Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the strategy Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what data her Department will use as the baseline to measure the target to use validated alternative methods to reduce the use of dogs and non-human primates in dedicated PK studies for human medicines by at least 35% by 2030.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government’s publication, Replacing Animals in Science: A Strategy to Support the Development, Validation and Uptake of Alternative Methods, sets out our long-term vision for a world in which the use of animals in scientific research is eliminated except in exceptional circumstances.
The strategy commits to the publication of qualitative and quantitative Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in 2025. These are in the process of being developed, and the baseline assessment will be determined as part of this process.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if his department will a) include sepsis research in its publication of areas of research interest for alternative methods to animal testing and b) end the use of sepsis research involving animal testing.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government’s strategy to support replacing animals in science commits to publish biennially from 2026 a list of alternative-methods research and development priorities.
Sepsis is a complex and multifaceted condition, and its study presents significant scientific challenges. We will consider sepsis during the development of our areas of research interest list to determine the best path forward for new model development that drives scientific innovation, supports improved therapy development, and reduces reliance on animals.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of tax reliefs for research and development on economic growth.
Answered by Feryal Clark
The Secretary of State and the Chancellor of the Exchequer have regular discussions on a range of issues. Research and development (R&D) tax reliefs play a vital role in the Government’s mission to boost economic growth and drive innovation in the UK. Overall, R&D reliefs will support an estimated £56 billion of business R&D expenditure in 2029-30, roughly a 20 per cent increase from £47 billion in 2022/23.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many permanent civil servants had contracts of employment terminated for poor performance in (a) 2022-23, (b) 2023-24 and (c) 2024-25.
Answered by Feryal Clark
Human Resources data for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has been available from September 2023. Since then, the Department dismissed 1 permanent employee in 2023-24 and 2 permanent employees in 2024-25.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of new legislation to facilitate the transition to non-animal methods of testing.
Answered by Feryal Clark
The Labour Manifesto includes a commitment to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”, which is a long-term goal. The government will publish a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year. The government currently has no plans to legislate on this matter.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what estimate he has made of the potential savings to the public purse of abolishing the Office of Communications.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Office of Communications plays a key role as the regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries. Ofcom regulates the TV and radio sectors, spectrum, fixed line telecoms, mobiles, online safety, and postal services. There are no plans to abolish Ofcom, and the government has not made any assessment of the savings or costs that such a decision would entail.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department is using AI software in responding to written parliamentary questions.
Answered by Feryal Clark
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology does not have a specific policy on the use of AI for responding to written parliamentary questions. However, staff do have access to AI software tools to support the drafting process. All responses are reviewed by policy officials to ensure accuracy and consistency with government policy, and are signed off by Ministers.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the roll out of broadband in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) Leicestershire and (c) Mid Leicestershire constituency.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
According to the independent website Thinkbroadband.com, over 86% of premises in the UK can now access a gigabit-capable connection. In Leicestershire this figure is currently at 83%, and for the Mid Leicestershire constituency it is over 89%.
As of the end of March 2024, over one million premises in the UK had been upgraded to gigabit-capable broadband through government-funded programmes. Under Project Gigabit, more than £2 billion of contracts have been signed to provide gigabit-capable coverage to over a million more premises. The vast majority of the premises to be covered by these contracts will be in rural areas.
CityFibre is currently delivering a £77 million Project Gigabit contract for Leicestershire and Warwickshire, which includes eligible premises in both the Leicestershire and the Mid Leicestershire constituency.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what progress he has made on the roll out of broadband to rural areas.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
According to the independent website Thinkbroadband.com, over 86% of premises in the UK can now access a gigabit-capable connection. In Leicestershire this figure is currently at 83%, and for the Mid Leicestershire constituency it is over 89%.
As of the end of March 2024, over one million premises in the UK had been upgraded to gigabit-capable broadband through government-funded programmes. Under Project Gigabit, more than £2 billion of contracts have been signed to provide gigabit-capable coverage to over a million more premises. The vast majority of the premises to be covered by these contracts will be in rural areas.
CityFibre is currently delivering a £77 million Project Gigabit contract for Leicestershire and Warwickshire, which includes eligible premises in both the Leicestershire and the Mid Leicestershire constituency.
Asked by: Peter Bedford (Conservative - Mid Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what information his Department holds on the number of households that will have high-speed broadband installed in (a) the UK, (b) Leicestershire and (c) Mid Leicestershire constituency in each of the next five years.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
According to the independent website, Thinkbroadband.com, over 86% of UK premises can now access gigabit-capable broadband. In Leicestershire this figure is currently at 83%, and for the Mid Leicestershire constituency it is over 89%.
Our objective is for nationwide gigabit coverage across the UK by 2030, with at least 99% of premises having access to a gigabit-capable broadband connection.
The rate of delivery in each area will depend on broadband suppliers’ commercial rollout, supplemented by the delivery of Project Gigabit to address gaps in coverage. Over one million premises in the UK are currently included in Project Gigabit contracts, through which they should gain access to a gigabit-capable broadband connection in the next five years. This includes approximately 15,600 premises in the non-metropolitan county of Leicestershire and around 600 premises in the Mid Leicestershire constituency.