Written questions by Onwurah.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the 2026–27 police funding settlement in enabling Northumbria Police to bring officer numbers remain back to pre-2010 levels; and how many police forces in England and Wales will have officer numbers above pre-2010 levels at the end of 2026-27.

The Government’s Safer Streets Mission sets a clear expectation for policing to deliver safer communities and improved public confidence. An effective, well-supported police service is central to achieving this. That is why forces should have the right resources to tackle crime and keep communities safe.Through the police funding settlement, a total of £442.4 million will be available to Northumbria Police in 2026/27, an increase of £20.2 million compared to 2025/26. This represents a 4.8% cash increase.We are focused on what police officers are doing, rather than achieving arbitrary officer headcount targets and are putting officers where people want to see them.We have scrapped arbitrary officer headcounts, which has led to forces hiring officers and, in some cases, putting them in back-office roles. Some 12,000 warranted police officers are now working in support roles across England and Wales. We are instead focussed on putting 13,000 additional policing personnel in neighbourhood roles across England and Wales by the end of this Parliament. By February 2026, we had delivered more than 3,100 additional police officers and PCSOs into neighbourhood roles. (Growth under the Neighbourhood Policing Programme, as at 28 February 2026: management information - GOV.UK)We are also expanding police use of AI and automation technologies. In the Police Reform White Paper we announced £115m over the next three years, led by the creation of “Police AI”, a new national centre for AI in policing focused on supporting police forces rapidly but responsibly use AI to improve their efficiency and effectiveness, resulting in better public safety outcomes for local communities. Taken together this investment package is expected to free up at least 3,000 FTE (or 6 million officer hours) a year by 2028/29.

What recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of industrial electricity prices on inward investment in AI data centres since OpenAI’s decision to pause its UK Stargate project.

The Government is focused on continuing to create the right conditions for investment in the UK’s AI and data centre infrastructure. Through the AI Energy Council, it is already bringing together energy system bodies and leading technology companies, including NESO, EDF, Microsoft and Google, to address the energy implications of AI growth and ensure the system is ready to support future demand. Alongside this, the Government is bringing forward a consultation on discounting data centres' energy costs for eligible projects in areas with excess electricity supply, including Scotland, Cumbria and the North East.

What estimate his Department has made of the total untapped offshore wind generating capacity in the North Sea; and what proportion of that capacity could be brought forward through future Crown Estate leasing rounds.

In January 2026 the UK signed a clean energy pact with Germany, France, Belgium, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark and Norway. This noted that 300GW of offshore wind could be built across the North Sea by 2050. The Crown Estate has said publicly that they could bring 20-30GW of new offshore wind capacity to market by 2030.

Whether funding programmes are available to support inclusive founding teams in (a) technology, (b) creative industries, (c) green energy and (d) other high‑growth sectors.

The Government provides a range of available funding programmes to support inclusive founding teams across high-growth sectors. For example, Innovate UK provides specialised funding through initiatives such as its £101 million Clean Growth Fund, and other sector-specific grant giving competitions for technology, and creative innovation.Other programmes include the British Business Bank’s Future Fund for investment in Life Science and Deep Tech, and its Start Up Loans programme which has supported a high proportion of inclusive founding teams (with around 40% of its beneficiaries being women, and around 20% from ethnic minority backgrounds).

What discussions he has had with the British Business Bank on supporting access to capital for women‑led and ethnic minority‑led businesses.

The British Business Bank has numerous new and successful programmes to support access to capital for underrepresented groups, including:new £400 million Investor Pathways Capital initiative to reduce barriers to entry for new fund managers, with 50% of this ringfenced for women,new Diverse Angel Syndicate initiative to catalyse the growth of diverse angel groups,Start Up Loans programme which has delivered more than £1.2 billion in loans, with around 40% of its loans to female founders and 20% to ethnic minority-led businesses,£130 million invested into the Invest in Women Taskforce’s funding pool.The Bank is also a founding signatory to the Investing in Women Code.

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of regional distribution of venture capital investment; and what steps she is taking to increase investment flows to the North East.

The number of equity deals in the North East increased 8.6% year on year in 2024, to 63 deals. Comparatively, London’s dominance of the UK equity market reduced slightly in 2024, with the share of deals in the capital dropping from 50.8% to 47.1% year-on-year, while the proportion of investment was 61.2% in 2024 – a reduction from 61.9% in the previous year, and from 73.3% in 2020.The Government is addressing regional disparities in access to finance through the Nations and Regions Investment Funds, with businesses in the North East eligible for debt and equity finance from the £660 million Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II.North East businesses are also set to benefit from the British Business Bank’s Cluster Champions programme, which will help strengthen financial networks and connect high-potential firms in the eight Industrial Strategy priority sectors to investors, while also providing an additional £100 million of investment.We have also expanded the Regional Angels Programme, helping improve access to early-stage equity across the UK.

