Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he last held discussions with Scottish Ministers on Defence Technical Excellence Colleges in Scotland.

Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

On 12 March 2026, as part of the Scotland Defence Growth Deal, we announced our stated ambition to establish two Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, aligned to support the defence clusters in the East and West of Scotland. This was contingent on the Scottish Government providing match-funding for our £10 million investment.

On the same day, together with the Secretary of State for Scotland, I wrote to Scottish Government ministers seeking this commitment. We are still awaiting their response.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans she has to update UK261 to protect UK air passengers travelling within the EU.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is clear that passengers should benefit from a high level of protection when travelling by air.

UK261 provides equivalent passenger rights and protections to EU261, including rights to compensation and assistance in cases of delay, cancellation and denied boarding.

While the UK is no longer bound by changes made to the EU legislation, the Department for Transport will continue to monitor developments relating to EU261. As the European Union has not yet concluded any reforms, no formal comparative or compatibility assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes has been made. Any potential reforms to the UK framework would be considered on the basis of evidence and merit and would be subject to public consultation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of UK261 in protecting UK air passengers.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is clear that passengers should benefit from a high level of protection when travelling by air.

UK261 provides equivalent passenger rights and protections to EU261, including rights to compensation and assistance in cases of delay, cancellation and denied boarding.

While the UK is no longer bound by changes made to the EU legislation, the Department for Transport will continue to monitor developments relating to EU261. As the European Union has not yet concluded any reforms, no formal comparative or compatibility assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes has been made. Any potential reforms to the UK framework would be considered on the basis of evidence and merit and would be subject to public consultation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the compatibility of EU261 and UK261 for UK air passengers.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is clear that passengers should benefit from a high level of protection when travelling by air.

UK261 provides equivalent passenger rights and protections to EU261, including rights to compensation and assistance in cases of delay, cancellation and denied boarding.

While the UK is no longer bound by changes made to the EU legislation, the Department for Transport will continue to monitor developments relating to EU261. As the European Union has not yet concluded any reforms, no formal comparative or compatibility assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes has been made. Any potential reforms to the UK framework would be considered on the basis of evidence and merit and would be subject to public consultation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment she has made of the difference in protections provided to UK air passengers by UK261 and EU261.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is clear that passengers should benefit from a high level of protection when travelling by air.

UK261 provides equivalent passenger rights and protections to EU261, including rights to compensation and assistance in cases of delay, cancellation and denied boarding.

While the UK is no longer bound by changes made to the EU legislation, the Department for Transport will continue to monitor developments relating to EU261. As the European Union has not yet concluded any reforms, no formal comparative or compatibility assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes has been made. Any potential reforms to the UK framework would be considered on the basis of evidence and merit and would be subject to public consultation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of EU regulation 261 (EU261) on UK air passengers.

Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government is clear that passengers should benefit from a high level of protection when travelling by air.

UK261 provides equivalent passenger rights and protections to EU261, including rights to compensation and assistance in cases of delay, cancellation and denied boarding.

While the UK is no longer bound by changes made to the EU legislation, the Department for Transport will continue to monitor developments relating to EU261. As the European Union has not yet concluded any reforms, no formal comparative or compatibility assessment of the potential impact of proposed changes has been made. Any potential reforms to the UK framework would be considered on the basis of evidence and merit and would be subject to public consultation.

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 use of artificial intelligence by social media platforms to support effective content moderation.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Under the Online Safety Act, platforms have duties to protect their users from illegal content and children from content that is harmful.

Where proportionate, services will be required to take steps such in areas including content moderation. It is for Ofcom as the independent regulator to recommend steps that in-scope services can take to fulfil these duties in its codes of practice and to monitor compliance.

Ofcom has robust enforcement powers to ensure that platforms comply with their duties under the Act.

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 extent to which social media platforms’ moderation standards reflect UK standards of age-appropriateness.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Under the Online Safety Act, social media platforms are required to protect their users from illegal content, and children from content that is harmful. This includes taking measures, such as content moderation, to protect children from ‘priority’ content such as violent or abusive material and provide age-appropriate experiences.

As the independent regulator, Ofcom has recommended steps for content moderation that in-scope services can take to fulfil these duties. These recommended steps are included in the Codes of Practice for Illegal Harms and Protection of Children.

Ofcom has robust enforcement powers to ensure that platforms comply with their duties under the Act.

The government’s consultation “Growing Up in an Online World” consultation, seeks views on range of further measures to protect children online. We encourage responses before it closes on 26 May.

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