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Category: Technology

  • Pat McFadden – 2025 Speech on “Cyber is a Poster Child for Growth”

    Pat McFadden – 2025 Speech on “Cyber is a Poster Child for Growth”

    The speech made by Pat McFadden, the Cabinet Office Minister, on 7 May 2025.

    Introduction:

    Good morning everyone,

    It’s really great to be here with you in Manchester.

    This is one of Britain’s great cities.

    From music to sport to industry, Manchester has made its mark on the world in so many ways…

    And today I want to talk to you about an area where I believe Manchester, the North West, the whole country can grow in strength in the future.

    There might have been times when a government minister making a speech about cyber security was thought to be something routine.

    Ritual calls for preparedness, and it might not seem to have much connection to the real world.

    But not today. Not this time. Not this week. Not with what we have been seeing happening over the past few weeks.

    Great British businesses. Household names like M&S, the Co-op, Harrods, all the subject of serious cyber incidents.

    These cyber attacks are not a game. They’re not a clever exercise. They are serious organised crime.

    The purpose is to damage and extort good businesses. It’s the digital version of an old-fashioned shake down. Either straight theft or a protection racket where your business will be safe as long as you pay the gangsters.

    And what we’ve seen over the past couple of weeks should serve as a wake-up call for everyone – for government and the public sector, for businesses and organisations up and down the country, as if we needed one, that cybersecurity is not a luxury – it’s an absolute necessity.

    Whether it is a system failure or a deliberate attack, no organisation can afford to treat cyber security as an afterthought.

    So it’s not routine. It’s a good time to be gathering today, to discuss what we can do to make our defences as strong as possible.

    Now it’s one of the paradoxes of modern life: technology brings huge benefits, and there’s no going back – but it also brings risks.

    The internet is one of the greatest engines for creativity and innovation in modern history. It has transformed the way we live, work and learn.

    Just think of the applications. Busy parents who can save so much time by ordering goods online, students with an unfathomable range of knowledge at their fingertips, families all around the world able to share pictures of those precious moments – birthdays, christenings, weddings – just at the press of a screen. All of us benefit from this astounding level of connectedness.

    Yet the technology that underpins it can be weaponised by those who want to destabilise our infrastructure, our information systems, or our industrial base.

    The UK’s critical infrastructure is now more interconnected than ever. That is empowering…

    But it also carries risks, because there are vulnerabilities –  and more than we had years ago. Right down to the household level.

    As the cost of the tech has plummeted, and broadband speeds have risen, more and more devices are connected online. In 2020, it was thought to be about 50 billion. By 2030 – which isn’t that far away now – it will be 500 billion, according to projections.

    More connections, more interconnectedness.

    Technological leaps are rarely born in comfort; more often, they are forged during conflict, or competition or by sheer necessity. And history shows us that innovation always accelerates when the stakes are highest, from nuclear energy to the space race.

    The stakes are high right now. And we are in the middle of another huge technological leap – a “technology shock” if you like – with AI and other emerging technologies developing at breakneck speeds.

    It’s a duty for Government and all of us to keep up.

    Because in the modern world, where everything is connected, and so much of it’s online, it doesn’t take much if that is attacked to cause serious disruption.

    Just ask anyone in Spain or Portugal who went through the power outage last week. Passengers stuck in underground trains. Payment systems disabled and suddenly, for a day, cash is king again. And a host of other effects.

    I experienced last July, just a couple of weeks after the general election, the CrowdStrike incident. We worked closely with one of the sponsors of this conference, CrowdStrike, to manage the fallout of that.

    That wasn’t a cyber attack but it did cause ripples right across the country and the world.

    Flights grounded. Hospital appointments disrupted. Holidays cancelled. GP services cut off.

    We worked closely with the company to resolve it. But what did we learn?

    Lessons:

    First, you’ve got to bring people together and coordinate. We had the National Cyber Security Centre, the Cabinet Office – the department I lead – Microsoft and CrowdStrike, all the different parts of government to understand what the incident was.

    Secondly, Government cannot do it alone. You have to have good partnerships between the public and private sector.

    And thirdly, even though it exposed a responsibility, there is also a prize to be grasped here.

    Because if interconnectedness that I’ve spoken about requires greater protection and powers of recovery, then those countries that think about this, that invest in the cybersecurity services, will be able to offer those services to those that need them.

    Just think about previous waves of interconnectedness and how the UK led the way in protecting them. Think about how Lloyds of London, for example, insured shipping right across the globe, well so too can the UK play a major role in cyber security. A new kind of technological insurance.

    We are already the third largest exporter of these products and services in the world.

    And as the technology continues to develop, I believe that our cyber companies and start-ups can use that current competitive advantage as a launchpad for greater success – for the benefit of the entire UK economy.

    So my message this morning to you is that it’s not just about vulnerability and risk – it’s about economic growth too.

    Later this year, we’ll publish a new National Cyber Strategy that will set out how we want to approach these challenges and opportunities in the years to come.

    Today I want to touch on three aspects of that today: threats, security and growth.

    Threat landscape

    Scale of activity:

    The threat is growing.

    Last year the NCSC received almost 2,000 reports of cyber attacks – of which 90 were deemed significant, and 12 at the top end of severity.

    That is three times the number of severe attacks compared to the year before (2023).

    They’re targeted both Government and private systems.

    Combatting it is a constant challenge. I can’t stand here this morning and tell you that Government systems are bombproof. That is not the case.

    These are new systems, built on top of legacy systems, and we’re doing everything in our power to modernise the state, and to upgrade those core systems . But the Government, and the country as a whole, has to take this seriously if we’re going to do it securely in the future.

    Artificial Intelligence:

    It’s our strong conviction that Artificial Intelligence will bring huge opportunities to the UK. We want this country to be a good home both for investment and adoption in this field. But like all general purpose technologies, it can be used for good or ill.

    And just as people and businesses across the country are using AI in all sorts of applications, so too are our adversaries.

    Today, we are declassifying an intelligence assessment that shows AI is going to increase not only the frequency, but the intensity, of cyber attacks in the coming years.

    Our security systems will only remain secure if they keep pace with what our adversaries are doing.

    And that’s why it’s imperative to understand what they’re doing and why.

    State-actors:

    And today state-backed cyber hacking has become the new normal.

    Hostile states constantly working to degrade our military advantage. With cyber criminals who will routinely sell their services to other states. These cyber mercenaries can cause huge harm.

    Sometimes to steal money. For example, it is thought that North Korea stole $1.34bn through cryptocurrency theft last year, causing US officials to describe their hackers as the “world’s leading bank robbers”.

    The cyber activity we are seeing in countries like North Korea reflects that grey area that exists between some states and cyber criminals.

    My colleagues at the Home Office, under the leadership of the Home Secretary and the Security Minister, are working hard to strengthen our overall response to cyber crime. They have been consulting on a number of ransomware proposals designed to thwart our enemies.

    Other state-backed hacking is done as part of a wider war – and we’ve seen that with Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

    How Ukraine is putting up an incredibly brave fight against cyberwarfare unleashed by the Russians, and we have vowed to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine for as long as it takes to defend their sovereignty.

    And so we’re going to invest £8 million in the Ukraine Cyber Programme over the next year to counter the Kremlin’s cyber aggression.