Innovation and Technology, what role science diplomacy plays in the Government’s strategy for achieving UK technology sovereignty; and whether the UK intends to pursue shared leadership arrangements with international partners where appropriate.

Science diplomacy plays an important role in building UK technology sovereignty through international partnerships with partners which strengthen our shared capabilities, resilience and security.Our Science & Technology Network, covering 65 locations, is a core pillar of the UK’s science diplomacy toolkit, which aims to develop and strengthen our partnership with international partners.We have science and technology partnerships with a broad range of countries including the US and EU, Japan, India, South Korea, Switzerland, France and Germany. We are also active members of multilateral fora including OECD, G7 and G20. These partnerships are part of helping us ensure sovereign strengths and strengths through stable collaboration.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department will take to prevent further withdrawal of planned AI investment from the UK, in the context of OpenAI’s decision to pause its Stargate UK project.

Decisions on investment are a matter for private companies. The Government has been clear that it will encourage and support investments that will enable UK firms and people to benefit. Many of the large-scale AI infrastructure projects in the UK have been publicly announced, with most of these having press releases available on Gov.uk. The Government continues to engage across the board on these investments to ensure that they deliver the best outcomes for the UK. Our focus is on continuing to create the right conditions for investment in the UK’s AI data centre infrastructure. We are continuing to work with OpenAI and other leading AI companies to strengthen UK compute capacity.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure AI tools are safe by design to prevent the creation of child sexual abuse material.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of potential impact of science diplomacy in achieving UK technology sovereignty; and whether her Department intends to pursue shared leadership arrangements with international partners where appropriate.

Science diplomacy supports UK technology sovereignty by building international partnerships which strengthen our capabilities, resilience and security. This is underpinned by our Science & Technology Network covering 65 locations which strengthens UK growth, security and global influence.DSIT regularly assesses the impacts of our international collaboration on our science and technology capability. For example, internationally coauthored UK papers consistently outperform UK only research on citation impact.We have partnerships with a broad range of countries including the US and EU, Japan, India, South Korea, Switzerland, France and Germany. We are also active members of multilateral fora including OECD, G7 and G20.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the decision by OpenAI to pause its Stargate UK investment on the AI Growth Zone in the North East of England, and what action her Department is taking to maintain confidence among international investors in the region.

Since the announcement of the North East AI Growth Zone, there has been no change to energy pricing or the regulatory environment in the UK. We engage regularly with developers and other stakeholders for the North East AI Growth Zone and are encouraged that Cobalt Park are in discussions with a number of alternative offtake customers. The success of the AI Growth Zones programme is not contingent on any single investor. Five AIGZs have been designated with the potential to deliver £28 billion of investment from a diverse range of developers.The Government is delivering an ambitious policy package to support build-out of AI infrastructure in the UK. DSIT will set up a dedicated AI Growth Zone Delivery Unit providing a single point of contact for investors, accelerated planning and grid connection support, long-term business rates retention for host local authorities, and targeted energy pricing support.We are continuing to create the right conditions for investment in the UK’s AI and data centre infrastructure work with leading AI companies to strengthen UK compute capacity.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of using generative AI to assist people making benefit claims.

We are adopting artificial intelligence in the Department for Work and Pensions to help colleagues deliver better outcomes for customers and to improve productivity and efficiency. While generative artificial intelligence is not currently used to assist people directly in making benefit claims, the Department continues to explore how digital tools, including artificial intelligence, could improve and enhance the claimant journey and make it easier for people to access support. This work is focused on improving access, usability and overall user experience. Any future use of artificial intelligence would be subject to robust safeguards and appropriate ethical, legal and governance controls.

What support is available through his Department and Jobcentre Plus to help disabled people find suitable part-time employment.

We are committed to providing disabled people who want to work with the right support to find employment, including part-time work and self-employment, that meets their specific circumstances and ambitions. In addition to Work Coach support, our Pathways to Work Advisers provide one-to-one personalised support to disabled customers to help them move towards, and into, work. More than 65,000 people have already chosen to receive support from these advisers over the last year. Outside of Jobcentre Plus-based support, our voluntary and locally-commissioned, £1bn Connect to Work Supported Employment programme offers specialised employment support to disabled people, those with health conditions and people with complex barriers to employment. The programme provides participants with tailored support, including vocational profiling, finding good job matches and on the job coaching. It will support around 300,000 people across England and Wales by March 2030. We are also expanding the WorkWell programme to cover all of England by autumn 2026, to provide integrated, holistic early help to up to 250,000 people with health-related barriers to work. The Department for Work and Pensions also works with employers to encourage them to adopt flexible recruitment practices, including reduced-hours roles, alternative shift patterns and other adjustments that make jobs more accessible, including through the use of assistive technology.

