Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what support her Department is providing to the Regulatory Innovation Office to help ensure greater commercial and non-military drone adoption.

The RIO is a key Government lever for achieving its transformative ambitions in regulatory innovation. It has been established as an in-house function within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

The RIO has been working in partnership with the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to deliver regulatory reform to support drone adoption and commercialisation since its founding in October 2024. In March 2025, RIO and DfT ministers agreed six priorities for the CAA’s regulation of drones, including an extension and simplification of airspace change processes and a commitment to develop options for electronic conspicuity (technology that allows aircraft to be digitally aware of one another). The RIO has supported the CAA to develop and expand its atypical air environments policy, making commercial activity possible using drones in airspace where there is low risk of collision with other aircraft. The RIO has provided funding to support the CAA’s efficiency by using AI in its drone approvals processes and to make drone deliveries in specific use cases, such as to Argyll & Bute, routine. The RIO has also worked with the CAA to publish a set of drone regulation performance metrics to ensure there is transparency for the sector. The RIO partnered with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to clear the regulatory pathway for drones to be adopted for commercial agricultural activities.