Written questions by Jogee.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to support tech start-up companies to scale-up in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire.

Awaiting answer.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to help women from a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire access high-quality jobs in the tech sector.

Awaiting answer.

Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Ofcom's powers.

The adequacy of Ofcom’s powers is kept under review. For example, the Mobile Market Review call for evidence launched in February 2026 will enable the government to ensure that our policy and regulatory framework supports the sector. And, for example, Ofcom has strong and extensive powers under the Online Safety Act, including the ability to request information, investigate non‑compliance and fine companies up to 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue. Recently, the Government strengthened Ofcom’s role under the Online Safety Act by making intimate image abuse and cyberflashing priority offences, placing clear duties on platforms to prevent this content and reinforcing Ofcom’s oversight of compliance.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill (Network and Information Systems) Bill, a) what estimate she had made of the shortage of the cybersecurity skills which will be necessary to implement and comply with the new regulations created by the Bill and b) what steps the department is taking to address skills gaps.

The Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill was introduced in November 2025 to increase UK defences against cyber attacks. The Bill has been developed in close collaboration with regulators to ensure that they have the right information and tools they need to be supported and effective under the new framework.This includes allowing regulators to recover all the costs of their activities under the regime so that they can be sufficiently resourced, enhancing their impact through clearer information gateways, and establishing a unified set of objectives so that regulators can better focus their resources. DSIT will also issue clear guidance to support regulators as they exercise their functions and will monitor and evaluate the new framework following its implementation to review the effectiveness of the regime, which could include regulator capability.New regulated entities being brought into scope of the Bill are in highly technical, high skill sectors and will have guidance and support they can draw from Regulators, Government and NCSC to help them to drive up cyber maturity and effectively manage risks to the essential services they provide. To further support the development of cyber security skills, the £187 million TechFirst programme will fund up to 4,000 students, researchers and innovators entering frontier industries, and help local firms fill around 1,000 tech roles, including cyber security roles.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with the Children’s Commissioner for England on proposals to protect young people in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme, b) Staffordshire and c) England from harm online.

On 2 March, the government launched a landmark consultation on how to give young people the childhood they deserve in an online world. This includes versions accessible to both children and busy parents.In addition, we have started the National Conversation to gather input from parents and children throughout the UK. Children are at the heart of this discussion; we've held two events with the Children’s Commissioner for England so far, and we plan to keep working together in the future.Details of ministerial meetings, including the purpose of meetings, are published quarterly on the GOV.UK website.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to ensure that people with a) eyesight impairment and b) poor technology skills are able to access government services online.

Government services must work for everyone who needs to use them, including people who are visually impaired and those with poor digital skills.Public sector organisations have a legal duty to consider everyone’s needs when they’re designing and delivering services. The Service Standard sets out that to support people with visual impairment, online government services must ensure their service works with assistive technology, including screen readers, screen magnifiers and speech recognition software across common browsers.Inclusive, accessible services are better for everyone. For example, using simple words helps people who are in a hurry as well as people who lack the skills or confidence to use online services.

Innovation and Technology, how many data protection complaints were filed with the Information Commissioner’s Office in each of the last five years.

The number of data protection complaints filed with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) are available on ICO’s Annual Reports, which can be viewed on their website at: https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/our-information/annual-reports/.

Innovation and Technology, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of appointing a UK Data Protection Ombudsman.

Data protection complaints are dealt with by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the independent regulator, which has a statutory duty to investigate data subject complaints to the extent appropriate.The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 introduces reforms to the ICO as well as a new requirement for data controllers to respond to data protection complaints themselves, reducing premature complaints to the regulator. The ICO is also reviewing its approach to data protection complaints and has carried out a public consultation on changes to how it assesses and determines the level of investigation. It is now reviewing feedback from that consultation.Given our recent legislative reforms and the ICO’s consultation, there are no current plans to consider a Data Protection Ombudsman. If individuals are dissatisfied with the ICO’s service (not its legal interpretation), they can escalate complaints to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.

Innovation and Technology, where the UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods will be located.

On 11th November 2025 the government published “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy/replacing-animals-in-science-a-strategy-to-support-the-development-validation-and-uptake-of-alternative-methods) which sets out our plans to establish a UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (UKCVAM). The location of and timeline for the creation of the UKCVAM is under development and the Government will update on this in due course.

Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions she has had with the Internet Watch Foundation.

Protecting children online is a priority for this department. The Internet Watch Foundation does vital work to tackle child sexual abuse and DSIT and other departments engage closely with them on their critical work.I regularly meet with online safety stakeholders and remain committed to continuing this incredibly important relationship. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on GOV.UK.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to phase out animal testing.

On 11th November 2025 the government published “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” which outlines the steps we will take to achieve this. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy/replacing-animals-in-science-a-strategy-to-support-the-development-validation-and-uptake-of-alternative-methods ).

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to protect children in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire from becoming victims of indecent deepfakes.