    What Russia is doing doesn’t stop in Ukraine. There have been a number of other attacks and disinformation campaigns in other countries.

    For example, in Moldova’s presidential election last year. And we know that they will keep trying. So we will be investing £1 million in cyber capabilities in Moldova, to help give that country the tools to combat Russian cyber attacks and ensure their upcoming parliamentary election can be as democratic, fair and open as possible.

    Our country has always defended freedom.

    This is part of the defence of freedom and democracy that has been part of our country’s history.

    But defence today is not just about troops and missiles.

    It’s also about this cyber realm, too – and this Government is absolutely committed to making sure we and our allies are strong in this domain.

    China:

    And let me say a word about China.

    When we think about international activity in cyberspace, we need to be clear-eyed about the challenge posed by China.

    It is well on its way to becoming a cyber superpower. It has the sophistication. The scale. And the seriousness.

    It’s one of the world leaders in AI, as the world’s second largest economy it’s deeply embedded in global supply chains and markets.

    We need to view China’s approach to cyberspace with open eyes. Disengagement economically from China is not an option. Neither’s naivety.

    The job of a responsible Government is to protect our people and constructively engage with the world as it is.

    “Stop the world I want to get off” is not in the United Kingdom’s interests.

    Rather, our approach should be to engage constructively and consistently with China where it is in the UK’s economic interests, but also to be clear that we will robustly defend our own cyberspace.

    Bolstering our defences

    And I want to thank the organisations that do that. GCHQ, NCSC, the National Cyber Force – they keep watch, working tirelessly with our allies, with the Five Eyes alliance, to stay ahead of our competitors.

    Our intelligence agencies also play a key role in growing our overall cyber ecosystem – acting as a training bed for all kinds of experts who go on to be successful cyber entrepreneurs.

    LASR:

    And we’re investing in new capabilities in this regard.

    Last year, I launched a new public-private partnership to keep the UK on top of some of the risks emerging on how we harness AI.

    The idea behind the Laboratory for AI Security Research – or LASR, as we’ve come to call it – is simple: accelerate innovation and research into how AI can protect our national security.

    Since November, its funded 10 PhDs at Oxford University; funded an in-house team of 9 researchers at The Turing Institute; and its funded research at 8 other leading UK universities including Queen’s University Belfast and Lancaster University.

    And we are committing an extra £7million to LASR’s research over the next financial year.

    And I’m pleased to announce it has agreed a new partnership with one of the biggest tech companies in the world, Cisco.

    They are going to be collaborating with GCHQ and the NCSC, and other partners to expand the research and innovation capacity of the Lab.

    They will be running challenges across the UK, and build a demonstrator here in the North West to showcase how our scientists and entrepreneurs can work together to manage the risks, build the skills and grasp the opportunities of AI security.

    This is the first collaboration of its kind with LASR, and will be a trailblazer and it will help LASR drive cutting-edge research into the impact of AI on national security.

    Cyber Security and Resilience Bill:

    We’re also modernising the way the state approaches this, through the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill.

    That legislation will bolster our national defences. It will grant new powers to the Technology Secretary to direct regulated organisations to reinforce their defences.

    And as we begin scrutiny of that Bill in Parliament, we will be launching a new Software Security Code of Practice – to help all organisations take the measures they need to embed security and resilience.

    And the prize of all this is growth. Safe economic growth.

    Growth

    When we’re talking about cyber, it’s easy to focus on the risks and threats.

    But we also need to think about the reward. There is enormous potential for cyber security to be a driving force in our economy.

    We already have over 2,000 businesses across the UK. An estimated 67,000 jobs – with an increase of 6,000 in the last 12 months.

    Revenue of more than £13billion.

    And as I said, we’re exporting this across the world.
    But there is still potential on the table.
    So we’re supporting an independent report from Imperial College and Bristol University, who are going to apply their knowledge and expertise to help us establish which levers we need to pull, and how we do that.

    And ahead of the report, we are already making some big investments like the £1billion going into a new state-of-the-art Golden Valley campus near GCHQ’s Cheltenham office.

    That site alone is expected to create 12,000 jobs and be home to hospitality, retail businesses, as well as 3,700 new homes. It is all growth.

    Industrial Strategy:

    And that is why cyber is part of our Industrial Strategy too. It is a significant part of our economic future.

    Conclusion:

    So as I said at the start of my remarks, we are in a new world.

    In fact, it’s incredible to think it’s been only 36 years since Tim Berners Lee invented the World Wide Web.

    I have teenage children and sometimes I try to explain to them the world before the internet. It’s not something they find easy to understand. The pace of change that we have seen during that time is unlikely to slow down.

    So we have got to take the long view: not just think about the technologies of today, but what it might look like in 10 or 20 years.

    Cyber attacks and cyber hacking are likely to be permanent features of this new global order – there is no point in pretending otherwise.

    But the opportunities are also huge, and I believe that this country, in its position of creativity and innovation, will be at the vanguard of cyberspace and cybersecurity for decades to come.

    Seizing the opportunities to grow the sector, protecting and defending other parts of the economy.

    Standing by our allies in an ever changing world, and defending democracy right across the world.

    It is at once one of the challenges and opportunities of our time, and we have to work together to meet it.

  • Keir Starmer – 2025 Remarks at Jaguar Land Rover

    Keir Starmer – 2025 Remarks at Jaguar Land Rover

    The remarks made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, at Jaguar Land Rover in the West Midlands on 7 April 2025.

    Thank you Rachel and thank you Adrian.

    And can I just say a big thank you to the entire workforce here. Some of you are here with us this afternoon. I just want to say thank you for showing us what you do. We have been able to see some of the skill and experience that you put into this incredible product, years and years in the making and the technology.

    But thank you also for making us proud to be British, because as each car rolls off here, that is rolling off your production line. That is your commitment, your toil, your work, your professionalism. But it is then a product which you should be rightly proud of, and we are really proud of as a country.

    I know how much you put into that, and I want you to know just how much we appreciate what you do.

    Thank you for everyone for joining us this afternoon.

    Jaguar Land Rover, our leading exporter of goods, employing thousands of people across the West Midlands and beyond.

    That proud symbol of British engineering brilliance. And brilliance is the right word. It is our industrial heritage, but also in my strongly held view, it is our industrial future, not just our heritage.

    My message to you is simple: these are challenging times, but we have chosen to come here because we are going to back you to the hilt.

    I think it’s really significant that after the announcement on Wednesday, we had Adrian with us in Downing Street at 7 o’clock the next morning, and here we are on Monday, so read into that a statement of intent because it is a statement of intent about how important this is for you, for us and for the country.

    As Rachel has said, there is no doubt about the challenge, but this is a moment for cool heads.

    No one wins from a trade war.

    But it is also a moment for urgency.

    Because we have to rise, together as nation to the great challenge of our age, and it is the great challenge to renew Britain so that we are secure in this era of global instability.

    Nobody is pretending that tariffs are good news. You know that better than anyone.

    25% tariffs on automative exports. 10% on other goods.

    That is a huge challenge to our future. The global economic consequences could be profound. But this moment has also made something very clear.

    That this is not a passing phase. And just as we’ve seen with our national security and defence, particularly in relation to the war in Ukraine, now with our commerce and trade,

    This is a changing and completely new world.

