Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of reviewing the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 in relation to the provisions around the appointment of bishops within the Church of England.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government introduced legislation on 13 February to remove the legal barrier to Roman Catholics holding the office of Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. This short and narrowly-focused Bill facilitates the upcoming appointment of the first Roman Catholic Lord High Commissioner for the next General Assembly in May.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of the proposed West London orbital rail link on connectivity between West London Boroughs.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Any assessment of the impact on West London boroughs would be carried out by Transport for London as part of its development of the West London Orbital scheme.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions (a) she and (b) officials in her Department have had with the Mayor of London on proposals for the West London Orbital railway.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Transport in London is devolved to the Mayor of London and Transport for London (TfL). The Department for Transport works closely with TfL to understand the long-term needs of London’s transport infrastructure and opportunities to enhance its network, including potential major projects such as the West London Orbital.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of improving cross-borough public transport links in London on (a) the economy, (b) air quality and (c) social mobility in London.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Transport in London is the responsibility of the Mayor of London and Transport for London, including assessment of the economic, air quality and social mobility impacts of changes to London’s transport network. However, the Government recognises importance of London’s transport network for the capital’s and UK’s economy and for London’s air quality and social mobility, and at Autumn budget confirmed £485m of capital funding for investment in London’s transport infrastructure.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether people can import polystyrene cups into the UK.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The supply of expanded and foamed extruded polystyrene food and drinks containers, including cups, that are used to contain food or drink that is ready-to-consume has been banned since 1 October 2023.
However, you may still import polystyrene cups. This facilitates their movement through the supply chain to allow for other uses.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to assess the potential implications for the Government's policies of the unlawful use of copyrighted (a) images, (b) books, (c) films and (d) music by AI firms.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In the UK, licences are required from copyright owners when protected works (such as images, books, films, music) are used in AI training, unless an exception to copyright applies.
The law in this area is complex and disputed.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport jointly published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024, seeking views which will help the Government develop an approach which can provide greater legal certainty in this space.
The consultation closes on 25 February.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help protect (a) visual artists and (b) other creators from copyright infringement by AI developers.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Copying protected material in the UK will infringe copyright unless it is licensed, or an exception to copyright applies.
The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024.
This consultation seeks views on a package of measures, which include a requirement for AI model developers to be more transparent about how they obtain their training material, to enable copyright to be more easily enforced.
The proposals would also enable right holders to reserve their rights, so they can prevent the use of their content to train AI models in the UK.
The consultation closes on 25 February.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of copyright law for ensuring visual artists are remunerated for the use of their work in training AI models.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
At present, copyright law regarding AI training is disputed. This makes it difficult for creators, such as visual artists, to control whether their works can be used to train AI models, and to seek payment for this.
The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024.
This consultation seeks views on how to create clarity in this area. This includes seeking views on proposals which would enable right holders to reserve their rights, so they can prevent, or license, the use of their content to train AI models in the UK.
The consultation closes on 25 February.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
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 potential implications for his policies of the potential impact of the use of AI models on (a) visual artists and (b) the wider creative sector.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024.
It sets out potential legislative changes to copyright law to support the development and use of AI technology, while continuing to reward human creators. It also seeks views on digital replicas and other related emerging issues.
The Government has published an assessment of options alongside the consultation. Further information and evidence on the economic impact of the use of AI models on visual artists and the wider creative sector is welcomed as part of the consultation, to help shape Government’s thinking.
The consultation closes on 25 February.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
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 potential impact of introducing an opt-out for AI firms using copyright works on (a) visual artists and (b) other creators.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government published a consultation on Copyright and AI in December 2024.
This consultation seeks views on a number of issues relating to copyright and AI, including on how to give rights holders of creative works greater control over use of their material.
The Government has published an assessment of options alongside the consultation. Further information and evidence on the impact of a rights-reservation (or “opt-out”), including the impact on visual artists and other creators is welcomed as part of the consultation, to help shape Government’s thinking.
The consultation closes on 25 February.