First elected: 6th May 2010
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Chi Onwurah, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Chi Onwurah has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Chi Onwurah has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
A Bill to require the Government to publish an assessment of incidences of bowel conditions and diseases, including an assessment of geographical and socioeconomic disparities.
Football Regulation Bill 2017-19
Sponsor - Christian Matheson (Ind)
The House Administration actively considers how AI can benefit Members. This consideration has a number of threads:
(1) Exploring the use of AI
Teams across Parliament are working together through Parliament’s AI Working Group to consider how AI may be used in a Parliamentary context (in line with the response provided on 17 October). The intent is to work closely with Members to identify opportunities for the use of AI, including to support their constituency duties. The House Administration will work with Members to assess whether AI is viable for the opportunities that are identified.
(2) Guidance and learning for Members and their staff
AI is increasingly embedded into the services and digital tools we all use. The Parliamentary Digital Service is producing guidance to support Members and staff to use these new technologies safely. This guidance will be considered by the relevant governance bodies in coming weeks.
In addition, resources developed by the House of Commons Library for Members and their staff to learn more about AI are being promoted. PDS and the House of Commons Library have also developed an interactive seminar for Members and their staff to participate in. The first such seminar took place on 19 November as part of the New Parliament Fair and teaches Members what AI is, how to use it safely and how it can be applied to Members’ work.
(3) Learning from other parliaments
Many other parliaments are exploring how AI may support their Members. We have ongoing engagement with them to identify potential uses and learn from others about how AI is being used to support Members in their parliamentary and constituency duties.
All Members will be invited to share ideas for where AI might be useful in supporting them, and the AI Working Group is preparing engagement plans with Members and their staff to assess what might be viable.
The House Authorities, in conjunction with the House of Lords administration and Parliamentary Digital Service, have been actively exploring the potential for AI, and other new technologies, to support the work of Members. A recent example includes the creation of the online portal for the registration of MPs’ financial interests released in spring 2024.
PDS is undertaking a cost-benefit analysis of Microsoft’s Co-Pilot AI tool, which includes AI for mailboxes. This could aid Members and staff in their management of day-to-day administrative activities and involves learning from Government departments which are testing its use. Before a pilot of Co-Pilot could happen within Parliament, there are important information rights protections to put in place to make sure that sensitive information is handled appropriately. Steps to put those protections in place are taking place in coming months.
Parliament’s Information and Digital Strategy sets out both an ambition to ensure that the Houses are exploring the opportunities and risks of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, and to be more focused on meeting the needs of Members in the delivery of digital services.
To support these ambitions, an AI Working Group has been convened with representatives of departments across both Houses coordinating and considering how best to enable the use of generative AI. A Digital Innovation Lab has been established to provide a safe testing ground for the use of AI and other emerging technologies, and initial proofs of concepts are being developed for the use of AI to support the work of Hansard and the Table Office. House staff and PDS are working closely with Government departments to understand their use of AI (in particular the development of the Redbox tool which can summarise documents and briefings, and whether there is potential application in Parliament).
To support Members specifically, guidance is being prepared on the safe use of AI in relation to Parliamentary duties. AI learning materials are also being curated, as well as opportunities to learn more through seminar-style events. Both the guidance and learning should become available over the autumn.
The Civil Service is committed to establishing a strong presence in regions and nations across the United Kingdom, including in cities such as Newcastle upon Tyne. The Civil Service should be connected to and representative of the communities it serves as well as delivering a high quality of service for citizens across the whole of the UK. Further plans will be set out in due course, aligned with the upcoming Spending Review.
No Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget was allocated to my department when it was created in February 2023 through the machinery of Government changes.
Small businesses and manufacturers are vital to high streets and communities, and essential to the success of the Government’s growth mission.
At the Budget, the Government announced we would be continuing funding for key business support programmes in 2025-26: Growth Hubs in England, and the Help to Grow: Management programme. We also announced we are extending Made Smarter Innovation with up to £37m funding. Funding for the Made Smarter Adoption programme will double to £16 million in 2025-26, supporting more small manufacturing businesses to adopt advanced digital technologies and enabling the programme to be expanded to all nine English regions.