    An era where old assumptions, long taken for granted, simply no longer apply.

    Before the election – I called it an age of insecurity. And that is the right phrase. Insecurity. Because that’s how this is felt in the lives of working people. Insecurity and worry for builders, for carers, for nursers, for factory workers like people here in Coventry, working harder and harder for the pound in their pocket, yet watching this rising tide of insecurity threaten to sweep away the things we cherish in our communities.

    Trust me – I know people will be feeling that right now.

    But to those people, I say, we have your back.

    This government will not just sit back and hope.

    That is how politics has failed you in recent years.

    Attempting to manage crises without fundamental change just leads to managed decline.

    So no – we’re going to seize the possibilities.

    Fight for the future. On defence spending, on AI, on clean British energy and on manufacturing, including car building.

    Make those forces work for Britain. Rewire our economy and our state so that once again they serve the interests of working people.

    This is why we are rewiring the state completely.

    Ripping up the regulation that stops it being a force for good.

    Building new homes, new towns, new infrastructure.

    Accelerating the investment that will finally unlock the potential of every community.

    And let me be really clear as well. Our future is in our hands.

    And so of course – we will keep calm and fight for the best deal with the US and we have been discussing that intensely in the last few days.

    But we’re also going to work with our key partners to reduce barriers to trade across the globe.

    Accelerate trade deals with the rest of the world and champion the cause of free and open trade – right across the globe. And just like car building, that has always been our heritage – and we won’t turn our backs on it now.

    And look, when it comes to the US, I will only strike a deal if it is in the national interest. If it is the right thing to do for our security. If it protects the pound in the pocket that working people, across our country, work so hard to earn for their family.

    That is my priority. That is always my priority. Strength abroad – security and renewal at home.

    And on that journey of renewal we take another step today with our car industry.

    You know, there are people in this country who love to talk down our manufacturing. They say – we don’t make anything important anymore. ‘That’s not Britain’. Well – I would invite anyone who thinks like that to come here and see what you do in this factory.

    Anyone who is talking down manufacturing. Come here to Jaguar Land Rover and see what you are doing and they wouldn’t say that again.

    Because just as I’ve said, when we were going around earlier, what I saw made me proud.

    And I hope that if I feel proud of what you are doing, you are entitled to feel proud of what you are doing.

    This is British brilliance in the flesh.

    You’re making cars here – but you’re also representing our country with each car as it departs. That’s the pride that always goes with making things.

    And I’ve said it many times before, but I will say it again: my dad worked in a factory. He was an engineer. He made things with his hands. And he taught me as I was growing up, you should value the things that we make.

    And that’s what brilliant about manufacturing. And manufacturing shapes the identity of a place. This place, and of a community and a country. And that’s how it gets in your blood.

    Which is why electric vehicles are so important. Yes – of course it’s about the climate and you won’t hear me undermining the urgency of that cause.

    But it’s also about taking the pride, the heritage, the identity of places like this and securing it for the future.

    That’s what the previous government never understood. The link between manufacturing and who we are as a country.

    But those days are over. They are finished. This is a government of industrial renewal.

    Because my choice, in this volatile world is to back British brilliance.

    I believe that British car companies should be at the forefront of the electric revolution. This is a race we belong in.

    And so I think EV targets are a good thing.

    They are good for the climate. Good for business certainty and investment. Good for British manufacturing.

    But I accept – those targets have to work for British manufacturers.

    And I don’t want British firms, like this one put in a position where you have to pay a hefty fine or buy credits from foreign EV companies.

    So today – we’re going to introduce much more flexibility into EV mandates.

    We’re going to help car companies based in Britain reach the targets in a way that supports growth.

    We’re going to cut any fines – which I do not want or expect to see – by 20% and any money that is raised – would be invested directly back into support for the British car industry.

    We’re also going to take action on hybrids because these cars make a massive difference to reducing emissions.

    I mean, if you drive a Toyota Prius around town. Or, perhaps if you work here, a Range Rover you probably spend a lot of the time in electric mode. So I think for these vehicles a 2030 ban is too soon. So we’ll push that back to 2035 – for all hybrids. That’s a new step we are taking and a new announcement today.

    And because we’re not ideological about how we cut carbon emissions, we’ll also make sure that cleaner, efficient, petrol cars sold before 2030 count towards your EV mandate. That will be good for British car manufacturers like this one.

    As Rachel has said, we are also putting £2.3 billion pounds into the British car industry, giving people tax breaks worth hundreds of millions of pounds a year to help them switch to electric.

    Improving charging infrastructure. That is a massive factor when people are thinking about switching and our approach means we are seeing a new public charging point popping up every half an hour.

    Because this is the moment when we back British business and charge up the electric revolution.

    British electric cars running off clean British power, made by British workers.

    British cars for British workers!

    And as you know by the way switching to electric can also save you up to £1100 a year so if we get this right it can help the cost of living as well.

    But look – it’s not just our car industry we need to back.

    In the coming days and weeks, we are going to use industrial policy to shelter British business from the storm.

    Take our life sciences sector, another shining example of British brilliance. An absolutely pivotal part of our export economy. We’re going to back them, as well.

    We’re going to rip up the red tape. Cut the stifling bureaucracy that slows down clinical trials. Now Britain used to be better at this but we’ve taken our foot off the pedal.

    The latest data says it takes over 250 days to set up a clinical trial. I’m going to slash that to 150.

    And on top of that, I can also announce – a new investment up to £600 million in a new Health Data Research Service. A welcome partnership with the Wellcome Trust strengthening the genome cluster in Cambridge.

    Making sure that patient data in our NHS is unlocked for the public good. An opportunity for growth – but more importantly to save lives with cutting edge medicine and Britain is so good at this.

    We saw that in the pandemic. And we now need to pick up the pace again. This country has never waited around for history to shape us. We have shaped history – and we will do so again now.

    Take our future into our hands. Do everything necessary to defend our national interest.

    Strengthen our alliances, increase our defence power, support our businesses, jobs and workers.

    Rebuild, in defiance of a volatile world, our industrial strength.

    That is the purpose of this Government. Security and renewal. The world may be changing but we are driving forward securing our future with a clear Plan for Change.

    Thank you.

  • Feryal Clark – 2025 Speech at Alan Turing Institute’s Conference AI UK

    Feryal Clark – 2025 Speech at Alan Turing Institute’s Conference AI UK

    The speech made by Feryal Clark, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for AI and Digital Government, at the Alan Turing Institute in London on 17 March 2025.

    In 2001, I learnt to code.

    I was studying for my Master’s in Bioinformatics at Exeter.

    That meant analysing massive datasets, and picking up coding languages.

    And using that analysis to help us sequence genomes, create medicines tailored to your DNA, or predict the effects of new drugs.

    This was 24 years ago, and tech looked a bit different back then.

    I was rocking the Nokia 6310.

    Apple introduced the iPod, promising “10,000 songs in your pocket”. (If you were anything like me, you were using it to listen to U2 or Faithless.)

    Steven Spielberg released “A.I., Artificial Intelligence”, a futuristic fantasy about a humanoid robot trying to be a real boy.

    And in a computer lab in Devon, for this stressed-out Master’s student, the reality of coding was a nightmare.

