Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the impact of charging National Insurance to limited liability partnerships on the number of such firms relocating abroad or restructuring as companies.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government does not comment on tax speculation outside of fiscal events. The Chancellor will set out the Government’s fiscal plans at the forthcoming Budget.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that construction of AI data centres is compatible with energy infrastructure capacity and statutory environmental targets.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires local planning authorities to plan for growth sustainably, taking account of infrastructure needs and environmental impacts. It also ensures planning decisions contribute to meeting statutory environmental targets, including by preventing unacceptable pollution and protecting local environments. Planning authorities must also consider water and wastewater capacity, with the cross-government Water Delivery Taskforce helping to ensure infrastructure keeps pace with growth.
Subject to draft Regulations that are currently before Parliament being in place, environmental impacts, including energy and water impacts will be assessed as part of the overall consideration and determination of data centre projects that have been directed to proceed through the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects consenting process.
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will further streamline consenting while maintaining strong environmental safeguards.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to incorporate the recent fall in government borrowing costs into fiscal planning.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government sets fiscal policy on the basis of independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasts. The Chancellor commissioned an updated forecast to accompany the Budget on 26 November.
The government’s fiscal strategy, as set out at the Budget in October 2024 and the Spring Statement earlier this year, put the public finances on a sustainable path while prioritising investment to support long-term growth. At the upcoming Budget, we will continue to deliver that strategy, including by meeting the fiscal rules.
This is the responsible choice – to live within our means, reduce the amount we spend on debt interest, protect public services and support the Bank of England to get inflation down.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reduce planning restrictions on the construction of AI data centres.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The National Planning Policy Framework sets out that planning policies should pay particular regard to facilitating development to meet the needs of a modern economy, including by identifying suitable locations for uses such as data centres.
We laid the draft Infrastructure Planning (Business or Commercial Projects) (Amendment) Regulations in Parliament on 15 October which, if approved, will enable developers of certain proposed data centres on request to ‘opt in’ to the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects consenting regime. To support this change, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology will prepare a new National Policy Statement for data centres which will set out the national policy for this sector and the policy framework for decision-making for data centre developments under that regime.
We are exploring whether further measures may be appropriate to support the delivery of AI infrastructure and will engage with the sector on this.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s announcement on 21 October of measures aimed at accelerating innovation and cutting bureaucracy, what specific measures they are taking to support AI infrastructure development.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This government has consistently supported the build out of AI infrastructure through supporting the growth of the data centre sector. Last year we designated data centres as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), underscoring their strategic importance.
Shortly after the election, we reformed the National Planning Policy Framework to reference data centres and secondary legislation is underway to enable data centre developers to seek planning consent through the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) regime in England. We are also reforming the National Grid connections process, making it easier for datacentres to secure a timely grid connection.
This Government has created AI Growth Zones - dedicated hubs designed to fast-track AI infrastructure development, support planning approvals, and unlock energy access. So far, this government has announced two of these zones, one in Culham in Oxfordshire and the other in the North East.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the remarks concerning the potential risks of autonomous AI made by the Director-General of MI5 on 16 October, and what steps they are taking to mitigate autonomous AI threats to national security.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
As MI5’s Director General has noted, AI strengthens the UK’s national security capabilities, but its misuse or loss of control poses serious risks. The UK Government is actively addressing these concerns.
The Home Office collaborates with the UK intelligence community and technical partners like the AI Safety Institute and Alan Turing Institute to assess threats and shape policy. This includes ensuring AI systems align with human values and operator intent to reduce misalignment risks.
Through the National Security Strategy 2025 and UK AI Opportunities Action Plan, the UK is investing in sovereign, high-assurance AI for defence and critical infrastructure, developing cybersecurity standards, and evaluating advanced AI models to detect harmful capabilities—ensuring AI is deployed safely and in line with national interests.
