber security and computer science. We will also train 7.5 million UK workers in essential AI skills by 2030 through our new industry partnership with major tech players. Skills England is working with DSIT to mobilise the government-industry partnership that will deliver on this commitment.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2025 to Question 29583 on Apprentices: Artificial Intelligence, whether she will plans to evaluate the outcome of adult AI literacy and reskilling programmes by (a) occupation and (b) region.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We fund post-16 education, training and qualifications through 16-19 funding, the Adult Skills Fund and apprenticeships. This can support people at all stages of their lives to train and reskill in a range of sectors – including in response to changes in technology such as AI.
Skills England will provide the single authoritative voice on the country’s current and future skills needs, and co-design new approaches with industry and regional partners
to improve the skills of our workforce, collaborating with a wide range of interested
parties across the skills system.
We are investing £187 million to bring digital and AI learning into classrooms and support over 4,000 graduates, researchers, and innovators in areas like AI, cyber security and computer science. We will also train 7.5 million UK workers in essential AI skills by 2030 through our new industry partnership with major tech players. Skills England is working with DSIT to mobilise the government-industry partnership that will deliver on this commitment.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to develop workforce and education strategies in response to the growth of AI-native businesses with minimal staff.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is taking steps to prepare the workforce for the future through its Industrial Strategy. We are ensuring that skills and employment support are aligned with key economic priorities, including transformative technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).
The Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy will set out plans to build a system that provides the skills that learners need to thrive in work and life and supports delivery of the Plan for Change.
Digital skills are embedded across occupational standards, influencing T-Levels, Higher Technical Qualifications, and apprenticeships. From April 2026, new short courses will be introduced in England in areas such as digital and AI, funded by the Growth and Skills Levy.
Skills England has released three data-driven reports to support decision-making and development of targeted training solutions. These will ensure that skills provision meets economic needs, including in sectors most affected by AI, and will shape sector-specific packages responding to future workforce demands.
Asked by: Perran Moon (Labour - Camborne and Redruth)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what support her Department is providing to small independent funeral directors in response to market pressures from large direct cremation providers.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government provides comprehensive support for small businesses across all industries, including the UK funeral sector. Resources such as the Business Growth Service, via business.gov.uk, and local Growth Hubs can support small independent funeral directors as they face market pressures from large direct cremation providers.
In addition, the recently announced Small Business Plan sets out this Government’s approach for economic transformation alongside the Modern Industrial Strategy and Trade Strategy. The Plan includes proposals to tackle the scourge of late payments, modernise the tax system, improving access to finance, revitalise high streets and equip small businesses with digital skills.
Asked by: Iqbal Mohamed (Independent - Dewsbury and Batley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that vocational and adult education programmes are aligned with employment opportunities that are less vulnerable to (a) offshoring and (b) becoming replaced by AI.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is developing a comprehensive strategy for post‐16 education and skills to break down barriers to opportunity and support the development of a skilled workforce in England.
This is backed by additional investment, as announced in the Spending Review, of £1.2 billion per year in skills by 2028-29. This will support the wide range of technical routes available across England in a broad range of sectors.
We are also widening the apprenticeships offer into a growth and skills offer, including new foundation apprenticeships, which will give more young people a foot in the door at the start of their working life.
We are targeting key growth sectors, including those identified in the Industrial Strategy, with specific skills plans to boost training in areas such as construction, manufacturing, defence and Digital and Technology.
All of this will be underpinned by the work of Skills England, which has been established as the national body responsible for identifying skills needs, simplifying the skills system, and aligning training to meet demand.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 26 February 2025 to Question 34047 Small Businesses: Training, what steps his Department is taking to support SMEs to adopt AI; and whether this support includes management-practice support to maximise productivity gains.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
To ensure AI is widely adopted by businesses and workers across the economy, government is working with 11 industry partners to provide 7.5 million workers with essential AI skills by 2030.
The Help to Grow: Management scheme, which helps SME leaders with management skills to help boost productivity, already includes a module on digital transformation.
Additionally, the SME Digital Adoption Taskforce has set out ten recommendations to drive SME digital and AI adoption, including: a new public-private initiative for SMEs, evidence gathering on firm-level financial support for digital, and economy-wide reforms. We will report on progress in Spring 2026.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to use digital resources to promote literacy in (a) early years, (b) school age children and (c) adults.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government's Opportunity Mission aims to remove barriers and ensure every child achieves and thrives by providing the best start in life and essential skills.
We are building the evidence base on the impact of technology in education through the EdTech Evidence Board, the Testbed Programme, and research into technology and cognitive development. Evidence from the Education Endowment Foundation shows technology can accelerate learning by up to three months. Technology should support learning, not replace high quality teaching and interaction.
The national curriculum requires teachers to encourage pupils to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information. It also emphasises the importance of listening to, discussing, and reading a wide range of stories, poems, plays and non-fiction books for themselves.
The department respects the autonomy of teachers to choose to use or recommend resources based on individual need in their own educational context and circumstances. Schools are free to choose to use a range of formats, including different forms of digital technology such as Kindles and audiobooks.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing access to (a) Kindles and (b) audiobooks on children’s literacy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government's Opportunity Mission aims to remove barriers and ensure every child achieves and thrives by providing the best start in life and essential skills.
We are building the evidence base on the impact of technology in education through the EdTech Evidence Board, the Testbed Programme, and research into technology and cognitive development. Evidence from the Education Endowment Foundation shows technology can accelerate learning by up to three months. Technology should support learning, not replace high quality teaching and interaction.
The national curriculum requires teachers to encourage pupils to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information. It also emphasises the importance of listening to, discussing, and reading a wide range of stories, poems, plays and non-fiction books for themselves.
The department respects the autonomy of teachers to choose to use or recommend resources based on individual need in their own educational context and circumstances. Schools are free to choose to use a range of formats, including different forms of digital technology such as Kindles and audiobooks.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing access to digital resources on children’s literacy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government's Opportunity Mission aims to remove barriers and ensure every child achieves and thrives by providing the best start in life and essential skills.
We are building the evidence base on the impact of technology in education through the EdTech Evidence Board, the Testbed Programme, and research into technology and cognitive development. Evidence from the Education Endowment Foundation shows technology can accelerate learning by up to three months. Technology should support learning, not replace high quality teaching and interaction.
The national curriculum requires teachers to encourage pupils to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information. It also emphasises the importance of listening to, discussing, and reading a wide range of stories, poems, plays and non-fiction books for themselves.
The department respects the autonomy of teachers to choose to use or recommend resources based on individual need in their own educational context and circumstances. Schools are free to choose to use a range of formats, including different forms of digital technology such as Kindles and audiobooks.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to include media literacy within the English curriculum as part of the ongoing curriculum review.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The current English language GCSE curriculum equips students with critical reading and comprehension skills. They learn to identify and interpret themes in diverse texts, read for various purposes, draw inferences, support viewpoints with evidence and identify bias.
In its interim report, the Curriculum and Assessment Review noted the importance of the curriculum keeping pace with the rise of artificial intelligence and trends in digital information. To address this, as well as securing learning in foundational subjects, the curriculum needs to reflect the growing demand for key knowledge and skills such as digital and media literacy and critical thinking skills.
The Curriculum and Assessment Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in the autumn, at which point the government will respond.