Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the use of the N9M protocol; and if she will issue guidance on its vulnerabilities to foreign actors accessing any data processed using N9M.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
This government remains committed to ensuring that new and existing technologies are safely deployed across the UK. Whilst the government does not routinely carry out assessments of software or products it is working with industry to support them in making independent assessments about the security of software and products. To this end, the National Cyber Security Centre has set up Cyber Resilience Test Facilities (CRTFs) that will deliver assurance for a wide range of internet connected products and services. This will also enable industry and government services to independently audit and assess products and services in a consistent way.
The N9M protocol is used within vehicles. Last year, the government laid the Road Vehicles (Type-Approval) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2025 that mandated internationally recognised requirements for vehicle cyber security. Vehicle manufacturers, including those that use N9M protocol, must assess and mitigate for cyber-security threats and vulnerabilities, as part of the whole vehicle evaluation for new vehicles required to obtain GB type-approval.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a national safety standard for Human Form Recognition AI technology used on (a) mobile plant and (b) heavy machinery to ensure (i) a minimum threshold for accuracy and (ii) the reduction of false-positive alerts.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
AI can bring significant benefits to the workplace, workers and the wider economy. However, it is important that AI systems are developed and deployed safely and responsibly. That’s why the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is taking action to build an AI assurance ecosystem that underpins safe, trustworthy and responsible AI systems.
This includes establishing the Centre for AI Measurement at the National Physical Laboratory. This will provide targeted support to industry through delivery of the AI Assurance Innovation Fund and create a collaborative environment for conducting research focused on the development of new and innovative AI assurance techniques.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of further regulation of domestic CCTV usage where cameras overlook neighbouring properties.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
If domestic CCTV captures someone else's property or communal space, the UK’s data protection legislation applies, as the images and voices of other people will be captured and this is classified as personal information.
The Information Commissioner's Office has published guidance on both the householder’s responsibilities under the legislation, and what people can do if they are concerned about a neighbour’s intrusive use of CCTV equipment. The government has no plans for further regulation.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to tackle digital exclusion in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Although the previous government did not update its digital inclusion strategy for ten years, digital inclusion is a priority for the new government, so that everyone has the access, skills, support and confidence to participate in a modern digital society, whatever their circumstances. Work is ongoing to develop our approach to tackling digital exclusion, and we will be working closely with the third sector and local authorities, many of whom have already implemented highly successful programmes, to ensure interventions are collaborative, targeted and effective.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of households in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England that do not have (i) broadband and (ii) mobile internet access.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
According to the independent website ThinkBroadband.com, 0.3% of premises in the Mid Cheshire constituency, 0.7% in Cheshire and 0.6% in England overall do not have access to broadband speeds in excess of the legal Universal Service Obligation (USO) of 10Mbps.
Ofcom publishes mobile coverage data for premises through its Connected Nations Reports and does not distinguish between households and other premises.
Ofcom’s most recent coverage reporting reports that 127,447 (0.5%) premises across England do not have indoor 4G mobile coverage from any mobile network operator (MNO). This falls to 10,382 (0.04%) premises for 4G outdoor coverage.
Ofcom data does not enable us to make an assessment of the number of premises in Cheshire that do not have coverage from any MNO.