Written questions by Mayer.

Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with mobile network operators on the rollout of standalone 5G.

Since her appointment in September 2025, the Minister for Digital Economy, the Minister responsible for digital infrastructure, has met with the Chief Executive Officers of all the mobile network operators to discuss a range of issues, including digital infrastructure rollout, the market, and challenges the sector is facing.All network operators have committed significant investment in line with Government's ambition for standalone 5G to be available in all populated areas by 2030. Government continues to work closely with operators to identify and address barriers to deployment where appropriate to do so, to support investment and improve mobile coverage and connectivity nationwide.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to coordinate policy on the development, validation and uptake of non-animal methods.

The Department is working closely with colleagues across Government to strengthen coordination on the development, validation and uptake of non‑animal methods. The first cross‑departmental ministerial meeting on the delivery of the strategy is scheduled to take place next month and will provide a formal mechanism to drive progress and ensure alignment across policy areas.

Innovation and Technology, what recent discussions he has had with his Australian counterpart on lessons learned from Australia’s introduction of a law to ban under-16s from social media platforms.

The UK and Australia signed an Online Safety and Security Memorandum of Understanding in February 2024 to share learnings and approaches to online safety.The government is looking at what is happening in Australia. The Australian government plans to monitor the impact of their ban and we are engaging closely with them on this. Both the Secretary of State and the Minister for Online Safety hope to visit Australia soon.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Public Order Act 2023 (Interference With Use or Operation of Key National Infrastructure) Regulations 2025 on the phasing out of the use of animals in scientific research and testing.

The Government is committed to supporting the development and uptake of alternatives to the use of animals in science and has published the Replacing Animals in Science strategy which lays out the steps we are taking to achieve that end. The strategy states that the Government will continue to support the use of animals in science where it is necessary and appropriate. The Government assesses that Public Order Act 2023 (Interference With Use or Operation of Key National Infrastructure) Regulations 2025 will have no direct impact on the phasing out of the use of animals in scientific research and testing.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what the evidential basis was for including the reduction of the use of fish endocrine disruption tests by the end of 2035 in Basket 3.

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. Multiple stakeholders and experts in this area, including Defra and the Veterinary Medicine Directorate, were consulted during the development of the three baskets approach, which groups animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. They concluded that basket 3 was the most appropriate timeline for fish endocrine disruption tests.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, what steps her Department is taking to expand Basket 3 to include additional animal tests for phase-out.

The Government’s publication “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. The Strategy uses a ‘baskets’ approach to group animal tests according to how ready they are for replacement, based on the maturity of potential alternative methods. These initial baskets are not exhaustive and will be reviewed and refined in consultation with the research community on a regular basis, and research and development priorities will be published biennially from 2026.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Part 2 of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 on the rollout of 5G.

The Government outlined its estimates of the potential impact of Part 2 of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 in its de minimis impact assessment. The impact assessment can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/627a76c88fa8f57d86f3f0ce/De_Minimist_Impact_Assessment_-_Telecommunications_Infrastructure__PSTI_Bill_.pdf. A specific assessment in relation to 5G rollout was not carried out.The Act introduced a range of measures intended to optimise the use of existing apparatus and to support network deployment. Most measures are now in force, and the government is committed to implementing all remaining provisions as soon as possible.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of (a) the adequacy of the availability of land and property for new 5G infrastructure and (b) its impact on the UK telecoms market.

The department has not carried out an assessment of the adequacy of the availability of land or property for 5G infrastructure, and this is not an issue previously raised by industry. The Electronic Communications Code provides the regulatory framework by which telecommunications operators gain access to land and property to deploy infrastructure. This aims to balance the rights of site providers and operators to facilitate infrastructure deployment on public and private land, as well as encouraging the sharing of infrastructure.

Innovation and Technology, when he plans to implement sections (a) 61 to 65, (b) 67 (c) 70 to 74 and (d) other remaining provisions of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022.

The Government is committed to implementing all remaining provisions of the Product Security and Telecommunications Act 2022 as soon as possible. These measures will help deliver the benefits of advanced digital connectivity.Most provisions have been implemented. Those remaining are complex and technical. We must ensure they are implemented carefully, to create certainty and avoid post-implementation delays. The Department has policy and legal resources dedicated to deliver these, and we will bring forward a consultation on the implementation of sections 61 to 64, including transitional provisions, as soon as possible.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to paragraph 4.94 of of the Autumn Budget 2024, HC295, published on 30 October 2024, whether any of the core research funding will be used for projects that involve experimenting on animals.

Alternative methods cannot currently replicate the complexity of an intact biological system, so the use of animals remains essential both in basic and translational medical research and in preclinical testing. Currently 32% of Medical Research Council-funded research programmes involve some use of animals licensed under the ASPA (Animals Scientific Procedures Act). The manifesto committed the Government to partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing. This is a long-term goal, and it will likely take many years of scientific and technical advancement and validation to reach this point.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to paragraph 4.94 of of the Autumn Budget 2024, HC295, published on 30 October 2024, what steps his Department is taking to support the development of human-specific technologies such as organ-on-a-chip.

