Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they classify platforms hosting large language models as hosting providers or as publishers and content creators in their own right, and what assessment they have made of the impact of this classification on the regulation and accountability of such platforms.
Answered by Viscount Camrose - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The AI Regulation White Paper recognised that allocating liability across the AI supply chain can be highly complex, particularly as these are new technologies that potentially provide a broad range of novel services and functions. The Government is working with a range of stakeholders, including regulators and legal experts, to explore this issue in more depth.
More widely, the Government’s response to the AI regulation White Paper Consultation set out the case for additional targeted binding measures on highly capable general purpose AI models, including Large Language Models. The Government committed to engage with a range of experts on potential interventions in the summer.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 19 March (HL3052), to what extent they take into account (1) the age of nuclear test veterans, and (2) the public interest, when prioritising ministerial diary engagements.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
We are grateful to all Service personnel who participated in the British nuclear testing programme and contributed to keeping our nation secure. Ministerial diaries are prioritised across a broad range of issues in accordance with departmental need and parliamentary engagements.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 19 March (HL3052), when the 150 documents related to the nuclear test veterans were declassified; and who authorised their declassification.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families personally examined all 150 records at the Atomic Weapons Establishment on 18 March 2024 and will update the House on plans for their release in due course. The documents consist of around 4,000 pages and were declassified following a review by officials at AWE and the Ministry of Defence which was completed in March this year.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 19 March (HL3052), whether they will place a copy of the declassified documents concerning the nuclear test veterans in the Library of the House.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families personally examined all 150 records at the Atomic Weapons Establishment on 18 March 2024 and will update the House on plans for their release in due course. The documents consist of around 4,000 pages and were declassified following a review by officials at AWE and the Ministry of Defence which was completed in March this year.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 19 March (HL3052), how many total pages are contained within the 150 declassified documents related to the nuclear test veterans.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families personally examined all 150 records at the Atomic Weapons Establishment on 18 March 2024 and will update the House on plans for their release in due course. The documents consist of around 4,000 pages and were declassified following a review by officials at AWE and the Ministry of Defence which was completed in March this year.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 4 March (HL2591), on what date the Minister for Defence People and Families intends to visit the Atomic Weapons Establishment Aldermaston for the personal assessment of the 150 documents held by the Atomic Weapons Establishment concerning blood tests taken from British troops during radiation experiments.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families (Dr Andrew Murrison) will visit the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) shortly to personally review the information and consider its release into the public domain. Given the volume of documents to be reviewed it was considered more practical for the Minister to visit AWE.
There are no restrictions on Ministers accessing these records with the Minister for Defence People and Families the most appropriate given his responsibility for veteran’s affairs. The documents had a variety of security classifications and are now declassified.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 4 March (HL2591), why it is not possible for the Atomic Weapons Establishment Aldermaston to facilitate the delivery of the 150 nuclear test veteran documents to a secure ministerial office within the Ministry of Defence for review by the Minister for Defence People and Families.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families (Dr Andrew Murrison) will visit the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) shortly to personally review the information and consider its release into the public domain. Given the volume of documents to be reviewed it was considered more practical for the Minister to visit AWE.
There are no restrictions on Ministers accessing these records with the Minister for Defence People and Families the most appropriate given his responsibility for veteran’s affairs. The documents had a variety of security classifications and are now declassified.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by The Earl of Minto on 4 March (HL2591, HL2592), whether they will list the defence Ministers restricted from accessing the 150 relevant documents held by the Atomic Weapons Establishment Aldermaston.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families (Dr Andrew Murrison) will visit the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) shortly to personally review the information and consider its release into the public domain. Given the volume of documents to be reviewed it was considered more practical for the Minister to visit AWE.
There are no restrictions on Ministers accessing these records with the Minister for Defence People and Families the most appropriate given his responsibility for veteran’s affairs. The documents had a variety of security classifications and are now declassified.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by The Earl of Minto on 4 March (HL2591, HL2592), whether they will list the security classification of the 150 documents.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Minister for Defence People and Families (Dr Andrew Murrison) will visit the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) shortly to personally review the information and consider its release into the public domain. Given the volume of documents to be reviewed it was considered more practical for the Minister to visit AWE.
There are no restrictions on Ministers accessing these records with the Minister for Defence People and Families the most appropriate given his responsibility for veteran’s affairs. The documents had a variety of security classifications and are now declassified.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Wyre Forest (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the Trade Remedies Authority’s reviews into Hot Rolled Flat and Coil steel (Category 1 products), and the potential impact of Tata Steel UK's decarbonisation plans on the UK's steel import demand, what steps they are taking to ensure that the UK's trade remedies framework remains responsive and effective in addressing both current and emerging challenges in the steel sector.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of reforming the trade remedies framework, legislation was laid in September 2023, which created additional flexibility for Ministers with respect to decisions regarding the steel safeguard. On 9 February 2024 the Trade Remedies Authority initiated a ‘TRQ review’ and a ‘suspension assessment’ of product category 1 of the steel safeguard measure. As their investigations remain ongoing, I cannot comment further nor prejudice their final recommendation.