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1696612

registered interest
date	18/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Life Sciences: Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the policy paper entitled UK Science and Technology Framework, published on 6 March 2023, whether references in that paper to engineering biology include (a) gene therapy, (b) vaccine development and (c) other life sciences technologies.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	19052
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>DSIT’s definition of engineering biology is set out in the National Vision for Engineering Biology, published in December 2023. Engineering biology includes products or services whose development draws on the tools of synthetic biology. This would capture all gene therapies, and vaccine and life science technologies which are developed using these tools. Engineering biology also delivers applications in other sectors of the economy including agriculture and chemicals.</p> answering member constituency Arundel and South Downs answering member printed Andrew Griffith question first answered 21/03/2024 09:21:42 answering member 4874 label Biography information for Andrew Griffith
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1696753

registered interest
date	18/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology: Legal Costs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the total cost to the public purse was for legal (a) support and (b) representation for Ministers in her Department and its predecessor department in relation to their official conduct in the last three financial years.
tabling member constituency	Leicester South
tabling member printed	Jonathan Ashworth
uin	19064
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>Such information is not centrally recorded or collated in the form requested. More generally, I would refer the hon. Member to the long-standing policies on legal expenditure, as set out recently by Cabinet Office Ministers on 12 March 2024, Official Report, PQ 17709 and 12 March 2024, Official Report, House of Lords, Cols.1901-1904.</p> answering member constituency Arundel and South Downs answering member printed Andrew Griffith question first answered 21/03/2024 16:01:15 answering member 4874 label Biography information for Andrew Griffith
tabling member	4244 label Biography information for Jonathan Ashworth

1695759

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to increase Scotland’s (a) manufacturing capacity for and (b) delivery of cell and gene therapies.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	18417
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>The government is investing significantly to support manufacturing and delivery of cell and gene therapies.</p><p /><p>Since 2021, government has launched three UK-wide capital grant schemes – up to £118 million of funds – to incentivise manufacturing investments, including in advanced therapies. Last year, government announced a further £520 million to increase investment in Life Sciences manufacturing.</p><p> </p><p>The UK is a world-leader in the development and manufacture of cell and gene therapies thanks to government investment in innovation and skills, including through the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult which also coordinates the Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre network.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Arundel and South Downs answering member printed Andrew Griffith question first answered 21/03/2024 09:26:38 answering member 4874 label Biography information for Andrew Griffith
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

1695787

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Digital Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how she measures digital inclusion.
tabling member constituency	Lancaster and Fleetwood
tabling member printed	Cat Smith
uin	18498
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>Digital inclusion is a cross-cutting issue that spans social engagement, education, employment, access to services and many more elements of everyday life. Responsibility for relevant policies and activities, including monitoring and evaluation, sit across government.</p><p>Government draws on evidence from a variety of sources including the Office for National Statistics, regulators, and trusted partners and stakeholders from across the sector. Importantly, we seek to use such data and evidence to better understand the impact on day to day lives.</p><p>DSIT will continue to work with Government colleagues and with key external stakeholders from across the sector to better understand the impacts of overcoming digital exclusion and ensure that policy interventions are evidence driven. DSIT has also committed to exploring options for funding research to improve the Government’s evidence base on digital exclusion.</p> answering member constituency Meriden answering member printed Saqib Bhatti question first answered 21/03/2024 12:57:52 answering member 4818 label Biography information for Saqib Bhatti
tabling member	4436 label Biography information for Cat Smith

1695788

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Broadband: Social Tariffs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to increase the take up of social tariff broadband packages.
tabling member constituency	Lancaster and Fleetwood
tabling member printed	Cat Smith
uin	18499
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>The Government continues to work closely with Ofcom on the issue of affordability of telecoms services, including social tariffs.</p><p> </p><p>In December 2023, Ofcom’s Pricing Trends report showed that 380,000 UK households now take up a social tariff, an almost 160% increase from September 2022.</p><p> </p><p>Social tariffs are low-cost, commercial products, but it is important to recognise that they may not represent the best value for money in every circumstance and should be considered alongside other commercial offers and bundled services.</p><p> </p><p>The Government and Ofcom continue to press operators to do more to raise awareness of social tariffs so that eligible households make use of them. Ofcom’s report also showed that just 45% of eligible households were aware of low-cost broadband offers. In July 2023, Ofcom’s Chief Executive wrote to the sector to set out the regulator’s expectation that they should do more to promote awareness, such as by highlighting tariffs on bills and end-of-contract notifications.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/03/2024 09:31:31 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4436 label Biography information for Cat Smith

1695790

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Broadband: Lancashire
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to help connect rural communities in Lancashire to broadband.
tabling member constituency	Lancaster and Fleetwood
tabling member printed	Cat Smith
uin	18500
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>The Government is committed to improving broadband coverage in rural areas, with gigabit broadband coverage delivered through the £5 billion Project Gigabit. Alternative connectivity solutions are being investigated for very hard to reach premises.</p><p> </p><p>According to the independent website thinkbroadband.com, 98% of premises in Lancashire have access to a superfast broadband connection, while 88% of premises can access a gigabit-capable connection. To further extend gigabit-capable coverage, Lancashire is included in Project Gigabit’s cross regional framework tender, launched in July 2023. We expect to announce this contract in the summer.</p><p> </p><p>Less than 1% of premises are unable to access a decent broadband connection of 10Mbps download and 1Mbps upload and may be able to get an improved connection through the Broadband USO, which gives consumers the right to request a decent broadband connection if their current connection falls below these speeds.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/03/2024 09:33:27 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4436 label Biography information for Cat Smith

