theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking ahead of COP30 to strengthen legislation aimed at preventing UK companies from contributing to deforestation. \p Mary Creagh: We recognise the urgency of taking action to ensure that UK consumption of forest risk commodities is not driving deforestation. The Government will set out its approach to addressing UK consumption of forest risk commodities in due course. We are committed to ensuring that any regulatory framework is robust, proportionate and effective in addressing deforestation in UK supply chains.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to combine the proposed (a) Nature Restoration Fund and (b) Marine Recovery Fund. \p Mary Creagh: The Marine Recovery Fund is being established as a voluntary mechanism to deliver strategic compensation for offshore wind developers.
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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he is having with his Scottish Government on the timeline for its 31 December 2025 landfill ban; and whether he has received any formal request from the Scottish Government to delay that ban. \p Mary Creagh: Defra regularly engages with colleagues in the Devolved Governments on resources and waste policy. However, resources and waste policy is a devolved matter and the decision to ban biodegradable waste to landfill in Scotland is a matter for Scottish Government. I have sent a letter to my Scottish Government counterpart and look forward to engaging with her on this issue.
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Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on support for farmers in Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire constituency. \p Daniel Zeichner: Defra and the other UK nations work closely together through the consensus-based and well-established governance arrangements we have set up and operate under the Agricultural Support Framework. The regular meetings established under this Framework provide an opportunity for Defra and Scottish Government officials to meet regularly and discuss emerging issues, share good practice, and proactively discuss and coordinate policy innovation. No specific points regarding support for farmers in Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire constituency have been raised in these forums. It is for the devolved governments to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit and they are accountable to their respective legislatures for their decisions. This is a key principle of devolution, and we are respecting that.
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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of (a) recent trends in the level of drought and (b) the potential impact of drought on his Department's tree‑planting plans. \p Emma Hardy: We continue to monitor and adapt to the impact that drought conditions can have on trees, particularly for young trees which are most susceptible. The Government has introduced extraordinary measures to support trees that have suffered because of drought conditions and works closely with tree planting delivery partners to respond to conditions across England. The Nature for Climate Fund has also invested £1 million into research to understand how trees are responding to extreme weather events, including drought, assessing species robustness and resilience. More broadly, the Water Companies’ Drought Code of Practice includes an exemption during hosepipe bans to allow for the continued watering of trees planted in the last three years.
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Navendu Mishra:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what data his Department holds on levels of trifluoroacetic acid in the River Mersey. \p Emma Hardy: The EA continues to evaluate scientific evidence, develop new testing methodologies for TFA, and refine its monitoring approach. Future recommendations may involve expanded data collection and updated regulation.
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Sir Julian Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to recommendation 26(d) of the report by the National Audit Office entitled Resilience to animal diseases, published on 4 June 2025, whether his Department plans to publish a (a) comprehensive and (b) time-bound strategy for animal disease resilience. \p Daniel Zeichner: The UK Government takes animal diseases seriously and works closely with industry partners, international fora and other government departments and local authorities to constantly monitor and react to new disease threats. We have in place robust measures to maintain and improve our ability to understand, detect, prevent, respond, and recover from outbreaks.

Defra and APHA have noted the findings from the NAO report, including recommendation 26(d). A review is currently being undertaken of existing resilience plans and processes to assess where enhancements are required. This includes the Contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in England which sets out the structures, governance, and processes for disease outbreaks. This is reviewed annually, and the next update is due to be laid before parliament in late autumn this year.
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Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help farmers protect livestock from predation. \p Daniel Zeichner: There are various lethal and non-lethal approaches available to farmers to help them protect their livestock from predation.

Under the Environmental Land Management standalone Capital Grants scheme, the item ‘FG1: Fencing’ primarily provides funding for farmers to install fencing to control livestock and protect environmental features but it can help to protect livestock from predators. Defra announced in February that the scheme will re-open in summer 2025 and we will confirm the precise date in due course.

