Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what are the criteria for the strict UK benefit test being applied to assess prospective recipient companies of the Sovereign AI Fund.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
Sovereign AI is designed to help the most promising UK AI companies start, scale and remain anchored in the UK. The Fund only invests in companies where this will benefit the UK, with UK nexus assessed as part of the decision-making process. This includes reviewing domicile, headquarters, the location of key executives, technical staff and R&D activity, and expected UK procurement, infrastructure and ecosystem contribution. This assessment ensures that the Fund’s investment activity, as part of the wider Sovereign AI offer, results in the realisation of the UK economic and strategic benefits the Fund is designed to achieve.
For non-equity support, UK anchoring is reflected in published eligibility and assessment criteria, including UK registration and requirements to demonstrate substantive R&D in the UK where applicable.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what is the 'UK benefit test' required for those applying for funds from the Sovereign AI fund.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
Sovereign AI is designed to help the most promising UK AI companies start, scale and remain anchored in the UK. The Fund only invests in companies with a strong UK nexus, which is assessed as part of the decision-making process. This includes reviewing domicile, headquarters, the location of key executives, technical staff and R&D activity, and expected UK procurement, infrastructure and ecosystem contribution. This assessment ensures that the Fund’s investment activity, as part of the wider Sovereign AI offer, results in the realisation of the UK economic and strategic benefits the Fund is designed to achieve.
For non-equity support, UK anchoring is reflected in published eligibility and assessment criteria, including UK registration and requirements to demonstrate substantive R&D in the UK where applicable.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will provide details of conditions attached to awards, including a) commitments regarding UK headquarters and office presence, b) commitments regarding UK-based hiring and job creation, c) commitments regarding UK tax residency and tax payments, d) commitments regarding the location of intellectual property and e) clawback provisions in the event of relocation and acquisition for each recipient of Sovereign AI funding.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
Sovereign AI is designed to help the most promising UK AI companies start, scale and remain anchored in the UK. Before any equity investment is made, the Fund assesses a company’s current and future UK nexus, including domicile, headquarters and key executives, technical staff and R&D activity, and expected UK procurement, infrastructure and ecosystem contribution.
Equity investments are made as a minority co-investor, often in competitive rounds. Attaching anchoring conditions such as those mentioned would put Sovereign AI investments at a significant competitive disadvantage and weaken the Fund's ability to achieve its overall objective.
For non-equity support, UK anchoring is reflected in published eligibility and assessment criteria, including UK registration and requirements to demonstrate substantive R&D in the UK where applicable.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with X on removing illegal material which it has been made aware of through means aside from its new UK illegal content form.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The Secretary of State has repeatedly called out illegal content on X including when the Grok AI tool was being used to create and share degrading, non-consensual intimate deepfakes.
Government engages regularly with online platforms, including X, to press for swift action on illegal content. Ministers have made clear that companies must act decisively, and have recently convened senior social media representatives to reinforce expectations, including on harms such as antisemitism.
X has recently made public commitments to Ofcom to better protect UK users from illegal hate and terror content, including expedited timescales for reviewing illegal hate and terror content, which Ofcom is monitoring closely.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with X on removing illegal material in different instances relating to how it becomes aware of that material.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The Secretary of State has repeatedly called out illegal content on X including when the Grok AI tool was being used to create and share degrading, non-consensual intimate deepfakes.
Government engages regularly with online platforms, including X, to press for swift action on illegal content. Ministers have made clear that companies must act decisively, and have recently convened senior social media representatives to reinforce expectations, including on harms such as antisemitism.
X has recently made public commitments to Ofcom to better protect UK users from illegal hate and terror content, including expedited timescales for reviewing illegal hate and terror content, which Ofcom is monitoring closely.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with X on removing illegal material.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The Secretary of State has repeatedly called out illegal content on X including when the Grok AI tool was being used to create and share degrading, non-consensual intimate deepfakes.
Government engages regularly with online platforms, including X, to press for swift action on illegal content. Ministers have made clear that companies must act decisively, and have recently convened senior social media representatives to reinforce expectations, including on harms such as antisemitism.
X has recently made public commitments to Ofcom to better protect UK users from illegal hate and terror content, including expedited timescales for reviewing illegal hate and terror content, which Ofcom is monitoring closely.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the levels of UK X users’ awareness of X’s new UK illegal content form.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology notes X’s new UK illegal content reporting form and deadlines for reviewing reported content.
We also note X’s commitments to engage experts on reporting systems for illegal hate and terrorist content and to act against accounts operated by, or on behalf of, proscribed organisations. X will report quarterly to Ofcom on these commitments.
As the measures are new and untested, their effectiveness will be considered in due course alongside Ofcom’s supervision of the illegal content duties and the user redress provisions under the Online Safety Act. Ofcom retains our full support to use its enforcement powers as required.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps the Government is taking to coordinate with international partners to address the cross-border spread of misogynistic online content.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has commissioned research on the (a) scale and (b) impact of misogynistic online content.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
The government is committed to tackling misogynistic online content and has taken action by criminalising additional forms of intimate image abuse, as well as prioritising these under the Online Safety Act, and introducing new measures including a 48‑hour takedown duty.
Ofcom has produced guidance setting out how providers can take action against harmful content and activity that disproportionately affects women and girls, in recognition of the unique risks they face. Ofcom surveys found 15% of UK adults reported seeing content that objectified or demeaned women in the four weeks prior to January 2026. This was down from 20% in June 2025. We know there is still much more to do and are committed to acting.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the answer of 25 February 2026, to Question 112303, on online censorship of women's health, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of censorship by social media companies of information on how bystanders can administer CPR to women.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology)
We recognise the important role of trusted online health content. The Online Safety Act places duties on services to protect their users including from illegal content and content harmful to children. It does not prevent adults or children from accessing legal content about women’s health. Users of the largest categorised services will have access to effective complaints procedures to appeal when content is unduly taken down.