1695791

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Broadband
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether broadband access is classed as an essential utility.
tabling member constituency	Lancaster and Fleetwood
tabling member printed	Cat Smith
uin	18501
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>There is no standard definition of what constitutes a utility, with gas, water, electricity, and telecoms all regulated differently. The UK telecoms market features strong competition both at wholesale and retail levels which sets it apart from gas, water and electricity, which are regulated in such a way as to address competition concerns. However, the Government recognises that access to the internet is increasingly essential for full participation in society.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has taken action to ensure as many people as possible are able to access the internet. Since 2021, we have worked closely with telecoms operators to ensure social tariffs are available across 99% of the UK. Available to nearly 5 million households on Universal Credit as well as other means tested benefits, social tariffs are available from 28 individual providers (including BT, Sky, Virgin Media and Vodafone) and start at £10 per month.</p><p> </p><p>Over 80% of the UK can now access gigabit-capable broadband from at least one provider, and the Government is investing £5 billion via Project Gigabit to bring fast, secure and resilient connections to those parts of the country unlikely to be reached by commercial roll-out.</p><p> </p><p>In March 2020, The Broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) came into effect, giving consumers the right to request a decent broadband connection of at least 10Mbps download and 1Mbps upload. The USO is applicable in situations where access to decent broadband will cost more than £54 per month, the property isn’t due to be connected by an existing government scheme within 12 months and the cost of connection does not exceed a reasonable threshold of £3,400.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/03/2024 09:35:40 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4436 label Biography information for Cat Smith

1695900

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology: Darlington
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the economic impact of (a) investment made and (b) financial support provided by her Department in Darlington constituency in the last four years.
tabling member constituency	Darlington
tabling member printed	Peter Gibson
uin	18614
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>UK Research and Innovation spend in Darlington in financial year 2020-21 (the latest available data) was £0.55 million. The interactive innovation clusters map, available at <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.innovationclusters.dsit.gov.uk%2F&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cparliamentary-questions%40dsit.gov.uk%7Ceccb47a44c97495c919108dc49866f1f%7Ccbac700502c143ebb497e6492d1b2dd8%7C0%7C0%7C638466088949848334%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=21fLQ0LNRtF9KHyN5ewZaQTvZBCPd0uEb4QYrG90qsY%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.innovationclusters.dsit.gov.uk/</a>, provides further information about clusters in Darlington.</p> answering member constituency Arundel and South Downs answering member printed Andrew Griffith question first answered 21/03/2024 13:00:30 answering member 4874 label Biography information for Andrew Griffith
tabling member	4754 label Biography information for Peter Gibson

1695925

registered interest
date	13/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Social Media: Regulation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with (a) her US counterpart and (b) other international partners on regulation of social media platforms owned by companies based in countries where governments can compel access to user data.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	18566
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>Ministers and Senior Officials from across the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) meet regularly with international counterparts, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora, on a range of issues. This includes social media platforms, online safety, ownership and access to data, including related to companies based overseas. The United States is a key international partner in these areas and the Government works closely with US partners including under the US-UK Comprehensive Dialogue on Technology and Data.</p><p> </p><p>The Government does not comment on discussions relating to specific cases/companies but will continue to work with partners to monitor and take appropriate steps to mitigate threats to UK data from all sources, including using regulation where necessary.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/03/2024 09:40:07 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1694718

registered interest
date	07/03/2024
answering body	Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept id	216
answering dept short name	Science, Innovation and Technology
answering dept sort name	Science, Innovation and Technology
hansard heading	Aerials: Highlands of Scotland
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Camrose on 31 January (HL1716), why the choice of geographical coverage for the Shared Rural Network of telephone masts includes areas in the Highland region of Scotland where coverage can reach no house or community.
tabling member printed	Lord Smith of Finsbury
uin	HL3129
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2024 answer text <p>4G Mobile coverage already reaches 99% of premises in the UK. The Shared Rural Network is focused on delivering connectivity not just where people live but where they work, travel and visit. In the Highlands and other areas of Scotland, whether you are a farmer wishing to utilise new technology or a visitor to one of the National Parks, digital connectivity is vital. People must be able to build lives, grow families and sustain businesses, otherwise the communities that keep a place’s culture and history alive will simply dwindle.</p><p> </p><p>To minimise the impact on the environment, publicly funded masts will be shared by all four mobile network operators and existing infrastructure will be utilised wherever possible. At each potential location, an individual assessment takes account of a wide range of factors, including complying with strict planning rules for areas of natural beauty making sure we strike the right balance between connectivity and preserving the preciousness of unique landscapes.</p><p> </p><p>The mobile network operators are required to work closely with local communities to ensure concerns are heard through the planning process, and local planning authorities are then responsible for approving applications.</p> answering member printed Viscount Camrose grouped question UIN HL3130 HL3131 question first answered 21/03/2024 12:38:23 answering member 4939 label Biography information for Viscount Camrose
tabling member	186 label Biography information for Lord Smith of Finsbury