While some predators such as wild birds of prey are afforded legal protection in England, a farmer, as an authorised person, may carry out activities to prevent serious damage to livestock from listed species of corvids under Defra’s general licence 42 (GL42: general licence to kill or take certain species of wild birds to prevent serious damage - GOV.UK). Farmers are also free to lethally control certain mammalian predators such as fox and weasel to protect their livestock, providing they comply with animal welfare legislation. Aside from wild predators, the Government is supporting a Private Members’ Bill introduced by the hon. Member for Chester South and Eddisbury which will introduce new measures to tackle the serious issue of livestock worrying.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that local water companies promptly implement new requirements following the enactment of Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. \p Emma Hardy: This Government is strongly committed to requiring standardised Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) in new developments. These should be to designs that cope with changing climatic conditions as well as delivering wider water infrastructure benefits, offer reuse opportunities, reduce run off and help to improve water quality, amenity, and biodiversity. It is also important to ensure appropriate adoption and maintenance arrangements are in place.
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Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with relevant stakeholders on levels of sustainability of the capercaillie population. \p Mary Creagh: Capercaillie are native to Scotland. As nature conservation is a devolved issue the sustainability of the capercaillie population is a matter for the Scottish Government.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has a target for the (a) number and (b) combined area of Marine Protected Areas. \p Emma Hardy: The UK is committed to ensuring that by 2030 at least 30 per cent of marine and coastal areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are effectively conserved and managed through ecologically representative, well-connected protected areas. In England there is a comprehensive network of MPAs covering 40% of English waters. Defra’s focus is to ensure those areas are effectively conserved and managed.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 5 March 2025 to Question 34064 on Export Health Certificates and Pet Travel Scheme, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of regulating the costs of (a) pet passports and (b) Animal Health Certificates for travel between the UK and the EU. \p Daniel Zeichner: As announced at the UK-EU Leaders' Summit on 19 May 2025, the UK and EU have agreed to work towards a common Sanitary and Phytosanitary Area. This will mean taking pets on holiday into the EU will be easier and cheaper. Instead of needing an animal health certificate each time you travel, you will be able to get a multiuse pet passport valid for travel to the EU.

We will provide more information on pet passports valid for travel to the EU in due course.

We currently have no plans to regulate the costs of pet passports or Animal Health Certificates. All fees set by veterinary surgeons or veterinary practices are a private matter between individual practices and their clients.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to prevent executives from water companies that have been sanctioned for releasing sewage into waterways from receiving bonuses. \p Emma Hardy: The Government is clear that transformative change across the water sector is needed to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas, and modernise the sector for decades to come.

Unfair bonuses have been banned under new powers given to Ofwat within the Water (Special Measures) Act which came into force on 06 June. Under Ofwat’s rules, companies are not permitted to pay bonuses to water bosses that oversee poor environmental and customer outcomes. This delivers on a key manifesto commitment and has been backdated to apply to any bonuses relating to the financial year from April last year.

Additional information can be found at GOV.UK.
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Sarah Hall:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the current regulatory framework in ensuring fair treatment of (a) farmers and (b) small food producers by large retailers. \p Daniel Zeichner: Farmers should always receive a fair price for their products, and the Government is committed to tackling unfairness in the supply chain wherever it exists. Central to this is our work to improve contractual practices in agriculture, where we are introducing ‘Fair Dealings’ regulations using powers in the Agriculture Act 2020.

Fair Dealings regulations have already been introduced for the UK dairy and pig sectors, and further regulations are in development for the egg and fresh produce sectors too. The Government also recently announced the launch of a new review into issues facing the combinable crops sector. We will conduct a statutory review into the effectiveness of these regulations in due course.

In terms of those who supply large retailers, the Government also supports the work of the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA), which enforces the Groceries Supply Code of Practice (GSCOP) and regulates the relationship between the largest grocery retailers and their direct suppliers.

