Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, further to the three month consultation announced by the government on further measures to keep children safe online, how many full-time equivalent officials she has assigned to this consultation.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In order to ensure that the consultation considers all arguments and views, we are drawing on expertise from across the department and from a variety of different teams as necessary. This means that an accurate estimation in terms of FTE is not possible.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of AI adoption in the UK on the labour market; and what plans they have to support workers affected by technological change.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We recognise that AI is transforming workplaces, demanding new skills and augmenting existing roles, although the future scale of change remains uncertain. This Government is planning against a range of plausible outcomes to ensure workers continue to have access to good, meaningful employment.
To support this work, the Government has established a new Future of Work Unit in DSIT. The Unit will provide robust analysis and evidence on the impact of AI on the labour market and will coordinate action across government, ensuring our principles are delivered through practical help and support for workers and employers.
At the same time, AI presents significant opportunities for the labour market. Around 35% of UK jobs predicted to benefit from productivity gains through AI adoption. Through the AI Opportunities Action Plan, we have committed to upskilling 10 million workers in essential AI skills by 2030. This will support workers to adapt and thrive in workplaces where AI tools are increasingly widespread.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the regulatory and consumer protection implications of the use of AI as financial guidance tools; and what safeguards they are putting in place to protect consumers.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government aims for the UK to be a global leader in AI, using our strengths in financial services and AI to boost growth, productivity and consumer benefits. Safe adoption is central to this.
Organisations must handle personal data fairly, lawfully, transparently and securely, with individuals retaining rights such as access, correction and deletion.
The Financial Conduct Authority is also acting in this space, including publishing guidance for consumers on using AI tools for investment research and highlighting risks like inaccurate or outdated information.
The FCA’s Supercharged Sandbox and AI Live Testing service give firms access to computing, data and safe real‑world environments to support responsible AI use in UK financial markets.
More broadly, the Government recognises that people often lack the support they need when making financial decisions. To improve this, we are introducing a new targeted support regime enabling trusted firms to suggest suitable products or actions based on a customer’s circumstances. Targeted Support will launch in April 2026.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 ensure that (a) Leicester and (b) the East Midlands benefit from national investment in emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is putting technology at the heart of our mission to grow the UK economy.
We are launching a £250 million procurement to expand the AI Research Resource, giving UK researchers and businesses free access to cutting‑edge compute so every region can benefit from nationwide innovation.
The Government is also expanding access to free AI skills training, available to all adults across the UK, that aims to equip 10 million workers with practical AI skills by 2030, ensuring people and businesses in every region can take advantage of new technologies.
Alone, Leicester City Council received £35,391.97 from the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund for its ‘Let’s Get Digital’ project, which will help 150 peoples, this will build digital confidence for social inclusion, reducing service dependency and improving economic outcomes.
The Government is also supporting UK medicine and med‑tech manufacturing through the £520 million Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund, bringing high‑value jobs to regions like the East Midlands, strengthening supply chains, and securing over £30 million of new investment.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of plans to replace the copper wire communications network in Surrey.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensure that any risks arising from the industry-led migration of the analogue Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to digital Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are mitigated for all customers across the UK, including Surrey. There are 3.6 million remaining PSTN lines. Down from over 35 million PSTN lines at the network’s peak.
Communication providers and network operators signed voluntary charters in December 2023 and March 2024, committing to protect consumers during the PSTN switch-off, including the vulnerable. In November 2024, major communication providers agreed to further safeguards. These include timely and repeated communications, signing data sharing agreements with local authorities to identify telecare customers, a free engineer visit, and a battery back-up solution, if needed.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report Cost-Benefit Analysis of Synthetic Nucleic Acid Screening for the UK, published in December 2025 by The Centre for Long-Term Resilience.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DSIT regularly engages the Centre for Long-Term Resilience (CLTR), including through their membership of the Engineering Biology Responsible Innovation Advisory Panel. CLTR was invited to present this Cost-Benefit Analysis to DSIT and members of the Advisory Panel in January 2026.
DSIT agrees that synthetic nucleic acids are a core building block of the UK’s bioeconomy and this is why we published voluntary guidance on Synthetic Nucleic Acid Screening in 2024. DSIT continues to monitor uptake of this voluntary guidance and assess its impact and effectiveness.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 ensure that businesses undertaking a transition to digital services, such as BT’s transition to Digital Voice, have considered the potential impact of this action on vulnerable and elderly individuals.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensure that any risks arising from the industry-led migration of the analogue Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to digital Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are mitigated for all customers across the UK.
Government secured safeguards for customers through the PSTN Charter in December 2023 and the Non‑Voluntary Migrations Checklist in November 2024. Major communication providers committed to a number of measures to protect customers, including signing data sharing agreements with local authorities to identify telecare customers, timely and repeated communications, a free engineer visit, and a battery back-up solution, if needed.
In addition to existing safeguards, any vulnerable customers (including the elderly) can self-identify to receive additional support from their provider as set out in the GOV.UK Supported Journeys Guidance when their landline is upgraded.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 ensure that businesses switching to digital services, such as BT’s transition to Digital Voice, communicate these changes appropriately with customers.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensure that any risks arising from the industry-led migration of the analogue Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to digital Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are mitigated for all customers across the UK.
Government secured safeguards for customers through the PSTN Charter in December 2023 and the Non‑Voluntary Migrations Checklist in November 2024. Major communication providers committed to a number of measures to protect customers, including signing data sharing agreements with local authorities to identify telecare customers, timely and repeated communications, a free engineer visit, and a battery back-up solution, if needed.
In addition to existing safeguards, any vulnerable customers (including the elderly) can self-identify to receive additional support from their provider as set out in the GOV.UK Supported Journeys Guidance when their landline is upgraded.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the deadline for applications for the appointment of the Chair of Ofcom was set for either (a) 18 December 2025 or (b) 5 January 2026.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The advert for applications was launched on 17 November 2025, with a deadline of 18 December 2025. On 17 December, the application deadline was extended until 5 January 2026, and the advert on gov.uk was amended to reflect this change.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that partnerships with AI companies to develop pilot tools for Gov.uk services deliver benefits for users while protecting data privacy.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
His Majesty’s Government is implementing artificial intelligence partnerships through a phased, test-and-learn approach that embeds data protection from the outset while testing transformational capabilities before committing significant public funds.
Working with the Commercial Innovation Hub, the Government has developed procurement approaches tailored to AI’s unique characteristics, including the National AI Tender for GOV.UK and the Planning Transformation Accelerator for AI-assisted decision-making, ensuring procurement methods are appropriate for evaluating frontier technologies.
All procurement frameworks require GDPR compliance as a mandatory qualification criterion, with partnerships operating under the UK Data Protection Act 2018 and comprehensive privacy-by-design principles. Pilots are deployed in controlled environments with oversight from departmental information security teams and data protection officers, with government retaining intellectual property ownership to prevent vendor lock-in.
Decisions to scale are contingent on pilots demonstrating measurable user benefits and full compliance with data protection standards through defined evaluation criteria and contractual break clauses, ensuring AI capabilities can be advanced while maintaining robust privacy safeguards.