Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2023, when stakeholders will be able to apply for the £520 million in funding from 2025‑26 to support transformational manufacturing investments in life sciences.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to supporting Life Sciences manufacturing to deliver an NHS fit for the future and stimulate economic growth across the UK. It has invested over £405 million to secure vaccine manufacturing through the Vaccine Taskforce and is providing up to £118 million in capital grants to boost UK manufacturing investment.
DSIT is discussing plans to support investment in the sector with the Treasury. The £520 million funding announced in the Autumn Statement for Life Sciences manufacturing is part of these discussions.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Autumn Statement 2023, whether he plans to make £520 million available for life sciences.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to supporting Life Sciences manufacturing to deliver an NHS fit for the future and stimulate economic growth across the UK. It has invested over £405 million to secure vaccine manufacturing through the Vaccine Taskforce and is providing up to £118 million in capital grants to boost UK manufacturing investment.
DSIT is discussing plans to support investment in the sector with the Treasury. The £520 million funding announced in the Autumn Statement for Life Sciences manufacturing is part of these discussions.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, which postcode areas in North West Norfolk constituency will benefit from improved mobile coverage under the Shared Rural Network; and when those improvements will go live.
Answered by Julia Lopez
Improvements from the Shared Rural Network (SRN) in North Norfolk will come from the industry-led element of the programme which is on track to complete by June 2024. This will see the four Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) tackle partial not-spots, or areas where there may be 4G coverage from one but not all four operators.
The exact site deployment plans will be managed by the MNOs themselves in order for them to best deliver the agreed coverage outcomes. Therefore we are unable to provide any specific details on the precise location or number of new or upgraded masts that may be delivered in North Norfolk as a result of the SRN. I would encourage you to get in contact with the operators directly to ascertain their plans for your constituency.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Project Gigabit Winter Update published on 27 February 2023, when she plans to award the contract for Norfolk (Lot 7).
Answered by Julia Lopez
The Project Gigabit procurement for Norfolk launched in April 2022 and is currently in its final stages. Building Digital UK is assessing the bids put forward by suppliers and we aim to award a contract to the successful supplier shortly.