Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of laboratory space in the UK since 15 March 2023.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
It is for local planning authorities to determine the type of employment land that is needed in their area, and local plans should make sufficient provision for employment and other commercial development. Local policies are expected to be supported by a robust evidence base to understand existing business needs, reflecting local circumstances and market conditions.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions officials in her Department have had with the devolved Administrations on the potential merits of increasing levels of engagement with Horizon Europe in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is undertaking a series of actions to support UK businesses and researchers in re-engaging with Horizon Europe. The Government launched pump-priming schemes and a largescale marketing campaign to support and encourage researchers and businesses to bid for Horizon funding.
My department has established a new forum to engage with R&D sector stakeholders on engagement in Horizon Europe, including measures to boost participation. Officials from all the devolved Administrations attend this network.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment her Department has made of the ability of public sector research establishments to recruit and retain talent.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Public sector research establishments are diverse organisations that deliver science and research for public good, often playing a vital role in critical infrastructure and public safety. Around 50 public sector research establishments are sponsored by Government Departments, employing over 50,000 FTE, including more than 17,000 scientists and technologists. The Government’s response to the Independent Review of the UK's Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Organisational Landscape, published in November 2023, acknowledged the challenges faced by public sector research establishments to recruit and retain talent and committed to improving the evidence base of the workforce challenges across public sector RDI organisations.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what proportion of the £900m pledged to implement the recommendations in the independent Future of Compute review for an exascale supercomputer has been allocated as of 12 March 2024.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In 2023 the government committed funding of £900m to deliver an Exascale supercomputer and the AI Research Resource (AIRR). In November we confirmed that £300m was being invested in the AIRR, via the Isambard-AI and Dawn facilities. Further details on delivery of the Exascale programme and AIRR expansion will follow in due course.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent funding Sheffield Forgemasters has received from the Nuclear Innovation Programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Sheffield Forgemasters received £4,224,812 of funding from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero sponsored Nuclear Innovation Programme between July 2019 and June 2023.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Government commits up to £3.5 billion to future of tech and science, published on 16 March 2023, how much of the £900 million of funding for a new exascale supercomputer has been allocated.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The funding announced at the Spring Budget 2023, supports DSIT to deliver on the Government’s key science and technology priorities, this includes investing £900 million in an Exascale supercomputer and AI Research Resource (AIRR) to enhance the UK’s Compute capabilities. HMG also confirmed additional investment for the AIRR project and established Isambard AI which will be operational later this year.
Since the Spring Budget announcement, HMG announced Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre (EPCC) as the preferred site to host exascale. More details around the project will be announced once decisions around procurement have been confirmed.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to encourage the UK Space Agency to undertake engagement and outreach activities.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK Space Agency’s work programme is driven by HMG’s National Space Strategy. The UK Space Agency’s corporate plan, once agreed by Ministers, sets out the activities that will be delivered to achieve the Government’s objectives.
A link to the National Space Strategy is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-space-strategy.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with Nissan following its decision to withdraw app support for older Nissan Leaf and e-NV200 vehicles.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
DfT Ministers regularly discuss a range of issues with automotive manufacturers, including Nissan. However, the Government is not able to comment on individual business matters.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to paragraph 5.59, page 74 of the Spring Budget 2024, what his Department's (a) selection criteria and (b) rationale were for identifying Canary Wharf as the recipient hub of investment over other life sciences hubs.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
As the Government’s housing and regeneration agency, Homes England is tasked with accelerating house building and regeneration in all areas of the country. The brownfield regeneration scheme being supported at Canary Wharf includes over 500 homes in an area of high demand, responding to significant local need.
The Home Building Fund – Infrastructure Loans (HBF-IL) programme which supports this scheme provides infrastructure loans for mixed-use developments throughout England. Details of selection criteria can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/home-building-fund-infrastructure-loans.
Asked by: Chi Onwurah (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate manufacturing capabilities for new (a) vaccines and (b) drugs in a pandemic.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
An established clinical countermeasures programme is a core component of our pandemic preparedness and response capability, including vaccines and therapeutics. The UK Biological Security Strategy, published in June 2023, reaffirms our ambition to scale up discovery, development, and manufacturing of therapeutics and vaccines within 100 days.
In the Autumn Statement 2023, the Chancellor announced £520 million for Life Sciences manufacturing to build resilience for future health emergencies and capitalise on the United Kingdom’s world-leading research and development. This follows previous investment through the Biomanufacturing Fund, to incentivise the manufacture of vaccines and therapeutics, to improve the UK’s health resilience to future pandemics.
In September 2023, the UK Health Security Agency agreed a deal for millions of life-saving vaccines to be produced, with end-to-end manufacturing in the UK, if a future influenza pandemic is ever declared. The advance purchase agreement means healthcare company CSL Seqirus will be on standby to produce over 100 million pandemic influenza vaccines from their manufacturing plant in Liverpool.
In December 2022, the Government and Moderna entered a strategic partnership to set up mRNA research, development, and manufacturing facilities in the UK. Under the partnership, Moderna will build a new Innovation and Technology Centre in the UK, with the capacity to produce up to 250 million vaccines per year, in the event of a pandemic.