The Department does not hold data on the potential impact of non-EU bicycle imports on cycle distributors in the North East or the bicycle manufacturing sector.
At the Budget, the Government announced we would be continuing funding for key business support programmes in 2025-26: Growth Hubs in England, and the Help to Grow: Management programme. We also announced we are extending Made Smarter Innovation with up to £37m funding. Funding for the Made Smarter Adoption programme will double to £16 million in 2025-26, supporting more small manufacturing businesses to adopt advanced digital technologies and enabling the programme to be expanded to all nine English regions.
While e-bikes and e-scooters are used safely by millions of people every day, unsafe, non-compliant or improperly used lithium-ion batteries in e-bikes can cause serious fires. Public safety is our priority, and this Department’s recent “Buy Safe. Be Safe” campaign was launched last month to raise awareness of the steps consumers can take to reduce the risk of fires. This is part of a wider programme lead by the Office for Product Safety and Standards to tackle the causes of fires so that consumers are protected and can have confidence in these technologies.
UK product safety legislation requires manufacturers or importers placing products on the UK market, including e-bikes to ensure those products are safe. Those importing international products must ensure that they comply with UK product safety rules.
Earlier this year, OPSS banned certain models of Unit Power Pack-branded e-bike batteries manufactured in China, and they and local regulators have powers to prevent any unsafe goods identified from entering the UK at the border.
The Product Regulation and Metrology Bill will preserve the UK’s status as a global leader in product regulation, supporting businesses and protecting consumers.
Depending on the capacity they require, large energy users can connect to either the low-voltage distribution network or the high-voltage transmission network. The networks are owned by private companies that are solely responsible for ensuring the delivery of connections and regulated independently by Ofgem. The distribution network is owned and operated by six Distribution Network Operators across Great Britain. The transmission network is owned by three Transmission Owners and operated by the National Energy System Operator.
Ministers have discussed with Ofgem the need to drive higher standards of service for energy customers.
Ofgem requires suppliers to ensure that payments are set to avoid building up excessive credit balances, including taking regular meter readings. Excess credit balances should be refunded promptly, upon request.
Direct debit payments are designed to be flat across the year, meaning that energy accounts tend to build up a credit balance over the summer, when energy use low, with the reverse occurring over the winter months.
Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend, by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) on research and development (R&D) is as follows:
(£m) | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Total |
GCRF | 391 | 379 | 220 | 139 | 84 | 1,430 |
Newton Fund | 119 | 99 | 72 | 24 | 15 | 450 |
Due to the Machinery of Government change, and reporting of previous years’ spend alongside spend now reported under the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, disaggregated data for solely DSIT’s share pre-2019 is not currently available.
Both GCRF and the Newton Fund will come to a natural close by 31st March 2025. The Government will allocate future ODA to Departments as part of its standard Spending Review process.
In June 2024, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology published updated guidance on the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), available to all staff via the intranet. The guidance provides a clear framework on the principles of the duty, compliance expectations, and conducting equality impact assessments. Staff were encouraged to use this resource to support their work.
In addition, a PSED training video was included in the Policy Foundation Programme, run on DSIT's behalf by the Integrated Corporate Services. The first cohort took place on 18th November 2024.
The Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access, and Growth (VPAG) Investment Programme is enabled by circa £400m of funding from scheme members over 5 years.
Approximately 75% of total Investment Programme funding will boost commercial clinical trials across the UK, including through the new Commercial Research Delivery Centres (CRDCs).
The CRCDs are a public-private investment which include funding from the VPAG Investment Programme and £71m additional funding in England from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
DSIT supports startups and innovation across the UK, including through the UK’s innovation agency - Innovate UK. Over the last two years, Innovate UK has awarded £5.2 billion funding to more than 7,000 businesses across the UK.
Innovate UK published the State of Innovation 2024 report on 6 December. This draws on data from over 2,000 UK businesses, to provide a view of businesses’ innovation activities, challenges and plans for the year ahead.
