Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, on how many occasions Ministers from her Department and its predecessor Department have visited (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland in each of the last three financial years.

Across the UK Government we are committed to delivering the best possible outcomes for all citizens, no matter where in the country they call home. All citizens contribute to the strength of the United Kingdom which is the most successful political and economic union the world has ever seen.

We do not hold information centrally on all Ministerial visits to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland conducted since the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology was established in February 2023. However, we are able to provide some detail of recent Ministerial visits.

This week, the Minister for Science visited Edinburgh for Arctic Science Summit Week.

In December 2023, Minister for Technology and the Digital Economy visited the compound semiconductor cluster in South Wales.

In May 2023, Chloe Smith MP also visited the compound semiconductor cluster in May 2023 during her time as Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology.

Earlier this month, the Minister for AI and Intellectual Property visited Belfast for CyberNI Week. The Minister also visited Belfast for CyberNI week in April 2023, along with a visit to the Intellectual Property Office HQ Newport, Wales in November 2023.