Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her department has made an assessment of the benefits of tokenised financial infrastructure.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

Using distributed ledger technology to tokenise assets could deliver a step change in financial market efficiency, particularly by enabling more efficient, real-time data sharing which could lower operational costs and enhance resilience.

It is important that the government works with the financial services regulators and the sector to understand and deliver these benefits. That is why the government has published its Wholesale Financial Markets Digital Strategy and why it has taken forward the Digital Securities Sandbox which will facilitate the issuance, trading and settlement of tokenised securities in the UK on distributed ledgers. It is also taking forward other initiatives such as the Digital Gilt Instrument, or ‘DIGIT’, which will help demonstrate the benefits of these new technologies.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether it will be a formal requirement for the Digital Markets Champion to have a strong proficiency in (a) blockchain and (b) digital assets.

Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

On July 15^th the government published the Wholesale Financial Markets Digital Strategy. The strategy announced that the government will appointing an industry expert as Digital Markets Champion, who will provide leadership from, and for, the sector on wholesale market digitalisation. The government is working at pace to identify and appoint a suitable candidate for the role and will provide an update in due course.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to support the implementation of the active debris removal mission.

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

The government is actively supporting the UK’s first Active Debris Removal (ADR) mission, recognising its importance for space sustainability and economic growth.

The UK Space Agency has launched a £75.6m procurement to deliver this mission, which will remove two defunct UK-licensed satellites from low Earth orbit using advanced robotic and autonomous navigation technologies.

The ADR procurement process is currently live.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to help support UK-based businesses that work on orbit (a) servicing and (b) assembly.

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

In-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) has been identified as one of five National Space Capabilities, reflecting its strategic importance for economic growth, national security, and space sustainability.

To date, the Government has supported the ISAM sector through national and European Space Agency programmes, such as the National Space Innovation Programme (NSIP), where £5.5m in funding is developing new technologies including capture mechanisms for unprepared satellites, long-range RADAR, and in-orbit refuelling interfaces.

Work is underway to develop a cross-government delivery plan that will support UK-based businesses and provide longer term certainty. Further details will be published in 2026.

Found: The scheme was opened by Mark Garnier MP for Wyre Forest.