    Any time something went wrong, you’d have to scour line upon line of code to try to find your mistake.

    The misplaced curly bracket in the binary haystack.

    One error could set your research back by days.

    I don’t need to tell you how different a picture we have before us now:

    • When my phone is my personal assistant, my concierge, my navigator.
    • When 90% of the world’s data was created in the last two years.
    • When AI is no longer the stuff of film directors’ dreams, but a practical tool changing our lives day to day – scanning for diseases in hospitals, or helping teachers plan lessons.
    • And when governments are seizing the opportunity to change how we operate, too.

    Last month, I went to see the Government Digital Service in Whitechapel.

    They’re using AI and other emerging tech to make interacting with the state as easy as banking on the go, or online shopping.

    A lot of that work is powered by AI.

    When I watched the team at work, I saw how every time there was a tiny mistake in the code, it would flash up in colour on their screens.

    Instant detection. Instant fix.

    No more hours hunting for that curly bracket, or days of research lost.

    Globally, change is inevitable.

    But what’s not inevitable is the UK’s place in all of that.

    Do we stand and watch change happen?

    Or do we take a leading role?

    I know that, for all of us in this room, there’s only one choice here.

    The UK’s legacy is one of leadership:

    • The 3rd biggest market for AI in the world.
    • Driven by research from 4 of the world’s 10 best universities.
    • And we’re home to some of the brightest luminaries in Artificial Intelligence – with two British Nobel prize winners for AI just last year.

    That talent stands on the shoulders of Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage and the man whose extraordinary contribution brings us all here today.

    But we are not content to let this legacy remain just that – a legacy.

    A history that we look back on fondly while, in the present day, other countries outpace us. And British people miss out on the benefits that AI can bring to their day to day lives.

    To reap the rewards, academia, industry and the public sector must continue to work together in forums like this to solve our most pressing challenges.

    And the government must give you the tools to make change possible.

    That’s why, in January, the Prime Minister launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan.

    It sets out how we’ll unlock the economic growth that AI promises – up to 47 billion pounds every year for the next decade.

    We’ll give firms and researchers access to the power and information you need to get your ideas off the ground – with 20 times more computing power by 2030.

    Early access to the AI Research Resource for academics and SMEs is now live, as we open up our supercomputers Dawn and Isambard.

    We’ll unlock the public datasets you need to make new discoveries.

    And we’ll also plug the skills gap – by building up skills at school, and nurturing research talent both homegrown and attracted from overseas.

    As part of this, we’re expanding the brilliant Turing AI Fellowships, to give leading academics from multiple disciplines the tools they need to use AI in their work.

    And we’ll keep supporting collaboration between academia, public sector and industry – working with the Alan Turing Institute and UKRI to drive progress at the cutting edge.

    I started by looking back, to a time when texts had character limits, and coding mistakes caused me sleepless nights.

    It feels right to end by looking forward.

    If we get this right – if academia and public and private sectors all play the roles we do best – what could the future look like?

    Here’s what we could say about this country:

    • Like most new technologies before it, AI has created a raft of new, exciting jobs – adding more jobs than it replaces. Our children’s children are doing jobs we don’t have names for yet.
    • No longer weighed down by admin, businesses are infinitely more productive. People can focus on the parts of their jobs that impact the bottom line, but also genuinely bring them joy.
    • The strain on our health service has eased, as AI saves us months on each new drug discovery; and earlier diagnosis gives patients back years with their families.
    • And with access to the world’s knowledge at ordinary people’s fingertips, life in the UK becomes more equal.

    We know this future doesn’t just happen if we press ‘play’ and let time pass.

    It needs a supply of power and talent. Careful handling on safety and ethics. And a deliberate effort to make AI work for all in this country, not just the lucky few.

    Progress is only possible with partnership.

    So thank you for having me today.

    I hope the UK’s AI community continues to tell the government what you need, and to work with us to make our AI future as storied as our past.

    This is a chapter we can only write together.

  • Chris Bryant – 2025 Speech at the Connected Futures Festival

    Chris Bryant – 2025 Speech at the Connected Futures Festival

    The speech made by Chris Bryant, the Minister for Data Protection and Telecoms, on 26 March 2025.

    Hello. My name is Chris Bryant and I’m the telecoms minister. I’m really sorry I can’t be with you. Well, I’m here with you virtually, which I suppose is particularly important for the kind of connectivity that we’re talking about. But I’m afraid that, as you’re meeting, I will be in Parliament for the spring statement, when the Chancellor of the Exchequer will be talking about economic growth and how we get the economy to really springboard into the future.

    I suppose that’s the key part of what I want to say today, which is that connectivity is a vital part of making sure that the UK economy grows, that everybody gets a chance to participate in our economic future, and that we embrace the technological changes that can make so many differences to people’s lives, whether in the delivery of public services or in the delivery of all the services that we rely on, whether it’s ordering a pizza, parking your car, or engaging with our local GP and seeing our latest test results.

    I know that the geopolitical picture looks uncertain at the moment, and many parts of our lives, of course, are uncertain. Sometimes, trying to predict the future is difficult. That’s one of the reasons that, whereas we’ve always talked about “future telecoms” in the past, we’re changing the terminology to something which I think suits much better the situation that we face today. And that’s why instead of referring to “future telecoms”, we’re now going to be referring to “advanced connectivity technologies”, because advanced optics and satellite communications aren’t the ghosts of telecoms futures anymore, but actually telecoms present – let’s face it! Last year, Aston University transmitted data 4.5 million times faster than the average home broadband connection. We have started to send data through visible light. And Vodafone made the first video call via space last year. I’m an MP for a constituency in South Wales in The Valleys, and so I was very happy to see that that call took place from a remote Welsh mountain. The death of “notspots” may just about be in sight for us all!

    The breakthroughs we are seeing mean that the UK could once again be a leader in connectivity over the next ten years, and I’m absolutely determined that we take forward those opportunities.

    But before I take you into the future, let’s just pause briefly in the present. As we shape the next generation of connectivity, we must remember that some people in this country haven’t yet got this generation of technological connectivity. There’s 1.6 million people in the UK who live largely offline. We have to factor them into our future, and our ambition is to have gigabit-capable broadband in every home and in every business, and higher quality 5G to all populated areas by 2030. Through the Digital Inclusion Action Plan, which we’ve recently launched, we’ll make sure people also have the devices and skills to be part of a digital future. We want to tackle digital exclusion so that we can take the whole of our country with us. So, deploying the best technology we have today and taking a leading role in shaping the technologies of tomorrow is vital to our economic success.

    We will shape them, obviously, with global allies – but we will be guided by three central ideas. First of all, do they bring connectivity to everyone, everywhere, whatever your circumstances? Secondly, do they have security and resilience built in from the start? And thirdly, are they built sustainably, so that better connectivity gets us closer to net zero and not further away? These are all equally important, fundamental principles and ideas behind what we’re trying to achieve in this area.

    The UK has the potential to be at the forefront as we develop these technologies. For a start, we build on research from some of the best universities in the world, and the JOINER research and innovation platform gives them a unique test network to prepare for 6G. British firms are getting connectivity to places it hasn’t gone before, like trains, offshore wind farms and space. BT, who nearly two centuries ago set up the world’s first nationwide communications network, are now leading the way with Toshiba in trials of quantum secure comms. And global companies like Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung have all chosen to do R&D work here in this country, in the United Kingdom.

