Written questions by Mohamed.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of Plan 2 student loan interest rates on borrowers, particularly in relation to (a) long-term debt balances and (b) the ability of borrowers to (i) access mortgages and (ii) manage the cost of living.

The size of outstanding student loans does not prevent access to a mortgage, and student loan balances do not appear on borrower credit records, therefore the total size of a student’s debt is not considered in a mortgage application.Monthly student loan repayments are considered alongside other living costs as part of the affordability check for mortgage applications along with other fixed monthly outgoings, but monthly repayments are not linked to the size of the outstanding loan.Student loan repayments are income linked, not to the amount borrowed or interest applied, and are fixed at 9% above the earnings threshold. Borrowers earning below the earnings threshold are exempt from repayments. Outstanding loans, including accrued interest, are cancelled at the end of the loan term with no detriment to the borrower, and debt is never passed on to family members or descendants.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill's incident reporting criteria for capturing novel failure modes arising from autonomous or adaptive machine learning systems in critical national infrastructure.

The Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill makes vital updates to the Network and Information Systems (NIS) Regulations 2018 to ensure that providers of the UK’s essential services are reporting more forms of harmful cyber incident to their regulators. Where these incidents meet the threshold of a reportable incident, they will need to be reported to the relevant regulator regardless of the cause. This will include incidents caused by the failure of autonomous or adaptive machine learning systems within a regulated entity’s network and information systems.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential risks posed by AI-generated and manipulated content on young voters’ ability to assess political information during election campaigns.

The Government recognises that the huge opportunities offered by AI also come with risks, including potential challenges posed by AI-generated content for the online information environment.The Online Safety Act regulates AI generated mis/disinformation. This includes the Foreign Interference Offence, requiring companies to take action against state-sponsored disinformation and state-linked interference targeted at the UK and our democratic processes.Media literacy is also part of our wider approach, building young people’s resilience to mis- and disinformation, including AI-generated content. The government will ensure that media literacy is embedded into the new primary citizenship curriculum, from September 2028.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with social media companies on measures to support users, including young people, to identify false and misleading political information, in the context of proposals to extend the voting age to 16.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting people, including young people, to identify false and misleading information online.Media literacy is an important part of our approach. DSIT is improving it through a cross-government approach outlined in the Media Literacy Action Plan published 16 March. In February we launched a pilot campaign and the Kids Online Safety Hub to help parents support children’s resilience to misinformation.

What guidance was issued to higher education institutions and the Student Loans Company on communicating to prospective students the potential for future changes to the terms and conditions of Plan 2 student loans.

Plan 2 student loans were designed and implemented in 2012 by previous governments, and students in England starting degrees under this government have different arrangements. This government therefore cannot comment on guidance that was provided to higher education institutions (HEIs) and Student Loans Company (SLC) regarding plan 2 loans.However, both the SLC and HEIs had access to the terms and conditions of student loans available for prospective students prior to their application for financial support at the time of their studies.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of information provided to 17–18-year-old students entering higher education in 2012 on the interest rate structure of Plan 2 student loans, including the application of Retail Price Index plus up to 3%.

Plan 2 loans were designed and implemented by previous governments. Prospective students had wide access to information across a range of platforms before submitting their applications.Plan 2 loans interest rates are applied at the Retail Price Index (RPI) only, then variable up to RPI +3% depending on earnings. Repayments are calculated solely on earnings, and not on the amount borrowed or the rate of interest applied. Crucially, any outstanding loan and interest is written off at the end of the loan term, and debt is never passed on to family members or descendants.

With regard to the Animals in Science Regulation Unit Annual Report 2024, published in December 2025, how the number of unannounced audits in 2024 compares with previous years; and whether she she is taking to help increase the number of unannounced audits in future years.

The numbers of unannounced audits conducted are reported in the published Animals in Science Regulation Unit (ASRU) Annual Reports.YearNumber of unannounced audits202410202314202210 The Annual Report for 2024 can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animals-in-science-regulation-unit-annual-report-2024ASRU has planned to increase the number of unannounced audits as part of its work to strength regulatory oversight. ASRU has also increased its number of inspectors, enabling a greater volume of risk-based audits across the system.Announced and unannounced audits play an important role in providing regulatory assurance. Audit numbers are only one indicator of the level of regulatory oversight; the quality, depth and scope of audits are central to assessing compliance effectively.

Innovation and Technology, what mechanisms exist for the AI Security Institute to receive systematic information about incidents involving autonomous or adaptive machine learning systems in critical national infrastructure as part of its intelligence capacity to research the development of AI capabilities that could contribute towards AI's ability to evade human control, as well the propensity of models to engage in misaligned actions.

The AI Security Institute (AISI) collaborates with leading AI developers to measure the capabilities of advanced AI and recommend risk mitigations, to ensure we stay ahead of AI impacts.This close collaboration with industry enables information-sharing to mitigate risks. AISI’s testing has identified a large number of AI model vulnerabilities that labs (such as OpenAI and Anthropic) have addressed prior to release.AISI is  researching  the development of AI capabilities that could contribute towards AI’s ability to evade human control, as well the propensity of models to engage in misaligned actions. AISI shares its insights with government departments to help manage the risks AI could pose to critical national infrastructure.Through the Alignment Project – a funding consortium distributing up to £27m for research projects – AISI is supporting further foundational research into methods to develop AI systems that operate according to our goals, without unintended or harmful behaviours.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made diplomatic representations to her Israeli counterpart on the withholding of tax revenues collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.

We regularly raise concerns about civilian casualties with Israeli counterparts and continue to call for full adherence to international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers, and for any alleged incidents to be investigated transparently. The UK is also concerned by the worsening economic situation in Palestine and have urged the Government of Israel to release withheld tax and clearance revenues to the Palestinian Authority. We also continue to work with international partners to support implementation of the Palestinian Authority's reform commitments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Israeli counterpart on the potential impact of withheld tax revenues for the Palestinian Authority on the education of Palestinian children in the West Bank.

We regularly raise concerns about civilian casualties with Israeli counterparts and continue to call for full adherence to international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers, and for any alleged incidents to be investigated transparently. The UK is also concerned by the worsening economic situation in Palestine and have urged the Government of Israel to release withheld tax and clearance revenues to the Palestinian Authority. We also continue to work with international partners to support implementation of the Palestinian Authority's reform commitments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic representations she has made to her Israeli counterpart on reports of civilian casualties in the Gaza strip since the October ceasefire.

We regularly raise concerns about civilian casualties with Israeli counterparts and continue to call for full adherence to international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers, and for any alleged incidents to be investigated transparently. The UK is also concerned by the worsening economic situation in Palestine and have urged the Government of Israel to release withheld tax and clearance revenues to the Palestinian Authority. We also continue to work with international partners to support implementation of the Palestinian Authority's reform commitments.

Innovation and Technology, how many new datacentres have been constructed as a result of investment by CoreWeave.

CoreWeave's announced investments into the UK total £2.5 billion. CoreWeave has committed £1.5 billion towards the Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone in Scotland, deploying cutting-edge semiconductors at DataVita's data centre campus in Lanarkshire. The earlier £1 billion investment covered the opening of CoreWeave's UK office as its European headquarters, the creation of job opportunities across engineering, operations, and finance, and the deployment of AI computing infrastructure across two data centres in Crawley and London Docklands. Large AI infrastructure investments are complex and take time to deliver; as government, we want to encourage these investments by supporting them as best we can. Where important investment announcements and commitments are made, Government will continue to work closely with those companies to ensure the delivery of those investments.

Innovation and Technology, whether a formal contract has been signed with Nscale for the construction of the proposed AI datacentre in Loughton, Essex.

Matters regarding specific delivery and commercial plans for any private project are for the lead private sector investor to confirm. The government engages regularly with the sector to support build out.

Innovation and Technology, whether the investment by CoreWeave relates to (a) new construction of datacentres, (b) equipment purchases and (c) leasing space in existing datacentre facilities.

