Asked by: Lord Knight of Weymouth (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology procured a corporate VPN service in any of the last three financial years; and if so, which provider was used and what was the expenditure in each of those years.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DSIT uses Zscaler, a suite of secure access services that includes VPN functionality. Zscaler is contracted for by Integrated Corporate Services (ICS) Digital on DSIT’s behalf. The cost for the VPN solution is part of a broader contract for Zscaler services. The overall contract details can be found on the Contract Finder.[1]
[1] https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/319faf58-fe5c-447c-bbaa-c3ab006ad872
Asked by: Lord Knight of Weymouth (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that violent and abusive pornography that is illegal to distribute in physical formats is also prohibited online, as recommended in the Independent Pornography Review published on 27 February.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
The Independent Pornography Review assessed the effectiveness of pornography legislation, regulation, and enforcement and the Review’s findings continue to be assessed in detail by government departments. A further update on how the government is tackling the issues raised in the Review will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Lord Knight of Weymouth (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their timeline for a full response to the recommendations in the Independent Pornography Review published on 27 February.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
The Independent Pornography Review assessed the effectiveness of pornography legislation, regulation, and enforcement and the Review’s findings continue to be assessed in detail by government departments. A further update on how the government is tackling the issues raised in the Review will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Lord Knight of Weymouth (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve access to training relating to the five technologies identified as critical in the Science and Technology Framework, published on 6 March.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government's Science and Technology Framework, published March 2023, recognises the importance of training across the five critical technologies. The talent and skills strand outlines the actions the Government is taking across the science and technology landscape. This includes establishing 21 Institutes of Technology to provide industry-standard training facilities. Technology-specific examples include £25 million increased investment in quantum fellowships, doctoral training and apprenticeships. Additionally, the Government is providing £117 million for AI researchers doctoral training, and publishing new guidance that sets out AI competencies for the workplace. Investment in training will contribute to realising the UK’s 2030 science superpower ambitions.