The report does not specifically assess housing costs and cost of living, but assesses trends in barriers to innovation, including the cost of doing business, which will include these areas.
No. GOTT works with government departments and Arm’s Length Bodies to accelerate government’s innovations towards the market, through guidance, direct practical expert support, grant funding for specific opportunities, and access to networks.
The budget for the Government Office for Technology Transfer in financial year 2025-26 has not yet been set. Having now reached agreement with HM Treasury on an overall funding envelope for 2025-26, a business planning exercise is progressing to set budgets within the Department and for its supporting agencies and public bodies.
In June 2024, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology published updated guidance on the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), available to all staff via the intranet. The guidance provides a clear framework on the principles of the duty, compliance expectations, and conducting equality impact assessments. Staff were encouraged to use this resource to support their work.
In addition, a PSED training video was included in the Policy Foundation Programme, run on DSIT's behalf by the Integrated Shared Services. The first cohort took place on 18th November 2024.
There is a commitment in the response to the landscape review to investigate a sustainable source of funding for PSREs who undertake UKRI research funded at less than full economic cost.
Work is in the scoping phase and we are continuing to explore ways to improve the landscape and ease of collaboration across the sector, including for PSREs.
The Generative AI Framework provides general guidance for civil servants using AI tools. The government is, in addition, currently evaluating Microsoft 365 Copilot via a formal experiment, the findings of which will feed into future guidance for civil servants. Training has been supplied centrally to increase the efficacy of Microsoft 365 Copilot alongside material on Civil service Learn on generative AI to raise awareness of benefits, limitations and risks of Generative AI tools, such as Microsoft 365 Copilot. Microsoft's agreement with its Public Sector customers ensures enhanced privacy assurance on Microsoft 365 Copilot, including a commitment that end-user prompts are not used to train external large language models.
Everyone who works with government has a duty of confidentiality and a responsibility to safeguard any government information or data that they access or share, and all government departments are required to meet a range of mandatory security standards. The ‘Government Security Classifications Policy’ and ‘Guidance 1.1: Working at OFFICIAL’ set a range of baseline security behaviours and controls for all civil servants to follow on how to process OFFICIAL information securely, wherever it is collected, stored, processed or shared across HMG (electronically, in hardcopy or verbally) and with the wider public sector and external partners. Government departments and other public sector organisations are responsible for ensuring civil servants understand their duties and responsibilities.
Departments have Knowledge and Information Management professionals, and Digital and Data professionals, to help configure access permissions and other protections within their cloud based systems, such as within Microsoft 365.
Microsoft has produced various pieces of guidance for the UK government, in partnership with the Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), Government Security Group and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). These have been created to support government organisations that use Microsoft 365. They outline how to configure the Microsoft 365 platform to enable a secure and interoperable experience for civil servants operating at the OFFICIAL tier.
The Minister of State for Science, Research and Innovation is responsible for Innovation across the Missions, including the Growth Mission. However, a wide range of DSIT’s policy areas support businesses and contribute to innovation-led growth, and therefore all Ministers will have an interest. A full list of Ministerial responsibilities is at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-ministers-and-responsibilities.
Ofcom’s approach to testing compliance is available on Ofcom’s website. https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/coverage-and-speeds/cellular-coverage/
It involves a combination of desk-based assessment against the mobile network operators (MNO) coverage predictions and drive testing in a sample of locations across the UK.
Ofcom uses scanners installed in vehicles to capture a range of information including mobile signal strength across the UK’s road network. This provides signal strength measurement samples for each MNO across different regions and terrains. This data is then used for comparison at an aggregated level with the coverage predictions the MNOs supply to Ofcom.
Ofcom reports that a 10 Mbps download and 1 Mbps upload speed connection is needed to support video calls and a consistent connection to the internet, and our expectation is that this would support remote working. Most networks in the UK, including those delivered by Project Gigabit, offer much higher performance.