Evidence from previous statutory reviews of the GCA and from annual supplier surveys suggest that the adjudicator has been highly effective in enforcing GSCOP. The Government recently launched the fourth statutory review of the GCA’s effectiveness and has an ongoing public consultation open which closes on 5 August. We encourage anyone interested to respond to the review’s consultation and will carefully consider the views received.
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Sarah Hall:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the water industry in meeting its commitment to end water poverty by 2030; and whether he has plans to introduce regulatory measures to ensure this target is met. \p Emma Hardy: The Government expects companies to hold themselves accountable for their commitment to end Water Poverty by 2030 and will work with the sector to ensure that appropriate measures are taken to this end.

We expect water companies to put robust support in place for vulnerable customers and keep current support schemes under review to ensure vulnerable customers are supported. These include bill discount schemes such as WaterSure and Social Tariffs as well as financial support measures to assist households to better manage their budgets and provide flexible payments including payment holidays, payment matching, benefit entitlement checks and money/debt advice referral arrangements.

The Government launched an Independent Commission in October 2024 to examine the water sector and its regulations. The Commission forms the next stage in the Government’s long-term approach to ensuring we have a robust and stable regulatory framework. The Independent Water Commission: interim report was released on 03 June 2025. Final recommendations will be published this summer and presented to both the UK and Welsh Governments. Both Governments will then respond and consult on proposals, including potential legislation.
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Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage UK companies to reduce levels of deforestation caused by overseas supply chains. \p Mary Creagh: We recognise the urgency of taking action to ensure that UK consumption of forest risk commodities is not driving deforestation. The Government will set out its approach to addressing UK consumption of forest risk commodities in due course.
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Alex Mayer:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his Department’s policy is on the transportation of live lobsters through (a) postal and (b) courier services within the UK. \p Daniel Zeichner: Animal welfare legislation protects all animals from being transported in a way likely to cause injury or suffering. Lobsters and other live decapod crustaceans are protected from injury or unnecessary suffering during transportation by a general duty of care provision in Article 4 of The Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 (WATEO) and equivalent national legislation in Wales. WATEO requires that animals are transported in receptacles or means of transport under conditions (in particular with regard to space, ventilation, temperature and security) and with such supply of liquid and oxygen, as are appropriate for the species concerned.
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Seamus Logan:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding his Department is allocating to Darwin Plus grants; and whether this funding has changed since the Spending Review 2025. \p Mary Creagh: Defra is continuing to support the UK Overseas Territories through Darwin Plus. This includes bringing the new biodiversity strategy to publication thereby improving the reach and effectiveness of not just the programme but also wider efforts to improve and protect biodiversity across the territories.

Following the Spending Review, the department has secured a multi-year funding commitment from HM Treasury. Whilst decisions have yet to be made in respect of the totality of future funding available to Darwin Plus, the department will continue to engage closely with stakeholders to ensure transparency and to support continuity wherever possible.

The department will provide updates in the usual way as soon as they are available.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reduce regulation for the transport of live crustaceans from the UK to Europe. \p Daniel Zeichner: The UK Government has secured a Sanitary and Phyto Sanitary (SPS) agreement with the EU, which will remove routine SPS border checks with the EU Member States, and some technical barriers to trade such as food labelling, organics, marketing standards and pesticides. This deal will reduce costs and make the seafood exporting journey of live crustaceans to our biggest market simpler, cheaper and quicker.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will increase funding for flood defence schemes in South Shropshire constituency. \p Emma Hardy: We are investing £2.65 billion over two years to March 2026 to maintain, repair, and build flood defences. We’re committing a further £4.2 billion over three years from April 2026, an increase of 5% per year, as announced at Spending Review 2025.

We are consulting on proposals for reforming flood defence funding, protecting all communities including rural, coastal, and poorer areas.

The list of projects to receive government funding will be consented on an annual basis through Regional Flood and Coastal Committees, with local representation.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to bring into force paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 17 of the Environment Act 2021 on a due diligence regime for forest risk commodities in advance of the COP30 international climate conference in November. \p Mary Creagh: We recognise the urgency of taking action to ensure that UK consumption of forest risk commodities is not driving deforestation. The Government will set out its approach to addressing UK consumption of forest risk commodities in due course.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ensure a (a) sustainable and (b) supportive approach to the fishing industry. \p Daniel Zeichner: We are committed to the long-term sustainability and prosperity of the UK fleet and will continue to work closely with the fishing industry and coastal communities. In line with our domestic and international obligations, including those of the Fisheries Act 2020 and Joint Fisheries Statement, we strive to improve the sustainability of our fisheries, and publish annual independent assessments of our progress.

