Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of AI Growth Zones on AI capabilities in the UK.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The AI Growth Zones (AIGZs) will help secure the UK’s position as a global leader in AI innovation, ensuring benefits for the whole of the UK. AI infrastructure is the backbone of the AI ecosystem, and is crucial to supporting its growth. AIGZs are closely aligned with wider government initiatives, including Local Growth Plans.
AIGZs will deliver substantial regional and national benefits, such as upskilling and employment opportunities. The investment in AI-enabled data centres will have a spillover effect in local communities, providing jobs, enhancing skills, rejuvenating areas, and driving the UK’s ambition to become a global hub for AI talent and investment.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help promote the creation of AI infrastructure including (a) data centres and (b) high-performance computing to support the growth of AI technologies in (i) Birmingham and (ii) the West Midlands.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government recognises the critical role of AI infrastructure in supporting advanced AI technologies. The AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines how the UK can build the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment, securing long-term economic growth and staying at the forefront of AI innovation.
We are ramping up compute capacity to deliver game-changing innovation for businesses, public services, and to drive growth across the whole of the UK. We will partner with devolved administrations, regional and local authorities to establish AI Growth Zones, ensuring substantial regional and national benefits, such as upskilling and employment opportunities, are felt across the country.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help promote the development of AI infrastructure including (a) data centres and (b) high-performance computing facilities to support the growth of AI technologies.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government recognises the critical role of AI and data centre infrastructure as the backbone of the AI ecosystem and the importance of supporting its growth.
The AI Opportunities Action Plan, which was developed by Matt Clifford, sets out how the UK can lay the foundations for AI growth, by building the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment.
New purpose-built, modern AI data centres will be built in the newly announced AI Growth Zones. The Growth Zones will help secure the UK’s position as a global leader in AI innovation and will deliver substantial regional and national benefits.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help improve AI skills in the workforce.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Lifelong learning and adaptability are key to ensuring everyone can prosper in an increasingly technology-driven world.
Matt Clifford’s AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines the steps the UK must take to build a strong, diverse talent pipeline, realising AI benefits across sectors and the government has agreed to take forward its recommendations.
Skills England will work closely with DSIT and the Industrial Skills Council. They will bring together businesses, training partners, and unions with national and local government to assess the country’s AI skills needs and map pathways to fill them.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to help establish international partnerships in AI research and development.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK is committed to working closely with our international partners to promote the development and use of AI, including by driving collaboration on shared research and development initiatives. We will deliver on the recommendations recently announced AI Opportunities Action Plan, including expanding the Turing AI Fellowships offer, doubling the capacity of the AI Research Resource (AIRR) and strengthening the UK’s participating in the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC). This will facilitate joint AI research by broadening the compute resources that UK researchers and businesses can access.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment has he made of the AI skills gap.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Reducing the AI skills gap is critical for increasing the UK’s productivity and delivering long-term growth. DSIT regularly reviews the status of the UK’s AI labour market, and most recently commissioned Gardiner & Theobald LLP to conduct a survey of the labour market, which we will publish this year. In response to the recommendations set out in the AI Opportunities Action Plan developed by Matt Clifford, DSIT will also work closely with DfE and Skills England to assess the size of the AI skills gap and map pathways to fill it. Skills England will publish its first assessment in the spring.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the digital driving licence will be accepted as a valid form of photo ID.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
While the legal purpose of the driving licence is to convey driving entitlement, they are already commonly accepted as proof of age or identity. The Department for Science and Technology’s (DSIT) ambition is that, in time, the digital driving licence will be usable in the same way as its physical counterparts. In order to achieve this, and as part of our work to deliver a UK digital driving licence, we will be exploring all legal, regulatory, and technical implications.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to his Department's press release of 21 January 2025 entitled Shake up of tech and AI usage across NHS and other public services to deliver plan for change, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of making these tools available to (a) parliamentary staff, (b) the public sector and (c) more widely.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is excited about the opportunity presented to adopt AI for the public good, including for parliamentary staff and the public sector at large. In service of this, the Government has introduced the GDS Blueprint which outlined the GovAI toolkit. This is a set of productivity tools designed to enhance civil service operations and delivery of ministerial priorities. Developed by the Incubator for AI within the Government Digital Service, these tools are rapidly prototyped and deployed across the public sector once productivity benefits have been established.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2024 to Question 11162 on Telecommunications: Infrastructure, how many notices her Department has received from Ofcom of instances of operators not complying with their statutory duties in the last 12 months.