The mobile signal strength thresholds Ofcom set for the Shared Rural Network are based on Ofcom’s assessment of what constitutes “good” mobile coverage which has been in place for several years and which broadly equates to successfully making a 90 second call and getting a download speed of at least 2Mbit/s. Whether this is sufficient to support remote working will depend on a number of factors, including the nature of the work being undertaken and the level of congestion on the network. We have asked Ofcom to keep under review what constitutes good 4G and 5G connectivity.
In response to my letter to their Chief Executive, Ofcom is considering how to incorporate different signal strength thresholds in its reporting on the availability of mobile networks.
The Shared Rural Network is delivering good 4G outdoor coverage across rural parts of the UK. For 4G networks, Ofcom defines good coverage based on the minimum signal strength required to deliver a 95% probability of making a 90-second telephone call successfully completed, and of getting a download speed of at least 2Mbit/s.
DSIT is committed to increasing diversity in the research workforce. We are supporting the pipeline of diverse talent, for example through the CREST Awards and the UKRI funded STEM Ambassador programme. We are supporting UKRI’s EDI Strategy to ensure that those with the best research ideas can access research funding regardless of their backgrounds.
We are improving understanding of the issues through a second edition of the UK-wide Research and Innovation Workforce Survey in July this year. UKRI also publishes diversity data and commissions high-quality research evidence that informs policy and practice in the R&D system, e.g. through its EDI Caucus.
The first full tranche includes Cabinet Office, Department for Culture, Media & Sport, Department for Business & Trade, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology and Department for Energy Security & Net Zero plus associated Arm’s-Length Bodies in scope.
Workday is the Technology (alongside System Integrator Cognizant). It’s an AI-enabled, cloud-based, user-friendly software that brings together HR and Finance into one application.
Workday & Cognizant were identified as the preferred bidders following the conclusion of an 18-month Competitive Procedure with Negotiation (CPN). Which was in full compliance with Public Contract Regulations and aligned with commercial best practices throughout.
We recognise the importance of stakeholder engagement and are actively involving stakeholders from the research sector throughout the process. Further details on ten-year budgets will be set out in the Spring as part of the next phase of the Spending Review.
The Shared Rural Network (SRN) has already delivered substantial improvements to outdoor 4G mobile coverage across the UK. 4G coverage from at least one mobile network operator has increased from 91% when the programme was agreed in March 2020 to 94.9% according to Ofcom coverage reporting. This progress includes upgrading and activating Emergency Services Network (ESN) masts which are delivering new 4G coverage in the harder to reach areas across Britain and building new masts in areas that currently have no signal at all to having coverage from all four mobile network operators.
Ofcom recently assessed that all four mobile network operators had met their 88% coverage obligation for completion of the partial not-spot programme. This part of the SRN targets areas where there is currently coverage from at least one but not all four mobile network operators.
AI assurance supports organisations to demonstrate their compliance with existing – and future – standards and regulations. To complement the existing focus on proportionate, sector-specific regulation, the UK Government remains focused on its intention to introduce binding requirements on the handful of companies developing the most powerful AI systems, as announced in the King’s Speech. These proposals will build on the voluntary commitments already secured at the Seoul and Bletchley AI Safety Summits and build on the government’s ongoing commitment to ensure that the UK’s regulators have the expertise and resources to effectively regulate AI in each of their respective domains.
This public R&D regional investment target is set out in the statement of missions laid in relation to the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023.
Increasing productivity right across the UK is fundamental to our mission to kickstart economic growth. Through our Industrial Strategy and the development of Local Growth Plans, we will build on local strengths to ensure that public and private R&D investment right across the UK helps local places to reach their potential.
a) Cyber Essentials certificates awarded to small and medium sized businesses:
i. November 2023 to October 2024: 41,162, including 9,680 Cyber Essentials Plus certificates.
ii. November 2022 to October 2023: 26,674, including 7,966 Cyber Essentials Plus certificates.
iii. November 2021 to October 2022: 20,773, including 4,938 Cyber Essentials Plus certificates.
iv. November 2020 to October 2021: 18,136, including 3,694 Cyber Essentials Plus certificates.
b) From 1 May 2020 to 31 October 2024 (the period for which IASME Consortium have been government’s sole delivery partner for Cyber Essentials), 131,339 Cyber Essentials certificates have been awarded to small and medium businesses. This includes 27,217 Cyber Essentials Plus certificates.