What support is available through his Department and Jobcentre Plus to help single parents with childcare responsibilities find suitable part-time employment.

As set out in our Child Poverty Strategy, this Government is committed to boosting family incomes, supporting single parents and reducing the earnings gap within couple households by transforming employment support and removing barriers to work. The Government recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours, which is why we offer financial assistance and 30 hours of free childcare a week through the Free Childcare for Working Parents scheme. Following the publication of the Child Poverty Strategy, we are continuing to engage across the voluntary and community sector to understand and address issues facing parents and carers, including single parents. In Universal Credit, working families can claim up to 85% of eligible childcare costs each month, up to a maximum of £1071.09 a month for a single child and £1836.16 a month for families with two or more children at the 2026/2027 rates. At the Budget, we announced that in 2026-27 we will help parents in work who have larger families by providing UC childcare support for each additional child beyond the first. Lead carers within Universal Credit also have different conditionality requirements that reflect their childcare responsibilities.We are also supporting parents to balance work and childcare through the Make Work Pay legislation, which strengthens rights to request flexible working arrangements. We are rolling out free breakfast clubs in schools across the country, helping parents manage work schedules whilst ensuring children have a positive start to the day. Parents and carers can also benefit from our wider employment support initiatives including Inactivity Trailblazers in England and Wales, Skills Bootcamps, the Sector-based Work Academy Programme, the Adult Skills Fund, and personalised help for sick and disabled people through Pathways to Work. Further to this, DWP currently deploys around 300 Family Community Work Coaches in England to support the most vulnerable families in society with multiple, complex needs to make significant, positive changes in their lives that move them towards employment. As we design and develop the new Jobs and Careers Service, we will ensure support is more personalised to meet individuals’ needs and help them overcome their specific barriers to work. We are also testing bringing services and support into the heart of communities, for example through partnership delivery in Family Hubs, Jobcentre vans and community pop-ups.

Innovation and Technology, whether she has considered which aspects of (a) AI, (b) quantum, (c) space and (d) bioengineering the UK will seek to lead in.

The Government made a series of long-term commitments to developing UK leadership on AI, quantum, space and engineering biology through the Industrial Strategy and the AI Opportunities Action Plan.We have established the £500m Sovereign AI Fund to support UK AI companies at key parts of the AI value chain. Focus areas will continuously evolve but could include compute, novel model architecture, AI for science and AI safety and assurance.We recently announced the £1 billion commitment to procure a first-of-its-kind, large-scale quantum computer and announced on 4 March that DSIT will prioritise four space subsectors for development - Satellite Communications, Assured Access to Space, In Orbit Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing, and Space Domain Awareness.We are investing £644m into supporting the ecosystem for Engineering Biology including R&D, infrastructure and regulatory reform, to realise the potential of engineering biology across multiple applications.

Innovation and Technology, whether her Department must approve IT spend above a certain value.

Yes. The Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, must approve all digital and technology spend above certain values.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the exclusion of UK tech companies from the EU Cloud and AI Development Act.

The PM has been clear that UK-European collaboration in science and technology is extremely important to the UK. We are engaging with European Commission to understand the development of the proposed EU Cloud and AI Development Act and assess its impact on the UK. We will utilise opportunities such as the upcoming UK‑EU Summit to discuss any issues we foresee with the EU Cloud and AI Development Act.

Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has a strategy for achieving UK technology sovereignty; and if she will make a statement.

The Government seeks to build sovereign capability in critical technologies, as set out in the June 2025 Modern Industrial Strategy and the accompanying Digital and Technologies Sector Plan. This approach reflects the importance of strengthening domestic capability in key areas to support the UK’s economic competitiveness, as well as to enhance national security and resilience.

Innovation and Technology, whether she is working on a common definition of technology, AI and digital sovereignty for use a) within her department b) across government.

This is a highly complex and evolving policy area with no single internationally agreed definition. Countries use the term differently depending on their economic, security, resilience and diplomatic priorities. As this is an area of policy that covers numerous UK interests, we are working through the issues involved, both within DSIT and across government.

Innovation and Technology, whether the Government plans to increase technology collaboration with like‑minded international partners to support the UK’s sovereign capability in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.

The Government is pleased to be working with international partners to support a thriving AI ecosystem in the UK, seizing the benefits of partnership and driving accelerated adoption of AI. Through international collaboration, including initiatives like EuroHPC, and actively attracting inward investment, including more than £30 billion announced during the 2025 US State Visit to boost the UK’s AI infrastructure and cutting-edge tech, the UK is positioning itself at the forefront of global AI. The launch of the £500 million Sovereign AI Fund on 16th April will build on this and ensure the UK’s world-class talent, research and data assets translate into long-term benefits for the UK and further consolidate our sovereign capability. The Government looks forward to exploring opportunities to go further, promoting collaboration on AI and emerging tech and unlocking opportunities for UK citizens and businesses.