In September 2025, the UK also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the US under the Technology Prosperity Deal, strengthening collaboration on AI and national security to mitigate future risks. Subsequently, the UK has committed to greater collaboration between the US Centre for AI Standards and Innovation and the UK AI Security Institute, and secured multi-billion-pound US tech investments in UK AI infrastructure and Growth Zones to deliver new AI infrastructure in the UK.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what contingency plans are in place to ensure UK financial stability, following the Bank of England’s warning that markets are at risk of a sharp correction tied to AI valuations and geopolitical uncertainty.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee is responsible for identifying, monitoring and taking action to remove or reduce systemic risks to the UK financial system. In the case of any disruption, the UK financial authorities have established mature coordination mechanisms to coordinate an appropriate response using the range of powers available to respond.
Alongside the UK financial regulators, HMT closely monitors markets conditions, as well as potential risks to UK financial stability.
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 implement the new blueprint for AI regulation, announced on 21 October, including the creation of 'AI Growth Labs' and sector-specific regulatory sandboxes.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The AI Growth Lab would be a cross-economy sandbox. The Lab aims to drive responsible AI innovation and adoption and generate an evidence base for agile regulatory reform, by enabling time-limited, closely supervised regulatory modifications to be piloted in live environments.
A call for evidence on the AI Growth Lab is now live, closing on 2 January, seeking input from a range of stakeholders on the Growth Lab design.
Responses will help inform further policy development, shaping more detailed proposals for the Lab and its implementation, ensuring that any changes balance innovation with public trust.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of permanently linking university tuition fees rises to inflation on access to higher education and student debt levels.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to attend higher education (HE). That is why the government will introduce targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students from low-income households studying courses aligned with our missions and industrial strategy.
The student finance system removes upfront financial barriers so that everyone with the ability and desire to enter HE can do so. Student loans carry significant protections for borrowers. Monthly repayments are linked to income, not to the amount borrowed, so will not change with fee rises. At the end of the loan term, any outstanding loan balance will be written off.
The HE sector needs a secure financial footing, which is why the department has taken the difficult decision to increase tuition fee caps for the next two years, in line with inflation. In future years, only institutions which meet a quality threshold will be able to continue to raise their fees in line with inflation to ensure a focus on teaching quality and outcomes for students.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the potential of the Sterling 20 investment initiative to support infrastructure and high-growth sectors, and what role will the Treasury play in overseeing its deployment.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Sterling 20 is a new grouping of institutional investors announced by the Chancellor at the inaugural Regional Investment Summit in Birmingham. Members of the group include signatories of July’s Mansion House Accord, as well as two insurers and the Pension Protection Fund. There will also be attendance from the Local Government Pension Scheme pools where appropriate.
The Mansion House Accord saw pension providers representing 90% of active defined contribution scheme savers commit to invest at least 5% of their main default funds in UK private markets by 2030. This commitment will unlock over £25 billion for the UK with investment including new housing, infrastructure and high-growth industries. Establishing the Sterling 20 also delivers on a specific government pledge to “curate a pipeline” of investment opportunities.
The grouping will further support mobilising institutional investment by raising awareness among investors of government-led programmes and initiatives. This will allow members to help shape and co-design investment opportunities, so they are attractive and relevant to their regulatory and fiduciary requirements. By promoting knowledge sharing, the Sterling 20 can help remove investment blockers and improve the investability of government-led projects.
The forum is industry-led and delivered in partnership with the City of London Corporation as well as the relevant leading trade associations. The Office for Investment act as the secretariat and are responsible for curating the programme for the group. His Majesty’s Treasury will take an oversight role through the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Minister for Investment, as well as cross-government investment governance structures, to hold the Office for Investment and contributing departments to account on delivery and ensure the success of the initiative.
More broadly, delivering the 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy’s ambitious programme for transforming the UK’s infrastructure will require significant increases in private investment to complement and maximise the value of the extensive public investment underway. The government will continue to work in partnership with the private sector to unlock capital for UK infrastructure, including through the Sterling 20.