Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support UK-based AI developers through government procurement processes, in the light of the establishment of the Sovereign AI unit.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Sovereign AI Unit was announced in the AI Opportunities Action Plan as a new initiative specifically designed to build homegrown capability in emerging areas of the AI ecosystem. Backed by £500 million at the Spending Review, the programme is focused on unlocking opportunities where targeted public intervention can support UK leadership, scale national champions, and secure long-term strategic advantage.
In relation to procurement specifically, the Digital Commercial Centre of Excellence, established earlier this year following the publication of ‘A blueprint for modern digital government’ by DSIT, plays an important role in shaping best practice in relation to technology procurement policy.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of ethical and legal considerations regarding Anthropic's use of copyright-protected works in training its Claude AI model before awarding the contract for the GOV.UK chat service to the company.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Digital Service recognises the importance of ethical and legal considerations relating to the use of copyright-protected material in the training of large language models.
A range of large language models from multiple suppliers have been considered in developing GOV.UK Chat. Earlier iterations tested OpenAI’s ChatGPT models, while the current phase is evaluating Anthropic’s Claude models. Model selection decisions are based on performance, security, data protection, cost, and alignment with government standards.
GOV.UK Chat is being developed entirely within the Government Digital Service by a multidisciplinary team of civil servants. The Government continues to engage with UK-based AI developers and remains open to collaboration where this supports innovation and the delivery of public services.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what alternative suppliers they considered for the GOV.UK chat service before selecting Anthropic's Claude model; and what assessment they have made of contracting United Kingdom based AI developers for this project.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Digital Service has considered a range of large language models from multiple suppliers in developing GOV.UK Chat. Earlier iterations tested OpenAI’s ChatGPT models, while the current phase is evaluating Anthropic’s Claude models. Model selection decisions are based on performance, security, data protection, cost, and alignment with government standards. GOV.UK Chat is being developed entirely within the Government Digital Service by a multidisciplinary team of civil servants. The Government continues to engage with UK-based AI developers and remains open to collaboration where this supports innovation and the delivery of public services.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether Fujitsu would be a suitable supplier for the Trader Support Service contract with HMRC.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government does not comment on live procurements to protect the integrity of the process. In all its procurements, HMRC follows government procurement rules.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the veracity of any information provided by Fujitsu in the most recent tender process for the Trader Support Service contact with HMRC.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government does not comment on live procurements to protect the integrity of the process. In all its procurements, HMRC follows government procurement rules.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the project "Context, Value, and Decision Making From Synapses To Circuits", outlined in the Non-technical summaries for project licences granted April – June 2025 under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, published on 11 July, what assessment they have made of mice being given psychostimulant rewards, including cocaine and amphetamine; and how this is expected to benefit human beings, animals or the environment.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Every project application to use animals in science is subject to a robust and rigorous harm benefit assessment by a trained Home Office Inspector whom is a member of either the veterinary or medical profession. This ensures that any harm that may be caused to the animals is justified by the likely expected benefits for humans, animals or the environment. This project is researching basic neuroscience. The research aims to inform fundamental understanding of how neural networks work in healthy adults, and how this is altered by experience during adolescence.
Applications for animal research must conform with all legal requirements set out in the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. This includes, applying the principles of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement).
The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) is engaging with stakeholders to finalise a strategy to accelerate the development, validation and uptake of alternatives to animal testing which is scheduled for publication later this year.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the non-technical summaries of project licences granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 between January and June, what assessment they have made of the number of animals approved to be used in procedures over the next five years under those licences.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office is committed to ensuring that the use of animals in scientific research is strictly regulated and is only permitted where no suitable alternatives are available. In parallel, the Government is committed to working towards a vision of phasing out the use of animals in science. The Government will publish a strategy that describes how it will accelerate the development and uptake of alternative methods to animal research and testing later this year.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of claims that universities are threatening legal action against the Alan Turing Institute over cancelled partnerships.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Alan Turing Institute is currently undertaking a consultation process which will aim to concentrate the institute’s activities on fewer projects in line with its Turing 2.0 strategy. The Alan Turing Institute is an independent legal entity, so these consultations, and any related changes, are being handled internally within the institute.
It is important that the Institute delivers value for money and maximum impact for taxpayers, and we will continue our work to support that ambition.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential closure of the Public Policy Progamme at the Alan Turing Institute, as suggested by the recent departure of both co-directors; and what assessment they have made of the impact of this potential closure on the Institute’s charitable mission.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In 2024, the Quinquennial Review provided advice on how to strengthen successful delivery of the Turing 2.0 strategy and help shape its future direction in a rapidly changing artificial intelligence (AI) landscape.
Following this review, the Alan Turing Institute has launched a consultation process, which will aim to concentrate the institute’s activities on fewer projects in line with its strategy. The Alan Turing Institute is an independent organisation, and these consultations are being handled internally within the institute.
We note that the CEO of the Institute has recently announced her resignation. We will continue ensuring that the Institute delivers value for money to the taxpayer.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Alan Turing Institute's progress against the terms of its £100 million funding agreement, including delivery plans, annual reviews and current status of key performance indicators.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
While the Alan Turing Institute (ATI) has made progress with its recent reforms, further steps are needed to shift away from a broad portfolio of projects toward a more focused model.
In July, Secretary of State wrote to the ATI Board proposing a set of changes to the organisation that would shift its focus to national security, defence and sovereign capability. These reforms will build on the institute’s existing strengths and increase its capacity to deliver real value for the British public.
Government is working closely with UKRI and the ATI to deliver on SoS’ vision and remains committed to working with both organisations to drive progress at the cutting edge, support the government’s missions and attract international talent.