    We will shape them, obviously, with global allies – but we will be guided by three central ideas. First of all, do they bring connectivity to everyone, everywhere, whatever your circumstances? Secondly, do they have security and resilience built in from the start? And thirdly, are they built sustainably, so better connectivity gets us closer to net zero and not further away? These are all equally important, fundamental principles and ideas behind what we’re trying to achieve in this area.

    The UK has the potential to be at the forefront as we develop these technologies. For a start, we build on research from some of the best universities in the world, and the JOINER research and innovation platform gives them a unique test network to prepare for 6G. British firms are getting connectivity to places it hasn’t gone before, like trains, offshore wind farms and space. BT, who nearly two centuries ago set up the world’s first nationwide communications network, are now leading the way with Toshiba in trials of quantum secure comms. And global companies like Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung have all chosen to do R&D work here in this country, in the United Kingdom.

    We can and should go further, though, making the UK a global leader in advanced connectivity. And that’s where the government and industry really must work hand-in-hand. We will strengthen our supply chains – that’s really important. Today we will publish the government’s response to the report from the Telecoms Supply Chain Diversification Advisory Council, outlining how we will support a thriving ecosystem of suppliers for our networks. I’m immensely grateful to all those who took part in the Council’s work.

    We will back your growth in this sector. Advanced connectivity will be one of the growth markets in our Industrial Strategy within the digital and technology sector. That means the backing across Whitehall to help you succeed. As a sign of that commitment, today I can announce that we will invest nearly £60 million over the next year, 2025 to 2026, to support UK leadership in R&D so that more of the technology providing the world’s critical connectivity is developed here in the UK.

    If we get this right, then ten years down the line we will be able to say that this technology has made people’s daily lives better, put more money in people’s pockets and helps to keep the UK and our allies safe in a turbulent world. That’s a connected future we can only build together.

    Thank you and I hope you have a good conference today.

  • Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at Space Expo

    Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at Space Expo

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, at the Excel in London on 11 March 2025.

    The British Space programme began in the same year that our late queen, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, ascended to the throne.

    Sixty-three years ago, the launch of Ariel One, the first British-American satellite, made Britain only the 3rd country to launch into orbit.

    In little more than a decade, we went from a nation with space ambition to one of the few countries with a satellite operation.

    Then, as I was enjoying my first birthday, Prospero became the first British satellite to be launched by a British rocket.

    All those years ago, deciding to have a space programme, designing, building and launching a spacecraft, took decades of planning.

    Fast-forward to today:

    • When, somewhere around the world, there is a rocket launching every 34 hours.
    • When the UK’s space economy is outpacing the growth of our economy as a whole.
    • And when, just this month, the second-ever private spacecraft touched down successfully on the surface of the moon. Powered by British engines, engineered in Buckinghamshire.

    An international effort, with British expertise, contributing to a successful lunar mission.

    There is no mistaking the increasing pace of change.

    Or just how much the people in this room – and the businesses you lead – now contribute towards the growing the British economy.

    So, to begin with, it’s my job to say thank you to all of you.

    Britain’s space sector is not just safe in your hands. It is thriving under your stewardship.

    And with the British economy, it’s felt increasingly, and it’s felt day by day.

    This is a government that has economic growth as our number one mission.

    And for us, growth isn’t just a soundbite.

    It is our very purpose.

    Growth rates are more than an indicator of the state of the economy…

    …They are an indication of this government’s state of mind.

    We are:

    • ambitious for Britain
    • determined to build the wealthier, fairer nation for everyone.
    • And we are impatient for the increased wealth and opportunities that economic growth brings to communities, businesses and to people alike.

    With 16% of UK GDP depending on satellite services, there’s no doubt that the space sector is important to that.

    Because Britain has never had a space flight with our own crew on board, it is too easy for some ‘armchair astronauts’ to dismiss the UK space programme.

    I believe we are approaching a space tipping point. At which it becomes simply impossible for even the most determined science-cynic to ignore.

    From how we message family and friends or check the weather, to how our country protects itself from climate change and national security threats that we increasingly face – space technologies simply underpin our lives.

    From the everyday, right through to the extraordinary.

    As heavy launches into low orbit become less costly – 95% cheaper than 40 years ago – and the barriers to entry are more easily overcome, the space tipping point now brings with it new risks that we have to face up to:

    • Hundreds of millions of pieces of space junk that threaten the satellites that support almost every part of our interconnected world.
    • As that figure rises, so does the chance of an accidental collision of catastrophic consequences.
    • And at the same time, space is becoming more and more accessible to hostile actors as well, eventually, possibly seeking to do Britain harm.

    The severity of these risks cannot be overstated.

    But neither should we be blind to the extraordinary opportunities that space technologies offer to our country and to us.

    To embed innovation in every part of our economy…

    …and open the doors to a new era of high productivity and growth.

    To secure our nation for the century ahead…

    …and make discoveries that will transform citizens’ lives.

    We reach this tipping point, and we have a narrow window to secure our stake in space.

    We sometimes talk about scientific progress as if it were inevitable.

    But there is nothing inevitable about progress as every one of you knows well.

    If we and our allies stand still, whilst our competitors stride ahead – or hostile actors get a foot in the door – we will find ourselves locked out of the opportunities space can bring.

    And left exposed further to the risks.

    That’s why space is a strategic priority for this Labour government as we deliver our Plan for Change.

    That requires strategic partnerships with our allies in Europe and around the globe, and between the public and the private sectors.

    And it also means being clear about the roles and responsibilities of each.

    There are some activities – like national security – which only governments can and should do.

    Others, where the creativity, the ingenuity and the enterprise of the private sector will suffice.

    And then there is a third way, where the power of partnership of governments and enterprise is the route to discovery, prosperity and to greater growth as well.

    Since we took office in July, I’ve met many of the players behind Britain’s burgeoning space economy.

    Businesses like Astroscale and ClearSpace, designing new missions to remove dangerous space clutter from orbit.

    And Space Forge, who are finding ways to manufacture semiconductors in microgravity.

    The success of businesses like these depends on world-leading research and an ambitious, entrepreneurial mindset.

    The UK is well placed to lead in both.

    These businesses also need a government that understands and appreciates their potential, has their back, and gives them the foundations to keep pushing the frontiers forward.

    Since 2015, the UK has attracted more private investment in space than any other country outside of the United States.

    We cherish Britain as a beacon for innovation, investment, stability and the rule of law.

    And we are determined to keep that beacon burning brightly in the increasingly competitive and uncertain international environment.

    Space is one of the first 4 areas singled out for attention by the new Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO).

    That Office will cut the burden of bureaucracy, freeing up your time and your resources to invest and innovate further and faster.

    Government must, always must, continue to fulfil our side of the bargain, backing British space with the support the sector needs.

    That means grant funding for innovation; direct investment into strategically significant projects; and procuring from the UK firms from government contracts.

    Take our £20 million investment into Orbex, to fund the first British-made, British-launched rocket, set for orbit later this year.

    Prime is designed to take small satellites into the polar orbits, to improve our understanding of a region right at the frontline of climate change.