In addition, on 19 May 2025 we announced the £360 million Fisheries and Coastal Growth Fund will help invest in the next generation of fishermen and on 9 June we reopened the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme, two schemes that will support the industry.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to increase the flexibility of fishing quotas so that fishermen can respond to changes in species abundance. \p Daniel Zeichner: Through participating in international negotiations with other coastal States, the UK sets total allowable catches for fish stocks based on the best available scientific advice, primarily that from the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES). The advice for most stocks is updated yearly, based on scientific data and sampling information from stock surveys, to reflect the current state of fishing stocks. Regular engagement with the fishing industry to communicate expected changes as early as possible, is also central to the UK’s approach.
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Melanie Onn:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of (a) UK-flagged and (b) EU member state-flagged fishing vessels were subject to port inspections in the last 12 months. \p Daniel Zeichner: As of 1 June, there are 4,656 licensed UK fishing vessels. Any of these vessels could be subject to inspection by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) or by an Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority if they come into a port within our administration. MMO is the administrator for all English ports. During the last 12 months the MMO undertook 1,836 in-port inspections. It is not possible to readily identify how many individual vessels were inspected. The majority of these would have been English- registered vessels.

1,545 EU vessels are licensed to fish in UK waters, although the majority do not land their catch to an English port. In the last 12 months, there were 44 landings by EU vessels at English ports of which five were subject to inspection. The inspections were of three individual vessels.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many complaints the Rural Payments Agency has received from farmers in the last 12 months; and what the most common issues raised were. \p Daniel Zeichner: Between 01 June 2024 & 31 May 2025 the Rural Payments Agency, received 363 complaints. The most common issues raised were regarding the application and claims process for the Countryside Stewardship and Sustainable Farming Incentive schemes and outstanding payments.

During the 2024/25 Financial year 01/04/2024 to 31/03/2025 The number of complaints received decreased by 7.7% compared to the previous year.
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Alan Mak:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will list the (a) project titles, (b) amount awarded, (c) date of award and (d) recipients of UKRI funding since 5 July 2024. \p Feryal Clark: The Gateway to Research (GtR) website https://gtr.ukri.org/ has been developed by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) to enable users to search for and analyse information about funded research and innovation.

GtR publishes award data quarterly, and the website is open and free for all to use, and has been developed using open source, open standards and an Open Government Licence (OGL) to enable the code to be reused by third parties.
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Chi Onwurah:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle the emergence of deepfake videos depicting government ministers; and whether the forthcoming legislation on deepfakes will include specific provisions to protect public figures from impersonation and misinformation online. \p Feryal Clark: The Government takes the threat posed by harmful deepfakes very seriously. Deepfakes, and other manipulated media, are regulated by the Online Safety Act where they are shared on an in-scope service and constitute either illegal content or content which is harmful to children. For the largest user-to-user services, AI generated content is captured where it contravenes terms of service. The Data (Use and Access) Act, which received Royal Ascent on 19 June, introduces a new offence for the non-consensual creation of sexually explicit deepfakes. It is already a criminal offence to share, or threaten to share, such content without consent.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department has issued guidance to government Departments on the (a) procurement and (b) use of non-deterministic AI models in public service delivery. \p Feryal Clark: DSIT has issued detailed guidance via the AI Playbook for the UK Government on both (a) procurement and (b) use of AI, including forms of non-deterministic AI such as Generative AI.

The Buying AI section outlines best practices on engaging commercial teams, specifying requirements, and aligning procurement with ethics and regulation.