Answered by Julia Lopez
Ofcom is an independent regulator and, as such, does not discuss open cases with the Department. Where there are issues of non-compliance with statutory duties, Ofcom will deal with these cases directly with the operator. If Ofcom were to find, following an investigation, that any operator had failed to comply with its regulatory obligations it would publish that information on its Enforcement Bulletin.
I would, however, reiterate that I am aware of ongoing concerns about operator compliance with their duties under the Electronic Communications Code (Conditions and Restrictions) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 Regulations”) and particularly about new pole installations.
I recently met Melanie Dawes, CEO of Ofcom, to discuss this, and to explore ways DSIT and Ofcom can work together to raise awareness of statutory roles and responsibilities and ensure better compliance. This work is being taken forward by officials and I will be monitoring progress.
I also wrote to all fixed line operators on 14 March, setting out the government’s concerns and emphasising the importance of infrastructure sharing. Specifically, I have asked them to do everything possible to share existing telegraph poles before installing new ones. You can find a copy of the letter here.
The government has already taken steps to support this through measures in the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 making it easier for operators to upgrade and share the use of existing infrastructure.
Separately, DSIT will be meeting with operators in the near future to discuss revisions to the Cabinet Siting and Pole Siting Code of Practice and how these can be delivered to promote better working practices.
I also met with interested MPs on Monday 25 March 2024. I remain keen to hear and understand the concerns shared by MPs and their constituents, to inform our ongoing work, as well as to keep you informed of the progress that is being made and the next steps we have planned.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham Edgbaston)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will provide guidance to local authorities on the maximum number of telegraph poles that can be erected in local areas per number of households.
Answered by Julia Lopez
As I stated to the House on 15 January 2024, duties and obligations relating to telecommunications installations are included in the Electronic Communications Code (Conditions and Restrictions) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 Regulations”).
In addition, there is a Code of Practice (The Cabinet Siting and Pole Siting Code of Practice 2016) in place relating to the siting of cabinet and pole installations. This provides guidance on ways operators can ensure these installations are placed appropriately, and that local authorities and communities are engaged with regarding proposed installations.
In April 2023, I wrote to all Local Planning Authorities, asking that they notify Ofcom, and provide evidence of any instances, where they believe operators have failed to comply with their duties under 2003 Regulations. I also wrote to the Chief Executive of Ofcom, the independent regulator for telecommunications operators.
My Department does not, however, provide guidance on the number of telegraph poles that can be erected in local areas. This, like any other form of network build, will depend on a number of market factors, including the number of households to be served, availability of existing infrastructure and operators’ commercial plans.
As I previously stated, the Government believes that communities benefit enormously from the deployment of high quality digital infrastructure, with all the economic and social benefits it brings. We want to make sure that deployment happens efficiently, but at the same time, in ways that make sure the impact on communities and the environment is taken into account and broad support is maintained for the rollout of this critical infrastructure.
That is why my Department has taken steps to optimise the use of existing infrastructure. The Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 introduced new measures to make it easier for operators to upgrade and share the use of existing underground ducts and telegraph poles, reducing the need for future installations.
We are nonetheless aware of ongoing concerns about the installation of telegraph poles. We are in discussions with Ofcom regarding this, and are considering steps we can take to address these concerns and to promote collaborative engagement between operators and communities.