    The launch will transform the UK space industry.

    It will bring highly-paid jobs to the Shetland Islands, whilst boosting Europe’s ability to access space from our own continent.

    The UK space sector is further bolstered by Britain’s membership of the European Space Agency.

    Indeed, Britain does better because of that key partnership.

    From inspiring the nation with Tim Peake’s flight to the International Space Station, to our instrumental role in the James Webb Space Telescope, our partnership with the ESA means British firms winning in this unique global marketplace.

    In the last quarter of 2024, UK businesses’ net revenues from the ESA were £80 million higher than our contribution.

    That’s a record for any member state.

    And this success is a direct result of public and private sectors working closer together to make sure the UK sees the great return on our collective investment.

    The knock-on effects of these contract wins will add up to a £1 billion of boost across our economy.

    They’ll create 3,800 highly skilled jobs, from Stevenage right up to the Shetland Isles.

    And they will ensure that British businesses have the power and investment to continue making discoveries that will transform people’s lives:

    • Like Airbus, selected to build a spacecraft to help us weather violent solar storms.
    • Thales Alenia Space, which will propel crucial cargo and scientific instruments right up to the moon’s surface.
    • And Open Cosmos, granted contracts to study the magnetic field, and using what they learn to bolster our satellites and better fight climate change.

    The immense contribution British businesses make to our island’s space story shows ambition, integrity, and leadership.

    It is testament to these traits, alongside the determination and dedication of our people.

    As we stand in this space tipping point, the government’s commitment to economic growth demands that we support science and we invest in innovation.

    We also champion the critical technologies to maximise the power and potential of the British economy.

    Your contribution and the commitment to our economic growth mission is profoundly important.

    So, I want to finish exactly where I started:

    By acknowledging your efforts and extending our appreciation for them, as you help to make Britain more productive, more prosperous, and more pioneering.

    On this planet and beyond.

    Thank you very much.

  • Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at the Munich Security Conference

    Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at the Munich Security Conference

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Technology Secretary, in Munich on 14 February 2025.

    Innovation is defined by its ability to surprise.

    Only a few years ago, GPT-2 meant nothing to the public.

    For many of us, AI felt like a distant possibility at best.

    Something that would never – could never – live up to the hype.

    And yet, overnight, ChatGPT became a household name.

    It unleashed an unprecedented wave of technological change.

    And the pace of progress shows no signs of slowing down.

    With DeepSeek, we’ve just seen once again just how sudden, how unpredictable, innovation can be.

    The AI revolution is happening.

    Ignoring it is simply not an option.

    In the UK, we reject the doomsayers and the pessimists.

    Because we are optimistic about the extraordinary potential of this technology.

    And hopeful for the radical, far-reaching change it will bring.

    We launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan to put us on the front foot.

    Working in collaboration with our international partners, we’re going to create one of the biggest clusters of AI innovation in the world and deliver a new era of prosperity and wealth creation for our country.

    This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity.

    If we can seize it, we will close the door on a decade of slow growth and stagnant productivity.

    Of taxes that are just too high.

    We will deliver new jobs that put more money in working people’s pockets.

    And we will drive forward a digital revolution inside government to make our state smaller, smarter, and more efficient.

    But none of that is possible unless we can mitigate its risks that AI presents.

    After all, businesses will only use these technologies if they can trust them.

    Security and innovation go hand in hand.

    AI is a powerful tool and powerful tools can be misused.

    State-sponsored hackers are using AI to write malicious code and identify system vulnerabilities, increasing the sophistication and efficiency of their attacks.

    Criminals are using AI deepfakes to assist in fraud, breaching security by impersonating officials.

    Last year, attackers used live deepfake technology during a video call to mimic bank officials.

    They stole $25 million.

    And now we are seeing instances of people using AI to assist them in planning violent and harmful acts.

    These aren’t distant possibilities.

    They are real, tangible harms, happening right now.

    The implications for our people could be pervasive and profound.

    In the UK, we have built the largest team in a government dedicated to understanding AI capabilities and risks in the world.

    That work is rooted in the strength of our partnerships with the companies who are right at the frontier of AI.

    Working with those companies, the government can conduct scientifically informed tests to understand new AI capabilities and the risks they pose.

    Make no mistake, I’m talking about risks to our people, their way of life, and the sovereignty and stability which underpins it.

    That is why today, I am renaming our AI Safety Institute as the AI Security Institute.

    This change brings us into line with what most people would expect an Institute like this to be doing.

    They are not looking into freedom of speech.

    They are not deciding what counts as bias or discrimination.

    They are not politicians – nor should they be.

    They are scientists – scientists who are squarely focused on rigorous research into the most serious emerging risks.

    They are researching AI’s potential to assist with the development of chemical and biological weapons.

    They are building on the expertise of our National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to understand how this technology could be used to help malicious actors commit cyber-attacks.

    They want to understand how AI could undermine human control.

    Our research shows that those risks are clear:

    There has been a clear upward trend in AI system capabilities most relevant to national security in the past 18 months.

    • For the first time last year, AI models demonstrated PhD-level performance on chemistry and biology question sets.
    • The safeguards designed to prevent these models doing harm are not currently sufficient.
    • Every model tested by the Institute is vulnerable to safeguard evasion attacks.
    • And it is almost certain that these capabilities will continue to improve, while novel risks will emerge from systems acting as autonomous agents to complete tasks with only limited human instruction.

    The more we understand these risks, the better we can work with companies to address them.

    And the faster we can keep our nation safe, the faster our people can embrace the potential of AI to create wealth and improve their lives.

    There are certain security risks which require immediate action.

    That is why the Security Institute will collaborate with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, the Ministry of Defence’s science and technology organisation, to assess the dual-use scientific capabilities of frontier AI.

    Today, we are also launching a criminal misuse team in the Security Institute, who will partner directly with the Home Office to conduct research on a range of crime and security issues which threaten to harm our citizens.

    Earlier this month, the UK set out plans to make it illegal to own AI tools optimised to make images of child sexual abuse.

    Reports of AI-generated child sexual abuse material found online by the Internet Watch Foundation have quadrupled in a single year.

    The Security Institute will work with the Home Office to explore what more we can do to prevent abusers using AI to commit their sickening crimes.

    A security risk is a security risk, no matter where it comes from.

    US companies have shown the lead in taking security risks seriously.

    But we need to scrutinise all models regardless of their jurisdiction of origin.

    So I’ve instructed the Security Institute to take a leading role in testing AI models wherever they come from, open or closed.

    While we can’t discuss these results publicly, we will share them with our allies.

    We are alive to the security risks of today.

    But we need to focus on tomorrow, too, and the day after that.

    We are now seeing the glimmers of AI agents that can act autonomously, of their own accord.

    The 2025 International AI Safety Report, led by Yoshua Bengio, warns us that – without the checks and balances of people directing them – we must consider the possibility that risks won’t just come from malicious actors misusing AI models, but from the models themselves.

    We don’t yet know the full extent of these risks.

    However, as we deploy AI across our economy, our society, and the critical infrastructure that keeps our nation secure, we cannot afford to ignore them.

    Because losing oversight and control of advanced AI systems, particularly Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), would be catastrophic.

    It must be avoided at all costs.

    I want to be clear exactly what this testing is, and what it’s not.

