Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the NHS is not dependent on single suppliers of medical products.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Central procurement processes through NHS Supply Chain include a range of measures to prevent the dependency on single suppliers of medical products.
When designing strategies, at category and sourcing strategy stages, NHS Supply Chain completes a category risk analysis which highlights sole source or supplier dominance risk and is analysed before being accepted or rejected.
Unless there is a requirement for a unique product, NHS Supply Chain tries to avoid sole sourcing. Occasionally, a tender will only produce one response for a product, so market constraints may result in sole source. In this case NHS Supply Chain will review the market and seek new entrants where possible and relevant.
Where the procurement of a product from a sole source is unavoidable, NHS Supply Chain will conduct enhanced due diligence on sole source suppliers which could include:
- business continuity management assurances;
- tailored selection criteria; and
- contingency planning in the event that the sole supplier is unable to supply.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
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 Ofcom on (a) tackling the proliferation of fake AI generated Auschwitz photographs on social media and (b) the potential impact of those photographs on our understanding of the Holocaust.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is deeply concerned about the spread of antisemitic content and dealing with it is a priority for this government. We recognise that AI-generated content can undermine trust and spread hate online. Under the Online Safety Act (OSA), enforced by Ofcom, regulated services must tackle AI-generated content that is illegal (including that which stirs up racial hatred, is threatening or abusive, or otherwise meets criminal thresholds), or harmful to children. This includes where content is antisemitic. The Secretary of State wrote to Ofcom in October and November 2025 asking them to do everything possible under the Act to tackle this content.
The department is exploring how to improve detection and transparency around AI-generated material, including through the Deepfake Detection Challenge 2026. We are also improving media literacy, encouraging critical engagement with and awareness of divisive and misleading content.
The government continues to work with community groups and partners to challenge hatred and protect public understanding from harmful content.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that UK trade policy supports the sustainability of rural communities in West Africa that are reliant on the banana export trade.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's Economic Partnership Agreements and Developing Countries Trading Scheme provide West and Central African partners with preferential access to the UK market, supporting growth, employment, and development of resilient agricultural supply chains. This preferential access has enabled West African banana‑exporting countries, including Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, to strengthen their position in the UK market, underpinning rural livelihoods in sectors where women play a significant role.
We have also supported the African Continental Free Trade Agreement and worked with TradeMark Africa to strengthen trade corridors on the continent, including tackling the barriers that women face when engaging in cross‑border trade.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what step she is taking with his African counterparts to help ensure that women in the West and Central African banana trade are supported and employed.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's Economic Partnership Agreements and Developing Countries Trading Scheme provide West and Central African partners with preferential access to the UK market, supporting growth, employment, and development of resilient agricultural supply chains. This preferential access has enabled West African banana‑exporting countries, including Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, to strengthen their position in the UK market, underpinning rural livelihoods in sectors where women play a significant role.
We have also supported the African Continental Free Trade Agreement and worked with TradeMark Africa to strengthen trade corridors on the continent, including tackling the barriers that women face when engaging in cross‑border trade.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support industrial heritage.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
This Government is proud to support industrial heritage, which is central to our nation's history. Last year, the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund supported a wide range of industrial heritage sites, including £1 million for the Woodhorn Colliery in Northumberland.
We intervened to save the Ironbridge Trust in Shropshire, the birthplace of the industrial revolution, with a £9 million investment. Furthermore we recently announced a further £200 million in new funding over this parliament to protect and preserve heritage.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2025 to Question 85759, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Israeli measures to extend control of areas in the West Bank on the Government's ability to identify the declared origin of goods.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The UK is clear that Israel's illegal settlements, and decisions designed to further them, are a flagrant violation of international law. We will take concrete steps, in accordance with international law, to counter settlement expansion, and to challenge policies and threats of forcible displacement and annexation. As previously stated, where there are doubts about the declared origin of goods, HMRC undertakes checks to verify the origin and ensure fiscal compliance.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
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 her Department's (a) capital investment exposure to, (b) potential capital spending requirements resulting from and (c) overall investment portfolio resilience from an equity price correction in US stock markets.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) does not hold any direct capital investments in companies listed on US equity markets.
DSIT’s capital portfolio consists of investments approved on a case‑by‑case basis against agreed criteria, and is primarily focused on UK‑based research, innovation and infrastructure programmes, as well as government‑sponsored bodies. DSIT's investments are monitored on a portfolio basis, including assessing market and valuation risks and considering any indirect effects global market movements on the Department’s assets.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many projected jobs for each AI Growth Zone are (a) tied to building and construction of data centres, (b) permanent on-site operational jobs in data centres, (c) data-centre roles that can be done remotely either (i) within the UK or (ii) overseas and (d) other jobs that are expected to be created indirectly in the area.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Through AI Growth Zones (AIGZs), we aim to crowd-in tens of billions of pounds in private investment and drive growth, with AIGZs announced so far expected to create over 15,000 jobs.
AIGZs are designed to accelerate data‑centre build‑out and attract substantial private investment, creating construction roles, permanent operational jobs, and wider indirect employment through supply‑chain growth and skills pathways. Each AI Growth Zone will also receive £5 million to support local AI adoption and upskilling, helping ensure communities benefit directly from new opportunities.
Five AI Growth Zones have been designated to date, all expected to contribute to regional regeneration and the UK’s long‑term compute capacity. We do not make specific assumptions about the nature or geographical nature of jobs indirectly related to AI Growth Zones.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of potential impact of the new US vehicle connectivity rules on UK automotive exports to the US; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Given that the software rules apply from Model Year 2027 and the hardware rules from 2029, many manufacturers are still assessing their supply chains and how to remain compliant. This information is commercially sensitive, so I cannot comment on individual plans, but we continue to engage closely with UK industry to understand emerging impacts. The Government worked extensively with manufacturers during the US rule’s development and submitted a private response to the consultation. We remain committed to ongoing industry engagement and to working with the US and likeminded partners to ensure that any new measures do not create barriers between allies.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for UK energy grid procurement policies of the Strider report on US grid dependency on Chinese components.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The protection and security of the energy sector is an absolute priority of this Government. My department is committed to working closely across Government and industry stakeholders to take forward the actions needed to develop supply chains that are resilient, sustainable, innovative and secure. Investment in the energy sector is subject to the highest levels of national security scrutiny – we take a consistent, long-term and strategic approach to managing relations with China and will co-operate where we can, compete where we need to, and challenge where we must.
As an open economy, we welcome foreign trade and investment where it supports growth and jobs in the UK, meets our stringent legal and regulatory requirements, and does not compromise our national security.