Matt Rodda

In November 2023 DSIT, through the Office for Students, published the latest data on industry funding for the AI conversion course and scholarship scheme as part of ongoing monitoring and evaluation. The next interim evaluation report is due to be published in June 2024 and will contain the latest breakdown of in-kind and scholarship funding commitments secured from industry, including the period since November 2023.

As of 21 November 2023, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, as a Ministerial Department, has zero red-rated legacy IT systems as defined in the Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) Legacy IT Risk Assessment Framework.

The Information Commissioner’s Office’s (ICO) existing powers enable them to address a wide range of current and emerging risks relating to AI within their remit. The ICO has assessed how data protection applies in an AI context. They have identified it as a priority area, due to its potential to pose a high risk to individuals and their rights and freedoms. The ICO has already produced guidance and practical resources, including guidance on ‘AI and Data Protection’, clarifying requirements for fairness in AI.

More broadly, many UK regulators are already taking action to regulate AI in their existing remits, including developing new regulatory tools in the context of AI. For example, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has published a roadmap for software and AI as a medical device and the Competition and Markets Authority recently published a report on their initial review of AI foundation models. Alongside this, we have begun work to establish a new central function to support regulators to deliver the AI regulatory framework, enabling knowledge exchange and support regulator coordination. We are engaging closely with regulators across the UK and their sponsoring government departments to understand their readiness to regulate AI effectively. This will inform our work to develop policy options with a view to addressing gaps that emerge, which could include future consideration of extending a regulator’s remit or adding additional powers.

The accounting systems track IT spend, but do not capture the level of detail to readily identify spend on Infrastructure or legacy systems. Determination of legacy IT will require more work, the Legacy Risk Assessment will be prepared and submitted to Cabinet by the end of the current Financial year. Currently, within our centrally managed Digital function, there is no legacy IT of any material size or value.

The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) no longer have any employees enrolled in the Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund Scheme. There are no anticipated upcoming costs to these organisations related to this scheme with their share of the fund’s future deficit having been paid in full. As there are no active members of the scheme who are current employees of NERC or BAS an estimate cannot be made of entitlements as records of current pensions scheme memberships are not held.

The Government has put forward an unprecedented package of support for businesses in recognition of the disruption caused by Covid-19. This support includes extensive grant funding for businesses that have been required by law to close as a result of, or have been severely impacted by, localised and national restrictions.

Local authorities should pay businesses in line with the restriction period to which the funding is allocated to ensure local economies are supported during restrictions. Any unspent funding allocated to local authorities under a mandatory grants scheme will be recovered after a reconciliation process. It is not expected that discretionary schemes, such as the ARG, will have any unallocated funding as we would expect local authorities to apportion this funding to businesses. We are working closely with local authorities to ensure funding gets out the door to businesses as quickly as possible and to avoid any unnecessary underspend.

The Government is committed to continuing to provide financial support via local authorities for business premises that are required to close due to restrictions that have been put in place to tackle Covid-19 and save lives.

BEIS will provide Local Authorities with the full costs of providing funding to eligible businesses that are required to close through Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed). Where the initial allocation of this grant to Local Authorities is insufficient, it will be topped up.

Discretionary grants – Local Restrictions Support Grant (Open) and Additional Restrictions Grant - are formula based. With the announcement of a further period of national lockdown starting on 5^th January a further £500m has been allocated to Local Authorities via the Additional Restrictions Grant to support businesses severely affected by the restrictions even though they are not required to close, including those falling outside the business rates system such as market traders. This comes on top of £1.1bn already allocated in November 2020. It is expected that local authorities use this additional resource quickly to support businesses in their area.

The Government has put forward an unprecedented package of support for businesses in recognition of the disruption caused by Covid-19. This support includes extensive grant funding for businesses that have been required by law to close as a result of, or have been severely impacted by, localised and national restrictions.

As set out in the Government guidance, local authorities have received an initial allocation of 90% of the estimated grant funding amount for the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) Addendum and Closed Business Lockdown Grant schemes. When this threshold of funding is reached, Government will pay local authorities the further agreed funding. The additional £500 million distributed through the Additional Restrictions Grant scheme was paid to local authorities in one lump sum payment, as with the previous ARG payment. We are working closely with local authorities to ensure that funding is delivered to businesses that are in scope of these schemes as quickly as possible.

Scientific evidence shows that hospitality venues can be higher risk environments than other indoor settings, and people who are consuming alcohol tend to be less likely to comply with health guidance. Through tiering we are making these venues safer and reducing transmission of the virus.

Whilst tiered restrictions have reduced the ability of pubs to trade, the Government has implemented a comprehensive and generous package of business support, worth £280 billion. This includes a new one-off grant worth up to £9,000, VAT relief, a business-rates holiday, and the extended furlough scheme. A further grant of £1,000 was made to support wet-led pubs in Tier 2, 3 and 4 areas, including Reading East, over the Christmas period.

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic the Government has worked closely with the hospitality sector to understand the impact of the pandemic on their businesses. Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic the Government has worked closely with the hospitality sector to understand the impact of the pandemic on their businesses.  The new Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has met with representative organisations from across the hospitality sector since taking on the role on 11 January.

Hospitality businesses have been able to benefit from Government support, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Government-backed loans, Local Restrictions Support Grants, additional funding provided to Local Authorities to support businesses and the Cultural Relief Fund.

On 5 January, when the new national lockdown began, the Chancellor announced a one-off top up grant for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses worth up to £9,000 per property to help businesses through to the spring.  A £594 million discretionary fund has also been made available to support other impacted businesses.

The Government is working closely with local authorities in England to distribute funding available under the Local Restrictions Support Grant and the Additional Restrictions Grant to businesses as quickly as possible. Local authority guidance was published on 3^rd November and grant offer letters were sent to local authorities on 6^th November. Payments to local authorities have been made since 13^th November.

We are working closely with local authorities to monitor the ongoing implementation of the grant schemes.