Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has a strategy to accelerate the development and adoption of metamaterials.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is committed to support the development and adoption of metamaterials, as part of our wider ambition to strengthen the UK’s advanced materials ecosystem. In June 2025, the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy prioritised advanced materials as a frontier industry and committed an initial £50 million to a National Materials Innovation Programme. The first feasibility call went live in November and specifically highlights metamaterials and metasurfaces as a strategic opportunity area.
This builds on existing government support for metamaterials, including the £19.6 million MetaHub public-private partnership with the University of Exeter, to advance 3D nanoscale metamaterials, and the Metamaterials Network Plus.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to improve the availability of high-quality STEM skills and support innovation in the South West, particularly in sectors critical to defence, ICT, and energy security.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to strengthening STEM skills and driving innovation across the UK, including the South West. DSIT has launched the TechFirst programme to deliver tech and AI learning to 1 million young people by 2029. This builds on CyberFirst, which has reached 415,000 students and recognised 230 schools, including 47 in the South West.
Since 2022, DSIT’s Cyber Local programme has delivered 18 initiatives in the South West, supporting economic growth and skills development. A list of 2024–25 programmes is available here.
DSIT is working with other government departments to increase regional and national STEM skills provisions. Through the Clean Energy Jobs Plan, the Government is investing £1.2 billion in skills development, including a £100 million Engineering Skills Package and new Technical Excellence Colleges. The South West hosts the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult in Hayle, supporting innovation and skills development in marine and energy technologies.
The UK Government’s Defence Industrial Strategy, backed by a £182 million skills package, includes the Plymouth Defence Growth Deal (September 2025), securing a share of £250 million to boost defence innovation and skills in the region.
The Post‑16 Education and Skills White Paper focuses on employer‑led training and technical routes to tackle skills gaps. In the South West, this means Local Skills Improvement Plans shaping provision for priority sectors like clean energy, digital and defence, alongside Technical Excellence Colleges, expanding higher technical courses and apprenticeships to meet regional demand.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to regulate artificial intelligence.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
AI is already regulated in the UK. A range of existing rules already apply to AI systems, such as data protection, competition, equality legislation and other forms of sector regulation. The Government will act where these laws are not enough to ensure safe use. We are exploring whether additional protections are needed. The Technology Secretary confirmed in Parliament last week that the Government will look at what more can be done to manage the emergent risks of AI chatbots.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 24 October 2025 to Question 82424 on Animal Experiments, which experiments does the alternative methods strategy include timelines for phasing out.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Labour Manifesto commits 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 and will outline targets and timelines for the phasing out of some specific applications of animal testing.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Ofcom on ensuring that there is adequate telecommunications coverage across the South West region.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Ofcom publishes figures on mobile and fixed broadband coverage across the UK twice a year in their Connected Nations report. The full report for 2025 is expected to be published by the end of this year.
Ofcom does not publish aggregate coverage figures at a regional level in their Connected Nations reports but does do so at a Local Authority and Westminster constituency level. There have already been mobile coverage uplifts across the South West from the Shared Rural Network programme, with further improvements to come in the region from the publicly funded element of the programme in Dartmoor and Exmoor.
Additionally, to improve gigabit broadband coverage, Openreach, Wildanet, Gigaclear and Wessex Internet are delivering a number of Project Gigabit contracts across the South West.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what quality assurance is in place to ensure that when a licence is issued for small-scale digital deployment, the coverage delivered aligns with the planned coverage; and how her Department works with operators to ensure an appropriate level of service is maintained.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Localised networks, such as private mobile networks, are delivered by a wide range of providers to support connectivity for particular users, for example, for business and organisations in sectors such as manufacturing and healthcare. This is different from the coverage provided by the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) through their national networks, for which we have set the national ambition. For these localised networks, coverage and service levels are typically agreed between the service provider and its customers, and this will vary significantly between different uses. As such, coverage and service levels are not routinely monitored.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her planned strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of non-animal methods will contain a timeline to phase out animal experimentation.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to reducing the use of animals in scientific research and is developing a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods.
At present, the strategy does not include a fixed timeline for the complete phase-out of animal experimentation but it does commit to timelines for some. It is not yet possible to replace all animal research due to the complexity of biological systems and regulatory requirements. Any work to phase out animal testing must be science-led, in lock step with partners, so we will not be setting arbitrary timelines for reducing their use.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of taking legislative steps to (a) set a goal for phasing out animal experiments in medical research over the next decade and (b) work closely with the scientific community to support it with that transition.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The legal framework in the UK already requires that animals are only ever used in science where there are no validated alternatives available. The government currently has no plans to legislate further on this matter.
The Government is working in close partnership with scientists, industry, and civil society to support the transition to alternative methods. This includes convening roundtables and supporting the development and of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs).
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to convene a roundtable with animal protection groups prior to the publication of the alternative methods to animal testing strategy.
Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government has engaged with animal welfare organisations in developing a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, which will be published by the end of the year. The Government hosted a roundtable on 14 May with representatives from animal welfare organisations to discuss the strategy, have met several individually and offered some the opportunity to read the draft strategy and submit comments.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 potential merits of changing the Innovate UK technology awards to allow successful applicants to access the funds earlier in the process.
Answered by Feryal Clark
Making innovation support accessible and agile is a key goal for Innovate UK, and they will continue to experiment with new ways to improve their product offering for businesses. They deliver technology funding awards through grants, contracts, and loans. Eligible costs depend on the innovation objectives of the specific programme a business is applying for, but most technology grants allow for the recovery of equipment costs directly related to the project the grant is supporting.
They have reduced the time taken from competition close to grant award by 32% between FY 22/23 and FY 24/25. Innovate UK programmes such as New Innovators and Launchpads also allow for a significant portion of the payment upfront to support SME innovation projects.