The Government funds research through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and many programmes, including those on organoids, cell behaviour or AI, may eventually lead to the development of human-specific technologies that can replace the need for the use of animals. The Government also funds the development and dissemination of techniques that replace, reduce and refine the use of animals in research through the National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs). Since its launch in 2004, the NC3Rs has committed over £100 million through its research and innovation to provide new 3Rs approaches for scientists in academia and industry to use

Innovation and Technology, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a digital champion in each local authority area.

The Government believes Digital Champions play a key role in advancing the digital connectivity agenda - and help local communities to realise the benefits advanced connectivity can bring. We strongly encourage local and combined authorities to appoint them as dedicated officers where possible. We have set out more details on the role that Digital Champions can play within the Digital Connectivity Portal. The Portal is an extensive online resource providing best practice guidance helping local authorities to facilitate digital infrastructure deployment. It can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/digital-strategy-and-leadership#digital-champion

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help improve (a) 4G and (b) 5G coverage in Bedfordshire.

This Government wants all areas of the UK to benefit from good quality mobile coverage. Our ambition is for all populated areas, including Bedfordshire, to have higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030, and to increase 4G coverage to 95% of the UK landmass by the end of 2025 through the Shared Rural Network programme. We are committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework in place to support investment and competition. As part of this work, the Government intends to reform the planning system to make it easier to build and deploy digital infrastructure.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to tackle (a) scam and (b) nuisance calls.

The Department works closely with Ofcom, who are responsible for tackling silent and abandoned calls, and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) who lead on enforcement of unsolicited direct marketing calls and ensuring companies adhere to the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. The new Data (Use and Access) Bill will empower the ICO to take action against companies sending nuisance communications.To address scam calls, the Department works closely with Ofcom, and the Home Office (who are responsible for fraud policy). From January, new Ofcom rules will require telecoms operators to block calls from abroad presenting with a UK number.

Innovation and Technology, what information her Department has on the number of miles of (a) copper wire and (b) fibre in the internet network in (i) Central Bedfordshire and (ii) the East of England; and how many miles of existing copper wire are planned to be replaced by fibre by the end of 2024.

The Department does not hold this information. Openreach’s annual review for 2023-24 provides some information for the largest wholesale broadband and network provider, though this does not reflect the market as a whole and does not provide regional breakdowns. This report estimates that delivering broadband across the UK involves more than 250 million kilometres of fibre optic cable and copper wire. This is available via: https://www.openreach.com/about/our-company/annual-review-and-reports

Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to set a target date for the long-term replacement of animal experiments in medical research with human-specific technologies.

The manifesto commits us to partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing, and we are currently engaging with the sector as to how to take this commitment forward. Any policy changes as a result of this work will be assessed appropriately. It is not yet possible to replace all animal use due to the complexity of biological systems and regulatory requirements. Any work to phase out animal testing must be science-led, in lock step with partners, so we will not be setting arbitrary timelines for reducing their use.

Innovation and Technology, if he will take steps with UK Research and Innovation to increase the proportion of biomedical research funding available for research projects that use non-animal new approach methodologies.

In accordance with UK legislation UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) only fund animal research where there is no suitable non-animal alternative available. Around 70% of research funded by their Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and Medical Research Council does not involve animals. UKRI supports the development, validation and uptake of non-animal alternatives, largely through their investment in NC3Rs. UKRI are committed to conducting a strategic review of NC3Rs in 2024/25 to determine the appropriate level of future investment. The UKRI policy on Research and Innovation Involving Animals further commits UKRI to encouraging applications with potential to advance the 3Rs.

Innovation and Technology, whether he has had discussions with providers on implementing revised Call Line Identification Guidance to extend blocking to international calls which display a UK number as a Presentation Number.

The Government works closely with Ofcom who are responsible for the Call Line Identification (CLI) Guidance. Telecoms providers must comply with Ofcom’s General Conditions, part of which outlines operator’s obligations related to CLI.In July 2024, Ofcom announced plans to update the CLI guidance, which sets out the actions operators must take to be comply with the General Condition, to extend requirements on blocking of international calls displaying a UK landline number as a Presentation Number. The updated guidance will come into effect from January 2025. Ofcom also published a Call for Input in July to explore the spoofing of UK mobile numbers from international numbers.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with university vice-chancellors on reducing the use of animals in experiments.

The Government is committed to supporting the uptake and development of alternative methods to the use of animals in science. 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.We recognise that any work to phase out animal testing must be science-led and in lock step with partners, and are engaging in discussions on how to take this commitment forward, which may include with university vice chancellors. We have already held roundtables with stakeholders from businesses, regulators and across Government.