Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes UK Export Finance has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.
UK Export Finance (UKEF) is currently exploring various scenarios and use cases where AI can assist the department. This involves conducting internal trials and learning
exercises to better understand AI's potential. Throughout this process, UKEF remains committed to adhering to the government's AI policy and guidance.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to promote the Business Growth Service with small business owners in Lincolnshire.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We are engaging widely with stakeholders across the country, including with small business owners and entrepreneurs, on the design, and the implementation of the Business Growth Service (BGS) later this year, to ensure that we deliver on our mission to make it easier for businesses to get the support they need to grow and thrive.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes the Insolvency Service has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.
The Insolvency Service has used AI for three Proof of Concepts of internal chatbots which utilise a Large Language Model.
It is working with the Cabinet Office to publish Algorithmic Transparency Reporting Standards (ATRS) on two of its services. These relate to our Director Conduct Reporting Service and our Redundancy Payments Service Calculation Engine.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes Companies House has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country. Companies House trialled Microsoft Copilot to support administrative tasks. It has deployed specific AI tools to generate tailored communications content and develop new IT services more quickly. Companies House is also developing and testing advanced analytics, machine learning and AI that detect suspicious activity and identify trends.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes the Competition and Markets Authority has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) is as the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.
Internally, the Competition and Markets Authority (the “CMA”) works with AI in two important and mutually reinforcing ways.
Firstly, the CMA carries out research into AI – including hands-on technical work – to ensure it has a strong technical understanding of frontier technologies, can assess their implications for consumers and competition, and ensure its work helps unlock the AI opportunity for the UK.
Secondly, the CMA pilots and implements uses of AI internally as part of its digital transformation, with the aims of enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the CMA’s frontline work, horizon scanning, cases and investigations – as well as to transform day-to-day operational productivity.
Over the last 12 months the CMA has used AI in a range of ways to serve these purposes. This includes testing off-the-shelf AI tools for day-to-day operational productivity and cyber security, as well as developing and piloting more bespoke in-house applications of generative AI to support horizon scanning, market monitoring, and analysis on cases and investigations.
The CMA draws on a range of resources to inform its use of AI including internal and external expertise from across academia, industry, international counterparts and the wider public sector. This includes utilising resources on GOV.UK, such as the Generative AI Framework, and liaising with the Government Digital Service and the Department for Business and Trade.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, for what purposes (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have used AI in the last 12 months.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Department for Business and Trade is committed to improving its productivity, including through AI and effective use of data. A range of AI tools are available for use by Ministers and officials across various roles the department, including: Microsoft Copilot, Open AI models and other models for specific uses. There are teams focussed on enabling use of AI by building necessary infrastructure and developing specific AI use cases.
Ministers and officials also have access to a range of data services which allow them to deploy AI and data tools.
We report against the Algorithmic Transparency Reporting Standard on GOV.UK.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, on what occasions Ministers in his Department met representatives of Vodafone in the last five years.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Details of the meetings held by Ministers of the Department for Business and Trade and its predecessor the Department for International Trade are available on transparency pages of gov.uk and are released as part of the Government’s transparency agenda.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many full-time equivalent diversity, equality and inclusion staff are employed by the Low Pay Commission.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
There are zero full-time equivalent diversity, equality and inclusion staff employed by the Low Pay Commission.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to prevent companies from changing commissions to franchisees at short notice.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The franchising industry self-regulates through the British Franchise Association (BFA) and its Code of Ethics, and the Quality Franchise Association, which offers a Code of Conduct. Franchise agreements are the primary instrument that govern the relationship between franchisors and franchisees and those should normally include details such as fees, territory rights, contract duration and dispute resolution mechanisms. Disputes are, therefore, a private matter in which it would be inappropriate for Government to intervene.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department awarded financial assistance to Vodafone during the 2020 lockdown.
Answered by Gareth Thomas - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government does not comment on whether individual businesses received financial assistance during the 2020 lockdown as that information is considered commercially sensitive.