    It’s not a barrier to market access. Not a blocker to innovation.

    It is urgent scientific work to understand serious risks to our country.

    Governments are not passive bystanders in the AI revolution.

    We have agency in how AI shapes our society.

    And we have a responsibility to use that agency to defend our democratic way of life.

    Only countries with a deep and knowing understanding of this technology will be able to build the capacity they need to deliver for their citizens in the twenty-first century.

    But success is not a given.

    It depends on the democratic world rallying together to maintain our leadership in AI.

    Together, we can protect our fundamental values – freedom, openness, and opportunity.

    If we do that, we won’t just keep our people safe.

    We will ensure that they are first to benefit from the new era of wealth and prosperity which AI will bring.

  • Chris Bryant – 2024 Speech at Connected Britain 2024

    Chris Bryant – 2024 Speech at Connected Britain 2024

    The speech made by Chris Bryant, the Minister for Data Protection and Telecoms, at ExCel in London on 12 September 2024.

    I’m here to make you an offer. An offer I hope you won’t want to refuse.

    We all know this country has great potential, but we have struggled in recent years. Too many things just don’t seem to work. Economic growth has been anaemic at best GDP growth per head of population has fallen. The cost of-living crisis has hit family budgets and businesses.

    People are desperate to turn the corner.

    Which is why we as a government are keen to fix the foundations – the foundations of our society and our economy. And no foundations are more important than our digital telecoms infrastructure.

    And the phrase that keeps on coming back to me is from E M Forster’s novel, Howard’s End. He wrote ‘Only connect! Only connect the prose and the passion and both will be exalted. Live in fragments no longer.’

    So my offer to you, my ask, is simple: help us fix the foundations, help us achieve that ambition of ‘only connect’, so that our society and our economy can stop living in fragments. If we can do that together, UK productivity could improve, your customers would have more fruitful lives economically and socially, government could be more efficient, the economy could grow and the financial return to your companies would be more secure.

    This is a two way street. We know that investment needs to be driven by competition and we recognise the challenging investment climate against an international background, so we want to support industry to invest – through a stable fiscal framework and the right regulatory framework, light touch where it can be, but timely where enforced standards can facilitate secure decisions and investments.

    I would also add that we as ministers want to make timely and evidence-based decisions.

    Let me be specific about what that looks like.

    First, the basics of infrastructure rollout.

    Nobody seriously doubts that digital infrastructure underpins the modern digital economy, is a key driver of productivity and growth and is as essential as water and electricity.

    I won’t bore you with the statistics that you already know, but suffice it to say that we have made significant progress on superfast broadband, on gigabit capable broadband, on 4G and 5G non-standalone. Project Gigabit and the shared rural network have brought connectivity to many who would otherwise have missed out and I can assure you that our ambitions have not changed.

    Second, opportunities for better government.

    The Police and courts services are significant consumers of voice and data services. Standalone 5G could enable  video transmission from body cameras and drones, in vehicle connectivity and support virtual court hearings in rural areas.

    Standalone 5G can also transmit high resolution images from scans in hospitals, support autonomous medicine distribution – and enable more care in the community rather than in hospital beds. Future diagnostic imaging is likely to get greedier – and patients and local health services are going to need gigabit broadband to meet the challenge.

    So help us build better, more productive public services.

    Thirdly, opportunities for better lives.

    If we get the legislation right on smart data, smarter gas and electricity metres could make it far easier for households to heat their homes and save on fuel bills. That would be good for personal finances and help us meet our net zero commitments.

    There are economic advantages as well. Just think of the video games industry, one of our great success stories. It sits at the junction between tech and creativity. It needs strong connectivity, not just in offices in Leamington Spa, Dundee and Guildford, but in the countless flats and homes where designers work and in consumers’, customers’ and players’ homes. The circle of buffering doom is not the name of the latest game, but it is still a reality for too many.

    Fourthly, we need to safely and responsibly retire obsolete legacy systems and future-poof our infrastructure.

    The classic case here is Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), the old copper wires that provided our landlines for generations. They are failing at an increasing rate and need replacing. But that poses a real challenge for Telecare devices, 3 million of which are still operating on the old system. Government must and will do its part here. I have written to all the key local authorities to ensure that they work with operators to protect all vulnerable customers as they safely transition to fibre. And I have written to those who provide telecare devices to urge them to stop selling analogue-only kit that will very soon be unusable. In return, I’m delighted that all the operators are working on greater security during transition and greater battery resilience.

    I could make very similar arguments about 2G. So, let’s work together.

    Fifthly, I want us to connect everyone, but the truth is that far too many individuals and communities are excluded from the digital world.

    Around 1.5 million people live in digital poverty with either no or limited access to connectivity. 2% of school children are only able to access the internet at home via a mobile phone and that figure rises substantially amongst the poorest families. 27% of adults on low incomes only access the internet by smartphone.

    It is a shocking fact that the UK’s digital inclusion strategy is now more than ten years old – and ten years out of date. That cannot be right. Tackling digital inclusion is a key priority for this government. We want to take everyone with us – because if people are excluded by geography, age, financial status or lack of skills, that is a problem for the whole of society – and for you.

    So we want to work with you to find creative solutions to digital inclusion.

    I am grateful for the many social tariffs that are available, but only 8.3% (380,000) of over 4.6 million houses on Universal Credit take one up; only 45% of those eligible know that social tariffs exist, and 1.5 to 2 million are likely to struggle to afford even a social tariff.

    I’m certain we can do better – but we need to work together, government and industry, to realise the full potential of every community.

    Sixthly, we need to make the connection between two different aspects of my portfolio – telecoms and space.

    The UK has a real competitive advantage in space and I want to exploit that to its full potential. I’m also conscious that Al working with telecoms data stands a real chance of driving far more efficient use of telecom connectivity. I hope to say more about this soon.

    Seventh, I want us all to think about not-spots that have been a bit neglected.

    Why, oh why, can’t we sort connectivity on trains? And in urban areas, many of which are falling behind rural areas for all sorts of complex reasons to do with wayleaves. And after live music events – or rugby matches in Cardiff – when you can’t call a friend, text them or WhatsApp them to arrange to meet up. My plea is simple – help!

    Let me turn to what we are already doing as a government.

    We want to support commercial investment, so we are  ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework for the fixed and mobile (wireless) networks; we are undertaking a Mobile Market Review to understand the technological and structural changes taking place in the sector; and we are looking at how we can further reform planning regulations to remove barriers to infrastructure deployment.

    In order to remove barriers to rollout, we will implement the remaining telecoms provisions of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 as soon as possible; we will support the deployment of full-fibre to multi-dwelling units, such as blocks of flats and social housing, whilst remaining mindful of the need to maintain wholesale competition.

    And we will put additional momentum into flexible permitting for street works and supporting their implementation as early as possible. That said, I do want to ensure far greater cooperation between operators to prevent unnecessary telegraph pole deployment or street  excavation. I understand the economic realities, but the market was made for humanity, not humanity for the market. Today I met with representatives of the fixed-line industry, and I welcome the industry’s initiative to revise the Cabinet Siting and Pole Siting Code of Practice. I am hopeful that industry can deliver changes leading to better engagement and more considerate siting. But we reserve the right to take further action if this doesn’t deliver the goods for consumers.