The Government is committed to tackling the atrocious harm of child sexual exploitation and abuse.UK law is clear – creating, possessing, or distributing child sexual abuse images, including those that are AI generated, is already illegal, and the Online Safety Act requires services to proactively identify and remove such content.We are taking further action in the Crime and Policing Bill. We are introducing an offence to criminalise AI models which have been optimised to create child abuse material and have tabled amendments to support the stringent testing of AI systems for child sexual abuse material risks.

Innovation and Technology, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) Lightspeed and (b) other (i) broadband and (ii) connectivity companies on the effectiveness of their consultation processes with local residents before any telegraph pole installation takes place.

I have not had any discussions with Lightspeed about their consultation processes with local residents. However, my predecessor raised concerns about telegraph pole deployment directly with industry, through trade bodies ISPA and INCA.In response, the industry convened the Telecommunications Poles Working Group, and published its best practice recommendations. These guidelines set out expectations for operators who plan to deploy telegraph poles as part of their network and sets out steps that local authorities and communities can take if they have any concerns.

Innovation and Technology, what recent steps he has taken to improve digital connectivity for older people living in rural communities.

The Government published its Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, which identified five target groups to benefit most from digital inclusion initiatives, including older people. The initiatives will be targeted locally for boosting digital skills and confidence, widening access to devices and connectivity, and getting support to people in their own communities so everyone can reap the benefits of technology.Through Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network, we are continuing to deliver broadband and mobile connectivity to hard-to-reach areas with limited or no coverage. Over 87% of UK premises now have access to a gigabit capable broadband connection, while more than 95% of the UK now has 4G geographic coverage from at least one mobile operator.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with his counterparts from the (a) Southern African Development Community, (b) Caribbean Community and (c) Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries on digital transformation.

International engagement is vital to the UK’s science and technology priorities. The Secretary of State and Ministers regularly engage with partners around the world, including a variety of nations in the regions represented by the organisations outlined. For example, the UK and Singapore recently signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen cooperation on digital transformation and the Secretary of State recently met Minister Teo on 6 November.

Innovation and Technology, whether he plans to use nuclear energy to support the AI Opportunities Action Plan.

The Government recognises the significant energy demands of advanced AI infrastructure and is exploring how this can be met through renewable power sources, including nuclear.In February this year, the Prime Minister announced significant reforms to accelerate the development of nuclear power infrastructure, including the Nuclear Regulatory Reform Taskforce which will oversee enhancements to the nuclear regulatory framework to facilitate the timely and efficient development of nuclear projects.DSIT is working closely with DESNZ and NESO to align AI energy demand with future energy planning and long-term sustainability, including the potential role of nuclear in supporting these objectives.The AI Energy Council, co-chaired by the Secretaries of State for DSIT and DESNZ, will explore clean energy solutions for AI infrastructure, including small modular reactors and next-gen renewables, to ensure our AI ambitions align with the UK’s net zero goals.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he has taken to protect people in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency, (b) Staffordshire and (c) the UK from cyber attack.

The cyber security of the UK is a priority for the government. We are taking a range of action to protect people, businesses and the economy from cyber threats. This year the government will introduce the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill to improve UK cyber defences and better secure our essential services and the IT infrastructure they rely upon. In Staffordshire, the Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands is part of a nationwide police-led collaboration helping strengthen cyber resilience in small and medium-sized businesses, while the Cyber PROTECT Network operates in every police force area, providing advice and guidance to individuals to help protect against a range of threats and provide support to victims. The government’s Stop! Think Fraud campaign provides the public with advice on how to prevent fraud and cyber crime.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help improve digital skills for young people not in education, employment or training in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire.

The Government published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, identifying five target groups to benefit most from digital inclusion initiatives, including older and young people. The Government understands there are many other impacted groups, and is committed to delivering digital inclusion for everyone across the UK, whatever their circumstances.The Action Plan outlines five immediate Government actions, including enhancing support for the Essential Digital Skills framework that helps people and businesses get essential skills they need to get online safely and confidently, and the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund to support local digital inclusion initiatives across the UK.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help improve digital skills for women in Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency.

The Government published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, identifying five target groups to benefit most from digital inclusion initiatives, including older and young people. The Government understands there are many other impacted groups, and is committed to delivering digital inclusion for everyone across the UK, whatever their circumstances.The Action Plan outlines five immediate Government actions, including enhancing support for the Essential Digital Skills framework that helps people and businesses get essential skills they need to get online safely and confidently, and the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund to support local digital inclusion initiatives across the UK.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help improve digital skills for people over 70 years old in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire.

The Government published the Digital Inclusion Action Plan in February 2025, identifying five target groups to benefit most from digital inclusion initiatives, including older and young people. The Government understands there are many other impacted groups, and is committed to delivering digital inclusion for everyone across the UK, whatever their circumstances.The Action Plan outlines five immediate Government actions, including enhancing support for the Essential Digital Skills framework that helps people and businesses get essential skills they need to get online safely and confidently, and the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund to support local digital inclusion initiatives across the UK.