We know that Government procurement is a powerful lever to drive innovation, giving businesses confidence to invest in and shape markets by signalling Government needs and intent, and this is no different with AI assurance. By embedding them in public sector procurement, Government can likely drive demand for proven AI assurance practices and support improvements in the quality of the AI supply chain. We are continuing to assess this potential, and last week we launched a public consultation on our AI Management Essentials tool, with questions as to the potential market effects of including these practices in Government procurement processes.
We will announce further details on the allocation of the R&D budget in 2025/26 in due course. We will ensure we continue to build on the success of the Made Smarter Innovation Challenge, which has supported more than 400 organisations, of which over half are SMEs.
The Autumn Budget 2024 announces at least £6.1 billion of funding for core research, growing this allocation at least in line with inflation. Core research funding directly and indirectly supports universities through a range of programmes, including competitive research grants through UKRI’s research councils, investment in PhDs and fellowships, and Quality-Related research funding provided through Research England, informed by the outcomes of the Research Excellence Framework (REF). DSIT will work closely with the sector to effectively prioritise our R&D settlement, and will announce further details on funding allocations in due course.
The Autumn Budget set out funding of over £500m in 2025/26 for Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network. This only referred to the capital funding for these programmes, resource is allocated separately.
The funding allocation is based on estimated delivery for the two programmes. For Project Gigabit this is based on the contracts we have signed and have planned. We remain committed to delivering gigabit connections to at least 99% of premises by 2030. Funding for the Shared Rural Network is based on agreements with the mobile industry to roll out new and upgraded masts to meet our target of hitting 95% geographic 4G coverage next year.
We expect to contribute over £8bn to Horizon Europe between 2024-2027, and are aiming for UK researchers to be awarded the maximum amount possible through successful funding bids. Our priority is to boost UK application and success rates to maximise this return. As we re-joined the programme in January of this year, and there is a lag between applications and awards, it is too early to properly assess UK success in the programme.
We have secured financial protections that ensure the UK can clawback funds if contributions to Horizon Europe exceed receipts that go to UK researchers and businesses and researchers by 16%.
The multi-year investment relates to the Matrix Shared Services Transformation programme, which plays an important part in driving a modern digital government, giving people a more satisfying experience and their time back in nine government departments. The £80m investment will take place in the year from April 25 to March 26 inclusive with the programme running through to FY27/28. The scope of the investment covers the implementation of a new system, the associated service transformation and the staff costs to prepare for and enact the changes for the first tranche of departments. With this investment we'll move closer to reaching our overall ambition - to transform shared services and technology to enable civil servants to focus on what they value most, serving the public.
The Government will extend the Innovation Accelerators pilot for a year to continue to bolster high-potential innovation clusters in the Glasgow City Region, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. We will announce further details on the allocation of the R&D budget in due course.
Any future extension of the programme to other places will be subject to decisions taken through the second phase of the Spending Review.
DSIT and UK Research and Innovation are designing a new process to allocate this funding. This will build on engagement earlier in the year with the university sector on how to design proof-of-concept funding. While the benefits realised will depend on the precise design, evaluations of existing UKRI programmes show strong benefits. For example, the Medical Research Council’s evaluation of their developmental pathway funding scheme found that spin-outs from those awarded funding raised on average £4 million, whereas most spin-outs from projects marginally rejected for funding raised very little, or nothing.
DSIT’s capital budget in 2024/25 was £13.3bn, with £12.5bn allocated for investment in R&D. As outlined in the Autumn Budget 2024, DSIT’s R&D allocation has risen to £13.9bn in 2025/26, a £1.4bn cash-terms uplift.
