Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 17 of the UK Science and Technology Framework, published on 6 March 2023, what steps the Government plans to take to meet the target of increasing the proportion of STEM graduates in the Fast Stream to 50 per cent.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Civil Service is committed to delivering the Prime Minister’s priorities, and recognises the need to build a strong internal STEM capability. To help build this capability, we are targeting an increase in the proportion of Fast Stream hires with a STEM subject degree qualification to 50%. To meet this target we have:
Developed a STEM-specific attraction strategy, in partnership with the Science and Engineering Profession, leveraging the Fast Stream brand to target a STEM audience.
Introduced a new Generalist-STEM recruitment option for the 2023 Fast Stream Campaign; which will enable us to attract and fairly select more graduates with STEM degree backgrounds to join the Fast Stream across a diverse range of roles in different government professions including Corporate Services, Operational Delivery, and Policy.
Used the Fast Stream target university list, to identify institutions that have a high representation of students with a STEM background.
Introduced a summer internship offer, with a specific focus on STEM graduates to act as a feeder for Fast Stream recruitment.
Re-introduced numerical reasoning tests within the Fast Stream selection process.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2023 to Question 125341 on Government Departments: ICT, where cloud providers publish information on their investment activities in the UK.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
While there is no statutory requirement for cloud providers to publish information on their investment activities in the UK, they regularly publish a range of information in the public domain, for example on company websites and blogs.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much direct foreign investment from India was invested in the UK in each year since 1 January 2018.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 17 January is attached.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether providers of IT cloud infrastructure to Government bodies are required to report on their investment in R&D in the UK.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
There is not a contractual requirement for IT cloud infrastructure providers to report on R&D investment. This is mainly due to cloud providers operating outside of the classical, managed outsourcing model. The cloud providers do, however, publish information on their investment activities in the UK.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if the Prime Minister will (a) establish and (b) chair a Cabinet committee on science and technology; and which Minister is responsible for the Office for Investment.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
On 3 November, the Government announced the creation of the National Science and Technology Council as a Cabinet committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, to consider matters relating to strategic advantage through science and technology. The membership and terms of reference of the committee can be found on gov.uk.
Lord Johnson, Minister of State for the Department for International Trade, has responsibility for the Office for Investment.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister will chair the National Science and Technology Council; and for what reason that group is no longer a Cabinet subcommittee.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
In October 2022, the National Science and Technology Council was established as an inter-ministerial group responsible for delivering an ambitious UK science and technology strategy and to consider key science and technology issues.
The Cabinet Committee list and membership is decided by the Prime Minister.
GOV.UK is updated regularly with the list of Cabinet Committees, their terms of reference, and membership.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the (a) remit and (b) objectives of the new National Science and Technology Council are.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The National Science and Technology Council was a Cabinet Committee which was established in October 2021 to consider matters relating to strategic advantage through science and technology.
The National Science and Technology Council, established in October 2022, is an Interministerial Group responsible for delivering an ambitious UK science and technology strategy.
The council will allow Ministers to coordinate efforts across government to create the very best conditions for science and technology in the UK as a crucial driver of economic growth, prosperity and security.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how the National Science and Technology Council, announced on 12 October, differs from its predecessor of the same name.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The National Science and Technology Council was a Cabinet Committee which was established in October 2021 to consider matters relating to strategic advantage through science and technology.
The National Science and Technology Council, established in October 2022, is an Interministerial Group responsible for delivering an ambitious UK science and technology strategy.
The council will allow Ministers to coordinate efforts across government to create the very best conditions for science and technology in the UK as a crucial driver of economic growth, prosperity and security.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason a new National Science and Technology Council has been established to replace its predecessor.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
A new National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) has been established with responsibility for delivering an ambitious UK science and technology strategy. The committee will allow Ministers to coordinate efforts across government to create the very best conditions for science and technology in the UK as a crucial driver of economic growth, prosperity and security.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what (a) skills and (b) experience the Government has identified as a priority for the role of Government Chief Scientific Adviser.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
A competition to recruit a new Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA) is currently underway. A breadth of skills and experience are essential for the role; not only should the postholder possess a first-class reputation in the scientific field, they should also have excellent policy and analytical skills at the strategic level, and the ability to assimilate, evaluate and interpret scientific findings. In addition, they will need to command the confidence and respect of ministers, senior officials and their peers in the scientific community. They will also need to be an excellent communicator who is able to communicate with a broad range of audiences.