The Playbook stresses that such AI systems produce probabilistic, non-deterministic outputs and require continuous monitoring, ethical safeguards, and clear understanding of their limitations. It provides guidance on managing the risks of generative AI—including hallucination, bias, and misinformation—while emphasising human oversight, data protection, and responsible deployment.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what mechanisms are in place to ensure (a) reproducibility and (b) accountability when AI is used in cross-government digital services. \p Feryal Clark: The AI Playbook discusses accountability requirements for the use of AI in the public sector, emphasising human validation for high-risk decisions and user-reporting channels for oversight. Transparency is mandated through the Algorithmic Transparency Recording Standard (ATRS), requiring public disclosure of algorithms in decision-making, with contestability mechanisms for appeals and redress.

The Playbook and Magenta Book stress considering reproducibility and scalability from project inception, supported by rigorous evaluation and quality assurance. The AI Community fosters collaboration across government to prevent duplicated efforts, while the AI Knowledge Hub’ collection of AI use cases supports reproducibility and scalability of projects through shared learning and best practices.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether civil servants receive (a) training and (b) guidance on managing the risks of non-deterministic outputs in AI-assisted decision-making. \p Feryal Clark: DSIT has provided civil servants with both training and guidance on managing the risks of AI, including non-deterministic models such as LLMs. Training includes over 70 free courses on AI fundamentals, ethics, machine learning and generative AI, available through Civil Service Learning and the Government Campus. These emphasise critical evaluation of AI outputs and awareness of risks like bias and hallucination. The AI Playbook for the UK Government outlines principles for managing risks, accuracy, bias, hallucinations, and security threats. Civil servants are advised to apply human oversight and robust testing to ensure responsible use of AI and always adhere to the Model of Responsible Innovation.
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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many data breaches have been recorded in Government departments in the last 12 months. \p Feryal Clark: The Government does not record or monitor data breaches across government departments centrally.
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Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to improve public sector delivery with (a) technologies and (b) AI. \p Feryal Clark: We are taking significant steps to improve and modernise public sector delivery with (a) technology and (b) Artificial Intelligence (AI).

(a) Our "Cloud First" policy mandates that departments default to public cloud solutions, whilst the National Digital Exchange (NDX) Cloud Component acts as a blueprint for transforming government digital and data services. Additionally, the Digital Backbone aims to introduce the capabilities needed to connect fragmented services and allow public bodies to share software solutions. These initiatives will enhance efficiency and reduce duplication, saving time and reducing spend.

(b) We recognise the transformative potential of AI. We carried out a landmark AI trial involving 20,000 Civil Servants across 12 departments to assess the productivity of M365 Copilot, which found that civil servants can save on average 26 minutes per day (circa two weeks annually) using AI assistants. Furthermore, the Incubator for AI (i.AI) works to explore and develop AI solutions for the public sector.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps is Ofcom taking to ensure telecommunications providers adhere to the Electronic Communications Code on the visual impact of broadband infrastructure. \p Chris Bryant: The Electronic Communications Code (Conditions and Restrictions) Regulations 2003 include a requirement for operators to minimise the impact on the visual amenity of properties as far as reasonably practicable when installing apparatus. It is Ofcom’s role as an independent regulator to investigate any complaints from local planning authorities about telegraph poles sited in a way which is not consistent with these requirements. Ofcom has in the past opened investigations into whether specific operators have failed to comply with their obligations when installing apparatus. These can be found on Ofcom’s enforcement page here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/enforcement.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the 2020 EU Reference Laboratory for alternatives to animal testing's recommendation on non-animal derived antibodies. \p Feryal Clark: The Government-funded National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals In Research is leading work to accelerate uptake of non-animal derived antibodies (NADA), in collaboration with members of the EU Reference Laboratory Committee for animal testing alternatives that developed the NADA recommendation. In 2021, in response to the recommendation, the Animals in Science Committee reviewed antibody licence applications to assess how 3Rs are being implemented.

