Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on the £100 million AI Life Sciences Accelerator Mission.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Prime Minister announced a new artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare fund, backed by £100 million, at the AI Safety Summit. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is responsible for this fund, and the Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with them to identify areas where rapid deployment of AI could create transformational breakthroughs in healthcare. We are particularly focused on innovations in Life Sciences, which could accelerate our fight against devastating conditions like cancer and chronic mental ill-health, aiming to diagnose these conditions earlier and improve treatments. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology will provide an update on our progress later in Spring.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to respond to the recommendations of the independent report entitled Reforming the DSIT business case process, published by her Department on 9 February 2024.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government welcomes David Willetts’ report and is considering the recommendations, including options for implementation. We are planning to publish a response before the end of April.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2024 to Question 18536 on UK Research and Innovation: Social Media, whether she has authorised the targeted collection of the views of academics on UKRI boards.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
No. Due diligence is sometimes carried out by officials, at specific times, for example appointments made directly by DSIT, consistent with standard cross-government approaches.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to Q1 of the oral evidence given to the House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024, whether her Department (a) monitors and (b) records political statements made on social media by UKRI board members.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
No. Due diligence is sometimes carried out by officials, at specific times, for example appointments made directly by DSIT, consistent with standard cross-government approaches.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2024 to Question 17194 on Artificial Intelligence: Migrant Workers, when the new dedicated visa scheme will be operational.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The new Future Technology Research & Innovation (Government Authorised Exchange) visa scheme is expected to go live on 4 April 2024, which the Home Office announced in their Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules laid in Parliament on 14 March. This visa scheme will allow sponsored researchers and interns to come to the UK to work in eligible organisation in the areas of the Government’s five critical technologies (AI, engineering biology, future telecommunications, semiconductors, and quantum technologies).
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the opening statement by the Secretary of State at the Lords Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024, whether the officials who alerted her to tweets posted by a EDI board member were part of the Counter Disinformation Unit.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
No.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the opening statement by the Secretary of State at the Lords Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee on 12 March 2024, what the total cost to the public purse was of legal fees including the (a) £15,000 settlement paid and (b) other legal expenditure.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
A sum of £15,000 was paid without admitting any liability. This approach is intended to reduce the overall costs to the taxpayer that could result from protracted legal action.
Costs relating to legal fees incurred by the department will be published as part of DSIT’s Annual Report and Accounts.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what her policy is on producing reports into the online activity of academics on UKRI boards.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Secretary of State is a staunch believer in free speech and would not authorise a sweeping collection of the views of academics.