Using the latest OBR GDP deflator estimate for 2025/26 of 2.4 per cent (Autumn Budget 2024), this equates to a real-terms increase of 8.5%.
DSIT has been allocated an R&D budget of £13.9 billion in 2025/26 within its capital DEL settlement. This includes funding for the full costs of association to EU research programmes, including Horizon Europe, and additional funding for the Horizon Guarantee.
The Government will extend the Innovation Accelerators pilot for a year to continue to bolster high-potential innovation clusters in the Glasgow City Region, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. We will announce further details on the allocation of the R&D budget in due course.
Through the Turing Scheme, in the 2024/25 academic year, education providers and other eligible organisations from across the UK and British Overseas Territories have been allocated over £105 million to send their students on more than 43,000 study and work placements across the globe. Around 23,000 (53%) of these opportunities will be for participants from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Information on the number and proportion of disadvantaged students in previous years of the Turing Scheme is available at the following links:
For the 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years, the figures are subject to change following quality assurance of providers’ final reports of the placements that took place. This data will be published in due course.
For the 2024/25 academic year, over £10 million in funding was awarded to 298 successful schools projects from across the UK. This will provide funding for over 7,000 pupils to participate in placements overseas. Of these, 56% will be for participants from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Of these 298 successful school applications, 6 were from private schools (2%), providing funding for just over 100 pupils to take part in international placements (1.6%), however this is subject to change as these projects are delivered through the year.
The Turing Scheme is the UK Government’s global programme for students to study and work abroad. The Turing Scheme provides additional funding to students from disadvantaged backgrounds to help them to participate in international placements. All students from disadvantaged backgrounds can get funding for travel-related costs. This includes visa application fees, vaccines, medical certificates, passports, and related travel insurance. Students with special educational needs and disabilities can also get funding for their support needs.
Schools identify students from a disadvantaged background using the following criteria:
Receiving FSM in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England or primary 1 to 5 in Scotland does not automatically meet the criteria for funding for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
This list is not exhaustive. If a school identifies pupils who do not precisely meet these criteria but share similar characteristics which justify extra support, they may include them in their application.
As the department does not gather data on which criteria students meet to be considered as being from a disadvantaged background, the department is not able to provide a breakdown of the number of participants in the Turing Scheme who are in receipt of FSM.
The Turing Scheme is the UK Government’s global programme for students to study and work abroad. The Turing Scheme provides additional funding to students from disadvantaged backgrounds to help them to participate in international placements. All students from disadvantaged backgrounds can get funding for travel-related costs. This includes visa application fees, vaccines, medical certificates, passports, and related travel insurance. Students with special educational needs and disabilities can also get funding for their support needs.
Schools identify students from a disadvantaged background using the following criteria:
Receiving FSM in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England or primary 1 to 5 in Scotland does not automatically meet the criteria for funding for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
This list is not exhaustive. If a school identifies pupils who do not precisely meet these criteria but share similar characteristics which justify extra support, they may include them in their application.
As the department does not gather data on which criteria students meet to be considered as being from a disadvantaged background, the department is not able to provide a breakdown of the number of participants in the Turing Scheme who are in receipt of FSM.
Although my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, did not announce new funding for the higher education (HE) sector, we have since announced measures across fees, maintenance and wider HE reform to address financial pressures faced by the sector, increase support for students, strengthen efforts to improve access and outcomes for disadvantaged students and enable flexibility to be at the core of our HE system.
The department is aware that HE providers will have to pay increased national insurance contributions. As my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out in the Budget, raising the revenue required to fund public services and restore economic stability requires difficult decisions which is why the government has asked employers to contribute more.
The tuition fee limit increase represents an increased investment from students for the sector and will support HE providers in managing the financial challenges they are facing.
The department will explore how best it can continue to improve access to HE, thus widening opportunity for our students and learners, while driving the HE system to play a bigger role in our ambitions for national growth.
The issues the food sector faces cut across the work of many Departments, and also of Devolved Governments. Development of the strategy will be led by Defra, but this work will require a whole-of-government effort with involvement from several other Government departments, including the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology.