Written questions by Narayan.

What assessment his Department has made of the anticipated impact of the growth in artificial intelligence and sovereign compute infrastructure on national energy demand; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the UK's energy security strategy addresses the power requirements of advanced computing and AI workloads.

Embracing the opportunities that AI can provide to drive growth and productivity in the economy is a government objective. Supporting the development of AI data centres through policies such as AI Growth Zones is a key part of that. The Department is working closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in setting up the AI Energy Council that will have senior representatives from both the energy industry and the AI industry to look at where best to locate AI data centres and proactively manage the energy requirements of AI. Building the low carbon economy of the future will lead to significant increases in electricity demand across many sectors. These projected increases were a key part of the analysis that underpinned the department’s Clean Power Action Plan. This set out how, by unlocking new low carbon electricity generation, improving access to the electricity grid and efficient use and operation of the energy system - which can be supported by new technologies such as AI - we will achieve Clean Power by 2030 and maintain secure, resilient energy supplies.

What assessment her Department has made of the suitability of the current asset and employee number eligibility caps for the Enterprise Management Incentive in supporting the fastest-growing tech startups in the UK.

The Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) scheme is a tax-advantaged share scheme, which allows SMEs to attract and retain high productivity workers that they otherwise would not be able to recruit due to insufficient cashflow compared to larger, more established companies. The asset and employee number eligibility caps ensure the scheme is targeted at those small companies most affected by this issue. At Spring Budget 2022, a review of EMI concluded that the scheme and its limits remain “effective and appropriately targeted.” Following this evaluation, Company Share Option Plan (CSOP) was expanded from April 2023 in order to support companies as they grow beyond the scope of EMI. The Government keeps all tax reliefs under review, to ensure they continue to meet their policy objectives in a way that is fair and effective.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of a free trade agreement with India.

The Business and Trade Secretary was in Delhi in February to relaunch negotiations for a trade deal with India and made good progress in building momentum towards a deal that will strengthen economic growth across the UK.A trade deal with India could improve our access to the fastest growing economy in the G20; cut red tape for business, support jobs, and boost wages in UK.Our negotiating team is working to capitalise on the positive momentum and secure a deal that strengthens our trade and investment relationship.

What assessment his Department has made of the impact of the Strategic Defence Review on employment opportunities for veterans in the Vale of Glamorgan; whether his Department has conducted an evaluation of the adequacy of support available to veterans in the constituency in securing fulfilling careers after leaving the Armed Forces; and what steps his Department is taking to improve access to training, reskilling, and career transition programmes for veterans in the Vale of Glamorgan as part of the Government’s broader defence strategy.

The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) marks a new era for Defence. After years of the UK’s Armed Forces being hollowed out and underfunded, change is essential to ensure the UK remains secure at home and strong abroad, now and for years to come. The SDR process was designed to help the UK be better prepared to fight wars of scale; to be more integrated, more innovative and to help industry be more capable. The Reviewers will soon make their final report and recommendations to the Prime Minister, the Chancellor, and the Defence Secretary. Resettlement services are available to all Regular and Full-Time Reserve Service Personnel leaving the Armed Forces, with employment support and training provided through the Career Transition Partnership (CTP). The CTP, a collaboration between the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Reed in Partnership, offers comprehensive resettlement support regardless of time served. This partnership has evolved over 25 years to support thus far 310,000 personnel. CTP assists Service leavers in transitioning to civilian life through various services, including skills development workshops, seminars, resettlement training advice, vocational training courses, career consultancy, one-to-one guidance, and job finding support. In Wales, the MOD and CTP work closely with the Devolved Government. A dedicated CTP Employer Relationship Manager in Cardiff promotes the Service leaver talent pool to Welsh employers, creating meaningful employment opportunities. CTP also conducts Career Transition Workshops in Chepstow, Brecon (as needed), and at the Employment Fair in Cardiff, with the next event scheduled for 5 November 2025. MOD resettlement policy and CTP services are continually evaluated to ensure they meet the needs of Service leavers, with improvements made as necessary. The Government is expanding UK-wide career support for the Armed Forces community, ensuring support for all veterans, regardless of when they left service. The careers advice service Op ASCEND offer will include a broader range of job support for veterans, helping more into employment and boosting growth under this Government’s Plan for Change. This service will work with industry bodies to make sure businesses are set up to make the most of the talents veterans have to offer, demonstrating how the Government is renewing the contract with those who serve and have served.

What recent assessment he has made of the impact of the Government’s defence innovation announcements on businesses in St Athan and the wider Vale of Glamorgan.

This Government will lead the way on equipping the UK’s Armed Forces with the best cutting-edge tech by launching a new defence innovation organisation. It will grow high-tech businesses and defence start-ups across the UK – including in the Vale of Glamorgan - enabling them to scale up innovative prototypes rapidly through a clear pathway. The Ministry of Defence recognises the vital importance of the defence industry in the Vale of Glamorgan, and in Wales more widely. The Defence and Technology Exploitation Programme, for example, has funded Raplas Technologies, based in the Vale of Glamorgan. Companies like Raplas Technologies both across Wales and the wider UK will benefit from this announcement and a more innovative and resilient defence sector.

What steps he is taking to increase the supply of Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy medicines to patients in Wales.

The Department has worked in close partnership with the devolved administrations in the management of this supply issue. The Department is continuing to engage with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) to mitigate the supply issue that is affecting the whole of the United Kingdom. Through this work, we have managed to secure additional volumes of PERT for 2025 for the UK. The Department has also reached out to specialist importers who have sourced unlicensed stock to assist in covering the remaining gap in the market.In December 2024, the Department issued further management advice to healthcare professionals, which was then discussed with and cascaded to all the devolved administrations. This directs clinicians to consider these unlicensed imports when licensed stock is unavailable, and includes actions for integrated care boards to ensure local mitigation plans are put in place and implemented. The Department, in collaboration with NHS England, has created a webpage to include the latest updates on PERT availability and easily accessible advice on the prescribing and ordering of alternative PERT products.The Department has frequent conversations with representatives from the impacted patient groups, so that they are informed of the supply situation and the mitigation actions being taken.The Department will also continue to meet with suppliers, patient groups, and other relevant stakeholders across the supply chain to provide updates on the supply position and the actions being taken to address them.

Whether her Department has conducted an impact assessment of recent Barnett consequentials for health spending in Wales.

The Welsh Government’s Phase 1 Spending Review 2025 settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms of any Welsh Government settlement since devolution.  The Welsh Government is receiving at least 20% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in England. That translates into over £4 billion more in 2025-26. Barnett consequentials provided to the Welsh Government are not ringfenced for a specific policy area. It is for the Welsh Government to allocate their funding in devolved areas, including health, as they see fit. They can therefore take their own decisions on managing and investing available resources, reflecting their own priorities and local circumstances, and it is accountable to the Senedd for these decisions.

Whether her Department has made a comparative assessment of (a) levels of devolved health funding for Wales and (b) healthcare demand.

The Welsh Government’s Phase 1 Spending Review 2025 settlement for 2025-26 is the largest in real terms of any Welsh Government settlement since devolution.  The Welsh Government is receiving at least 20% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in England. That translates into over £4 billion more in 2025-26. Barnett consequentials provided to the Welsh Government are not ringfenced for a specific policy area. It is for the Welsh Government to allocate their funding in devolved areas, including health, as they see fit. They can therefore take their own decisions on managing and investing available resources, reflecting their own priorities and local circumstances, and it is accountable to the Senedd for these decisions.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions his Department has had with the Welsh Government on the establishment of an AI Growth Zone in the Vale of Glamorgan.

The UK Government recognises the critical role of AI infrastructure in supporting advanced AI technologies. The AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines how the UK can build the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment, securing long-term economic growth and staying at the forefront of AI innovation. We are partnering with local and regional authorities and Devolved Governments to establish AI Growth Zones (AIGZs), ensuring substantial regional and national benefits, such as upskilling and employment opportunities, are felt across the country. In February, Devolved Governments and local authorities, along with industry, were invited to come forward with potential sites suitable for hosting AI infrastructure as an early expression of interest. DSIT regularly engages with the Welsh Government on a range of issues and we are delighted by the significant interest in AIGZs from across the UK. We will open the formal selection process in early spring.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Israel’s decision to restrict access into Gaza on humanitarian outcomes in that area.

We are deeply concerned at the announcement that Israel has halted all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza. As per the UK Government's statement on 5 March, with France and Germany, the entry of lifesaving aid should never be contingent on a ceasefire or used as a political tool. A halt on goods and supplies entering Gaza, such as that announced by the Government of Israel would risk violating International Humanitarian Law. It is vital that the ceasefire is sustained, all the hostages are released, and continued flows of humanitarian aid to Gaza are ensured.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP on (a) security and (b) resilience in Vale of Glamorgan constituency.

The increase in defence spending will fund critical investments in areas like autonomous systems, AI, cyber, rebuilding stockpiles and munition reserves, and therefore will support the security and resilience of the whole of the UK, including the Vale of Glamorgan. The full details will be set out in the Strategic Defence Review. I would like to place on record my thanks to people in the Vale of Glamorgan for their service to our nation and for their support for our national security.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to improve the UK's ability to (a) attract and (b) retain highly skilled professionals in the (a) AI and (b) life sciences sectors.

The AI Opportunities Action Plan sets out the importance of creating a strong talent pipeline and addressing wider skills demands. We are focusing on collaborating with universities to increase AI courses, expanding educational pathways, and establishing a prestigious AI talent scholarship. The Life Sciences sector plan, to be published later this year, will set out HMG support for Life Sciences skills. The Office for Life Sciences is working with stakeholder across the UK as well as Skills England – to inform this. The sector already benefits from targeted support via RESILIENCE, the Medicines Manufacturing Centre of Excellence.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of research and development tax relief reforms on (a) startups and (b) scale-ups in the (i) deep tech sector and (ii) other sectors.

In Autumn 2023, a review of the R&D tax credit system concluded. As part of this review, the previous Government extended the scope of the reliefs to include data and cloud costs, merged the RDEC and SME scheme, and introduced the Enhanced Support for Research-Intensive SMEs (ERIS), which provides a higher rate of relief for loss-making, innovative companies. The life sciences and deep tech sectors are expected to be among the main beneficiaries of ERIS. The Government is committed to periodically evaluating the R&D reliefs to ensure they are as effective as possible and underpinned by a credible, up-to-date evidence base. It will be some time before the required outturn data is available to conduct an accurate review. The Government will continue to publish annual statistics on R&D claims by sector and company size on Gov.uk

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to support (a) AI development and (b) machine learning skills in the workforce.

Lifelong learning and development are key to ensuring everyone can prosper in an increasingly technology-driven world. The AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines the steps the UK will take to build a strong, diverse talent pipeline, realising AI benefits across the economy. Once established, Skills England will work with government, the Industrial Skills Council, businesses, training partners, and unions, to assess AI skills needs and map pathways to address them.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to (a) help increase the UK's international role in AI innovation and (b) protect creative industries from the potential impacts of AI.

We are already a global leader in AI. We are the third-largest AI market in the world, and we are home to world-renowned AI companies. We are committed to building a thriving AI ecosystem that can scale and win globally. As outlined in the AI Opportunities Action Plan launched by the Prime Minister earlier this year, we will appoint AI sector champions in key industries, including the creative industries, to explore and encourage AI innovation.The Government published a consultation on copyright and AI in December 2024, seeking views on a package of measures, which include a requirement for AI model developers to be more transparent about how they obtain their training material.We welcome the significant engagement from across the creative and AI sectors on this important consultation and are carefully reviewing all responses to ensure any proposals taken forward properly support both – delivering a solution which will allow them to thrive.

What steps she is taking to improve access to growth capital for tech startups at (a) the scale-up stage and (b) other stages.

The Government is committed to improving access to growth capital for startups and scaleups, recognising their vital role in driving economic growth and innovation.At Autumn Budget, the Government provided over £1bn across the years 2024-25 and 2025-26 for the British Business Bank to enhance access to finance for smaller businesses. This includes additional funding for the Future Fund: Breakthrough scheme, which co-invests in high-growth, innovative firms.The Government is also working to unlock additional private capital for productive investment. The Government published the Interim Report of the Pensions Investment Review alongside the Chancellor’s Mansion House Speech on 14 November 2024. The proposed reforms in the Interim Report could potentially unlock around £80 billion of productive investment, while boosting savers’ pension pots. The Government will publish the Final Report in Spring 2025. This will further consider the opportunity for, and scope of, investment in the UK by pension funds.The Government is also taking further proactive steps to increase investment in innovative businesses by creating and managing new funding structures that will deliver returns for investors and deliver capital to high-growth businesses. In November 2024, the British Business Bank completed its £250m Long Term Investment for Technology and Science (LIFTS) investment alongside Phoenix Group with Schroders Capital. The £500m investment vehicle will invest in UK late-stage companies focused on technology and science, with 20% of the fund expected to be invested in life sciences.Additionally, two UK pension funds, Aegon UK and NatWest Cushon, have agreed to collaborate with the British Business Bank on launching the British Growth Partnership to crowd-in institutional investment into venture capital funds and innovative businesses here in the UK.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reforms to UK listing rules, in the context of support for tech companies.

In July 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) overhauled the UK’s Listing Rules to align our rulebook with leading international counterparts and provide greater flexibility to firms and founders raising capital on UK markets. The Government has also granted the FCA powers to rewrite the UK’s Prospectus Regime, with new rules expected later this year. This will benefit all firms looking to list on UK markets, including tech companies. The Government is committed to reinvigorating our capital markets to deliver growth across the UK and is pursuing ambitious reforms to make our markets even more competitive.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the compatibility of UK university STEM courses with the skills required by the tech sector.

The department published a Jobs and Skills Dashboard in May 2024, which allows users to explore employment, demand and education pathways for both science, technology, engineering, and mathematics occupations and occupations most relevant to the UK critical technologies. This dashboard can be accessed here: https://department-for-education.shinyapps.io/ufs-jobs-and-skills-dashboard/?_inputs_&navbar=%22Jobs%20and%20skills%22&tabsID=%22Summary%22&sectorChoice=%22STEM%22&shortageTimeChoice=%22Air-conditioning%20and%20refrigeration%20engineers%20SOC2010%22. An accompanying ad-hoc statistics release was also made available on Explore Education Statistics in May 2024, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supply-of-skills-for-jobs-in-science-and-technology.Skills England will continue to assess the skills needs of the tech sector and the skills provision required to meet these skills needs. It is working closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Industrial Skills Council to bring businesses, training partners and unions together with national and local government, including Mayoral Strategic and Combined Authorities, to develop a clear assessment of the country’s skills needs for the tech sector and map pathways by which they can be filled.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to improve the commercialisation of (a) university research and (b) spinouts in the tech sector.

Support for university commercialisation is at its highest level ever. The Higher Education Innovation Fund, which supports knowledge exchange between universities and the wider world, is set at £280 million for the 2024-25 academic year. To support spinouts, the Government is implementing the recommendations of the Independent Review of University Spin-outs. 52 universities have signed up to the review’s recommendations on improving licensing and equity stakes, including taking 10% or less equity for software spin-outs. UKRI has launched a £40m proof-of-concept fund to support researchers develop ideas ahead of spinning out. Over the last 2 years, Innovate UK has awarded £5.2bn funding to more than 7000 businesses, of which 86% were SMEs.

What steps he is taking to support (a) defence and (b) aerospace innovation in Vale of Glamorgan constituency.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) recognises the vital importance of the defence and aerospace industry in the Vale of Glamorgan, and in Wales more widely.The Defence and Security Accelerator has a dedicated Innovation Partner in Wales and is supporting a number of projects with innovative small and medium-sized enterprises. The Defence Technology Exploitation Programme, for example, has funded Raplas Technologies, based in the Vale of Glamorgan who specialise in 3D printing applications within defence. While the MOD does not allocate spending to specific nations and regions in the UK, MOD spending in Wales totalled £914 million in 2023-24, equivalent to £290 per person.The Defence Industrial Strategy will set out how we will prioritise and support businesses to create a more innovative and resilient defence sector across the UK, including in Wales.