The Government does not publish commercially sensitive details about how individual companies structure their investments. CoreWeave has publicly signalled its intention to scale operations in the UK, supported by the AI Opportunities Action Plan and the AI Growth Zones programme. Decisions on construction, equipment procurement or leasing arrangements are for the company. Government engagement focuses on enabling the right conditions for investment, including access to power, planning support and a clear regulatory framework. Where important investment announcements and commitments are made, Government will continue to work closely with those companies to ensure the delivery of those investments. Government will continue to work with local authorities, regulators, and industry to help unlock barriers to AI infrastructure development across the UK.

Innovation and Technology, how many short-term, medium-term, and long-term jobs are (a) projected to be created and (b) have been created to date in relation to the Government’s proposed AI growth zones.

AI Growth Zones are expected to create more than 15,000 jobs spanning construction activity, permanent operational roles and wider supply‑chain employment. Job creation will ramp up as infrastructure works progress, with full delivery projected by the early 2030s. These figures are based on information provided by project teams and should be treated as projections rather than firm forecasts. Ultimately, hiring decisions sit with individual companies, but AI Growth Zones are designed to create high‑skill, long‑term employment in areas with strong potential for economic growth. The Department does not hold central data that consistently categorises jobs into short‑, medium‑ and long‑term across all AI Growth Zones, nor comprehensive data on jobs created to date, as projects remain at an early stage of delivery.

Innovation and Technology, what estimate her Department has made of the potential number of jobs that will be created as a result of CoreWeave’s investment.

AI Growth Zones are expected to create more than 15,000 jobs spanning construction activity, permanent operational roles and wider supply‑chain employment. Job creation will ramp up as infrastructure works progress, with full delivery projected by the early 2030s. These figures are based on information provided by project teams and should be treated as projections rather than firm forecasts.Ultimately, hiring decisions sit with individual companies, but AI Growth Zones are designed to create high‑skill, long‑term employment in areas with strong potential for economic growth.The Department does not hold central data that consistently categorises jobs into short‑, medium‑ and long‑term across all AI Growth Zones, nor comprehensive data on jobs created to date, as projects remain at an early stage of delivery.

Innovation and Technology, what due diligence her Department undertook before announcing Nscale’s proposed $2.5 billion investment in UK AI infrastructure in 2025.

Matters regarding specific delivery and commercial plans for any private project are for the lead private sector investor to confirm. The government engages regularly with the sector to support build out.

Innovation and Technology, what progress has been made on the proposed AI datacentre site in Loughton, Essex, announced in January 2025.

Matters regarding specific delivery and commercial plans for any private project are for the lead private sector investor to confirm. The government engages regularly with the sector to support build out.

Innovation and Technology, whether her Department plans to publish a breakdown of the £100 billion in private investment it states has been attracted to the UK AI sector since 2024 and what proportion of that is spent onshore within Britain on British goods and services reverse the proportion of investment spent offshore on foreign companies.

The UK AI sector attracted the third highest levels of AI related private investment in the world. Alongside this, the UK produces the second highest number of AI startups globally. This Governments remains focused on ensuring the UK remains the most attractive place in the world to build AI companies and lead on AI adoption.The £100bn figure referenced refers to the total amount of private investment that firms have pledged to invest into the UK’s AI sector. This pledged investment demonstrates international confidence in the UK’s strong and growing AI ecosystem, supported by the Government’s strategic approach to innovation, world leading research base, and pro investment policy environment - including the UK’s strengths in AI talent, compute, research, and responsible innovation.Whilst decisions on investment is a matter for private companies, Government has been clear that it will encourage investment that will enable UK firms and people to benefit.

Innovation and Technology, what processes her Department uses to verify the value and form of private sector AI investment commitments.

The UK AI sector attracted the third highest levels of AI related private investment in the world. Alongside this, the UK produces the second highest number of AI startups globally. This Governments remains focused on ensuring the UK remains the most attractive place in the world to build AI companies and lead on AI adoption.The £100bn figure referenced refers to the total amount of private investment that firms have pledged to invest into the UK’s AI sector. This pledged investment demonstrates international confidence in the UK’s strong and growing AI ecosystem, supported by the Government’s strategic approach to innovation, world leading research base, and pro investment policy environment - including the UK’s strengths in AI talent, compute, research, and responsible innovation.Whilst decisions on investment is a matter for private companies, Government has been clear that it will encourage investment that will enable UK firms and people to benefit.