Asked by: Lord Mendelsohn (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their (1) current, and (2) expected future, equity stake in US satellite technology company Eutelsat OneWeb (formerly OneWeb).
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Eutelsat OneWeb is a UK-based subsidiary of Eutelsat Group. The Government has no plans to change its 10.89% shareholding in Eutelsat Group at this time.
Asked by: Lord Mendelsohn (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish (1) their original investment case, including financial projections, for the purchase of a $500 million stake in US satellite technology company OneWeb in 2020; and (2) an updated business case and financial projections for their investment in the company.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As was the case under previous governments, any investment case informing Government's decision to invest in OneWeb, including financial projections, remains commercially sensitive. As a publicly traded company, Eutelsat Group regularly publishes its financial results, including market guidance on their outlook and financial objectives, and the latest were published on 16 February 2024.
Asked by: Lord Mendelsohn (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government, according to their business plan justifying their investment in US satellite technology company OneWeb in 2020, what projection they made of the value of the company at the end of 2024.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As was the case under previous governments, any investment case informing Government's decision to invest in OneWeb, including financial projections, remains commercially sensitive. As a publicly traded company, Eutelsat Group regularly publishes its financial results, including market guidance on their outlook and financial objectives, and the latest were published on 16 February 2024.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle inequalities in access to digital technologies in (a) the North West, (b) Lancashire and (c) Preston; and what estimate she has made of the number of households without internet access in (i) the North West, (ii) Lancashire and (iii) Preston.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has been clear that no one should be left behind in the digital age. We will take steps to ensure support for the most urgent priorities. For example, we are investing £5 billion through Project Gigabit to bring gigabit-capable broadband to hard-to-reach communities.
According to thinkbroadband.com, only 0.5% of premises in the North-West, 0.6% in Lancashire, and less than 0.1% in Preston are unable to access a decent broadband connection of 10Mbps download, 1Mbps upload. These premises may be able to request an improved connection through the Broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) if their current connection falls below these speeds.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 2 May 2024 to Question 24088 on Semiconductors: Infrastructure, if she will respond to the recommendations of the UK Semiconductor Infrastructure Initiative feasibility study, published in 2023; and if will publish that response.
Answered by Saqib Bhatti - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK has a thriving R&D innovation semiconductor ecosystem and the Government’s National Semiconductor Strategy sets out our ambitious vision for the UK’s sector.
The Government has commissioned the UK Semiconductor Infrastructure Initiative feasibility study to increase access for companies to the research infrastructure they need to support commercialisation.
The feasibility study was recently completed, and the Government is considering its analysis.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2024 to Question 23701 on Voice over Internet Protocol: Local Government, which local authorities her Department has had discussions with; and on what dates those discussions took place.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department has previously engaged with Local Authorities on this issue via the Local Government Association. This engagement is ongoing and is in addition to frequent meetings with other relevant stakeholders, including industry and the signatories of the Charter.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, which stakeholders her Department has had discussions with on the Telecare National Action Plan.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department has engaged with key stakeholders on the Telecare National Action Plan, including the telecoms sector, telecare sector, the independent telecoms regulator Ofcom, the third sector – including Which?, Citizen's Advice, and Silver Voices - and other Government departments.
Asked by: Lord Mendelsohn (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether any additional equity or debt has been earmarked for further investment in Eutelsat OneWeb, following the Government's $500 million investment in 2020.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Eutelsat OneWeb is a UK-based subsidiary of Eutelsat Group. The Government has not earmarked any additional equity or debt for investment into Eutelsat Group.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to launch a call for evidence on the risks of artificial intelligence to trust in information, as proposed in their consultation outcome published 6 February.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the need to both unlock the opportunities and address the potential risks of artificial intelligence.
As outlined in the AI white paper consultation response, government will shortly publish a Call for Evidence on the impact of AI on trust in information, to develop our understanding of this fast moving and nascent area of technological development, including possible mitigations.
This work is part of our programme to seek a range of expert views – including from researchers, academics, and civil society organisations with relevant expertise.
Asked by: Lord Mendelsohn (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current value of the Government's stake in Eutelsat OneWeb.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Eutelsat OneWeb is a UK-based subsidiary of Eutelsat Group. At close of trading on 26 April 2024, the market value of the UK Government’s shareholding in Eutelsat Group was approximately €201 million or £171 million.
The Government’s investment into OneWeb has already created or protected around 400 UK jobs and Eutelsat OneWeb continues to ramp up commercial operations, with an order book of approximately €700m according to the company’s public filings.