The Government will publish a strategy later this year to support the development, validation, and adoption of alternative methods, which will set out any targets to phase out specific uses of animal testing.
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Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the resilience of the UK’s digital economy in the event of disruption to undersea data cables. \p Chris Bryant: The Government recognises the critical role of undersea data cables in the UK’s digital economy. Individual subsea cables can be vulnerable to disruption. There is an average of 12 breaks a year from fishing, anchor drag, landslides and other causes. Most breaks have minimal impact on digital services due to resilience in the UK network. The UK has a large number of cables relative to other island nations. They are also geographically dispersed so data can be rerouted in the event of most disruptions. However, DSIT lead work on emergency preparedness and response in the event of a serious incident, as described in the National Risk Register.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact on operational trust when non‑deterministic AI models produce different outputs from identical inputs. \p Feryal Clark: The government recognises the importance of operational trust in AI systems. DSIT is building confidence in and driving adoption of AI by supporting a growing, competitive, and dynamic AI assurance ecosystem.

By providing ways to measure, evaluate, and communicate the trustworthiness of AI systems, AI assurance can increase confidence in AI systems, support AI adoption, and boost economic growth.

We have also placed a renewed focus on skills, recently announcing a joint commitment with industry to provide 7.5 million workers with fundamental AI skills. Equipping workers with these skills will also help build operational trust in AI systems, building understanding as to when a model is working as intended, even where different outputs are produced from identical inputs.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_356

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help phase out the use of animals for antibody production. \p Feryal Clark: The Government is committed to the development of non-animal alternatives and will publish a strategy to support their development, validation and adoption later this year.

The Government-funded National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) has a collaborative programme of work investigating accelerating the adoption of non-animal derived antibodies and resources to support researchers to adopt these technologies.

Further steps supporting alternative methods, including any targets to phase out specific applications of animal testing, will be outlined in the upcoming strategy.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_357
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_357

Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to phase out the use of dogs in (a) scientific and (b) regulatory procedures and replace them with human-specific technologies. \p Feryal Clark: The Labour Manifesto includes a commitment 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 later this year to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, which will set out clear objectives and measurable milestones. Any work to phase out animal testing, including the use of dogs in scientific and regulatory procedures, must be science-led and in lock step with partners including regulators.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_358
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_358

Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of (a) broadband and (b) mobile phone connectivity in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Chris Bryant: We are committed to ensuring at least 99% of premises can access a gigabit capable connection by 2032, and we are working to achieve this in the Surrey Heath constituency through a Project Gigabit contract with Openreach. The independent website Thinkbroadband.com reports over 86% of premises in Surrey Heath constituency have access to gigabit-capable broadband.

Ofcom reports that 4G geographic coverage is available across 97% of Surrey Heath from all four mobile operators, with 5G available outside 96% of premises from at least one operator.

I am aware that Ofcom’s reporting of mobile coverage does not always reflect consumers’ experience of mobile networks. Ofcom’s improved online coverage checker will go live shortly and will provide data at a higher coverage threshold to better reflect lived experience.

Our ambition is for all populated areas to have higher quality standalone 5G by 2030, and we continue to work with industry to deliver this.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_359
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_359

Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure broadband providers treat residents equitably when determining property eligibility during fibre rollout programmes in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Chris Bryant: Openreach is delivering a Project Gigabit contract across Surrey, targeted at bringing gigabit-capable broadband to homes and businesses in hard-to-reach areas, including approximately 1,900 premises in the Surrey Heath constituency.

As with all Project Gigabit contracts, Building Digital UK (BDUK) collected and analysed information from commercial suppliers about their completed and planned broadband infrastructure in order to identify which premises in Surrey required public subsidy to receive a gigabit-capable connection.

Our Project Gigabit contracts, including the contract for Surrey, target premises which would not normally be commercially viable for suppliers to connect.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_360
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_360

Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to improve resilience to cyberattacks on public services. \p Feryal Clark: The Prime Minister announced on 3 June 2025 that responsibility for government and public sector cyber security moved from the Cabinet Office to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to strengthen the resilience of digital public services by better integrating cyber security responsibilities and expertise into the Government Digital Service.

