Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the end of the EU's orphan works exception on academic institutions; and whether his Department is making an assessment of ways in which UK regulations can be updated to enable research through an orphan works exception.

The Government engaged with stakeholders and published guidance in January 2020 on the removal of the exception for affected institutions during the transition period. The UK’s orphan works licensing scheme continues to be available, as do exceptions to copyright for purposes including research and private study. The Government presently has no plans to update these.