The government is progressing work on an implementation plan to support the delivery of the Government Cyber Security Strategy and is developing a new, more interventionist operating model to clarify, enable, and enforce cross-government responsibilities for cyber and digital resilience.

Additionally, important steps have been taken to understand and mitigate cyber risk through the launch of the GovAssure cyber assurance regime and the Government Cyber Coordination Centre (GC3).
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_361
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_361

Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of replacing landlines with digital voice services in areas with (a) poor mobile signal and (b) unreliable broadband in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Chris Bryant: The Government is committed to ensuring that any risks arising from the industry-led migration of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are mitigated for all customers across the UK. VoIP requires a minimum connection speed of just 0.5Mbps, and for current landline-only customers it will be possible to order a VoIP landline without purchasing a general internet connection. In November 2024, all major communication providers agreed to additional safeguards to protect vulnerable customers, including those who are landline-dependent due to poor mobile coverage.

We are committed to ensuring at least 99% of premises receive gigabit broadband coverage, which we expect to happen by 2032. More than 99% of UK premises, and more than 95% of the UK’s landmass, have 4G coverage from at least one mobile operator. Our ambition is for all populated areas, including the Surrey Heath constituency, to have higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030. We are committed to having the right policy and regulatory framework to support this.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_362
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_362

Steve Race:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is taking steps to reallocate National Citizen Service funding to the wider youth sector. \p Stephanie Peacock: This Government recognises the transformative role that youth services play in young people’s lives. We know that being part of supportive communities and having access to youth provision can improve a young person’s wellbeing, health and personal development.

The Secretary of State previously committed to set out this department's 2025-26 funding for youth programmes - an investment of over £145 million - to provide stability to the youth sector and ensure young people can continue to access opportunities, as we transition to the new National Youth Strategy.

The Government will publish the National Youth Strategy this Summer. The detail and scale of the funding commitments included in the strategy will be shaped by engagement with young people and the youth sector and will be announced in due course.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_363
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_363

Mr Angus MacDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has had discussions with the Camanachd Association on support for shinty. \p Stephanie Peacock: Whilst the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not had discussions with the Camanachd Association, the Government is supportive of shinty as an important grassroots sport, particularly in Scotland. The Department regularly works with the Scottish Government, for example as part of the Inter-Ministerial Group for Sport.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_364
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_364

Mr Peter Bedford:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many permanent civil servants in her Department had their contract of employment terminated as a result of poor performance in the (a) 2022-23, (b) 2023-24 and (c) 2024-25 financial years. \p Stephanie Peacock: From 1st April 2022 - 31st March 2025 there were seven dismissals. Of this total there were less than five poor performance dismissals that occurred between April 2023- March 2024.

We are unable to provide the precise number of poor performance dismissals because this would constitute a breach of the Data Protection Act, this is because the information relates to someone other than the data subjects and the risk of individuals becoming identifiable where case numbers are 5 or less.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_365
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_365

Stuart Andrew:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether (a) the Prime Minister and (b) his office had contact with the confirmed candidate (i) prior to and (ii) during the appointment process for the Chair of the Independent Football Regulator. \p Stephanie Peacock: I am the appointing Minister.

The preferred Chair appointment was subject to pre-appointment scrutiny by the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee.

The Commissioner for Public Appointments is carrying out an inquiry into the campaign to appoint a new Chair of the Independent Football Regulator. The Government is co-operating fully with the Commissioner's office.
wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_366
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-23 conversation_366

Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2025 to Question 55042 on Football Governance Bill (HL), what was discussed with UEFA on the Football Governance Bill at that meeting; and whether she plans to meet UEFA before the (a) third reading of the Football Governance Bill in the House of Commons and (b) independent football regulator is established. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Secretary of State and I continue to meet with clubs, leagues, governing bodies, fan groups and many other stakeholders from across the game to discuss the Football Governance Bill. This will continue throughout the Bill’s passage and beyond.

During my last discussion with UEFA on 11 November, we discussed a range of topics including the Football Governance Bill. UEFA expressed no concerns regarding the Bill.