    In order to realise the full benefits of adopting advanced connectivity, we are delivering the £36 million 5G Innovation Regions programme which empowers 10 regions across the UK to develop stackable use cases and commercial models for investing 5G in key sectors; and we are delivering the UK Telecoms Innovation Network (UKTIN) 5G Adoption programme to promote the adoption of 5G by businesses and local authorities.

    We also want to help shape the next generation of telecoms technologies and develop more UK-based and UK-generated innovation. To that end we have made a £70 million R&D investment in three university-led Future telecoms research hubs and provided funding for 16 innovative UK business consortia, developing the next generation of tech. And we are building alliances internationally including through joint R&D partnerships  with India and Korea, through more UK participation in Horizon Europe and by establishing the Global Coalition on Telecoms with the US, Australia, Canada and Japan. I should also say a word about security and resilience.

    We continue to work with communications providers and Ofcom to strengthen the security and resilience of UK networks and services.

    On network resilience, I am keen that mobile consumers are able to have continued access to the network, even when power cuts disrupt local access. Climate change shows us we must be prepared for severe adverse weather and the disruption that can bring, often in rural and remote communities. Mobile operators have some power back up mitigations in place, but they vary significantly by site and by operator. Some sites have back up power lasting several hours or even days, but there is a lack of consistency nationwide.

    Universal solutions may be difficult and expensive, but it’s  important to look closely at what solutions might be appropriate. I know Ofcom are looking at this closely following a Call for Input earlier this year, and we will want to work with Ofcom — and the power and telecoms sectors — to explore the right approach that balances the relevant factors.

    An important aspect of that resilience is maintaining diverse and healthy supply chains, without which the UK  network is vulnerable to disruption. I am especially grateful to the Telecoms Supply Chain Diversification Advisory Council for their new report, released today (Thursday 12 September), setting out recommendations on telecoms diversification policy. Obviously we need to carefully review their recommendations, but we will provide an official government response as soon as possible and we are already acting in this area, delivering the £250 million ‘Open Networks’ R&D Fund focussed on development of interoperable Open RAN to increase the number of actors in the supply chain; building testing infrastructure — including UK Telecoms Lab, focused on security.

    Let me end where I began, with E M Forster’s ‘Only Connect’. He wanted us to connect the heart and the brain. I want us to connect our artistic and our technical abilities; I want us to connect our finance, venture capitalist and tech industries; I want us to connect every   part of the country, every community and every family. And above all I want us as a government to be plugged in to the solutions to connect us all. I hope you’ll work with us.

  • Peter Kyle – 2024 Speech at the Science and Engineering Conference

    Peter Kyle – 2024 Speech at the Science and Engineering Conference

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology on 11 September 2024.

    Good afternoon.

    It’s a real pleasure to be here.

    Thank you for having me along. It really does mean the world to connect with people on the front line of R&D.

    Something you notice quite quickly when you get appointed to this job, is you do feel quite distant from the front line of some of things you’re making big decisions about, so it’s great to be here to connect with as many people as possible.

    Since I’ve got this job, people have constantly been asking me how it connects to people’s lives and is science really relevant to the daily lives and lived experiences of people.

    It is quite surprising for me to hear that question put in so many different ways.

    But the answer for me has never changed because anyone who has stepped foot into a secondary school classroom can see in a heartbeat how important science is to energising and inspiring young people.

    Anyone who has felt the sheer excitement of students setting up an experiment for the first time can see how important science is to inspiring young people.

    And they’ll tell you: not connecting with people’s lives just isn’t true.

    Because if you accept the idea that the only people interested in science are the professionals.

    The people with PhDs and post-docs.

    Then you’ve lost the argument about science before it has even started.

    Our challenge is not about persuading people to care about science.

    It is about what happens to science if you are forced to make difficult decisions.

    If you inherited – for example – a state with broken public finances and broken public services.

    How many of those young people would say that science should be first priority?

    And that’s the challenge we’ve got to overcome.

    We can’t just tell them that it is interesting or important.

    They already know that.

    We must show them why it matters so much for the things that they care about most.

    That is what our missions collectively is to achieve.

    They set out a clear plan for tackling the country’s greatest challenges together.

    A plan with R&D at its foundation.

    We know that the young people in that classroom want to live fulfilling and happy lives.

    So we must show them we can use science to build an NHS fit for the future.

    An NHS where doctors can use quantum scanners to detect diseases invisible to the human eye, giving them back precious years with their grandparents.

    Those young people care about achieving their own potential.

    So we must show them that technology such as AI can break down the barriers to opportunity.

    Helping teachers use AI to plan lessons that help every pupil go as far as their talents will take them.

    They care about the future of their planet, too.

    So we must show them that innovation can transform the way we generate clean energy and combat climate change.

    The success of our missions will be measured by the meaningful difference we make to everyday people’s lives.

    And every one of them will depend on growth.

    Because, more than anything else, it is growth that will shape those young people’s future.

    It is growth that determines whether they can get a good job in the place they grow up.

    Whether we can fix our hospitals and schools.

    Today, a decade of lost growth means that British people are earning less than a tenner more each week than they did in 2008.

    Taxes are at a seventy-year high.

    National debt is the highest its been since the 1960s.

    Stagnant growth and productivity has come at a profound cost to our country, our communities and individuals.

    A cost that is felt in our public services and in working people’s pockets.

    We are faced with a systemic problem and challenge.

    A problem the same old sticking plasters cannot fix.

    So we have got to do things differently.

    And science, it must be part of the solution as it has done every single time our country has moved forward.

    Because long-term, sustainable economic growth is impossible without innovation.

    You simply cannot make people better off without investment in R&D.

    A couple of months ago, I went to Glasgow to see what success could look like.

    There, I met some of the extraordinary people working in the city’s space sector.

    Some of them will have grown up as the children of shipbuilders, in a place that once built a fifth of the world’s ships.

    Now, they are building more satellites than anywhere else in Europe.

    Satellites that could transform the way we understand climate change.

    Or provide Internet access to some of our most remote communities.

    Later this year, I am heading to South Wales.

    The collapse of heavy industry there hollowed out cities, towns, and villages.

    Hundreds of thousands were left unemployed.

    Unable to do the only job they – or their parents – had ever done, many of them never worked again.

    Now, the region is home to the world’s first compound semiconductor cluster.

    And those same cities, towns and villages are once again at the beating heart of the global economy.

    Home to people who are designing and making the chips that are powering the digital revolution and driving forward our net zero ambitions.

    Their children might one day do the same.

    If I wanted to show people why science matters, I would point to places like that across our country.

    Places where R&D is providing good jobs in industries built to last.

    And giving communities their future back.

    The success of Glasgow and South Wales is testament to the power of partnership.

    Between the public and the private.

    World-leading universities working with bold, dynamic businesses.

    Too often, though, government has been missing in action.

    Some of the people I spoke to in Glasgow told me that the relationship with the state has felt less like a partnership – and more like a one-way street.

    Ever-shifting funding settlements have made it impossible to plan into the future and give the stability they need.

    A maze of unwieldy regulation has held business back, preventing them from developing products that could change people’s lives for the better.

    Universities have been treated like political footballs, rather than celebrated as a public good that they are.

    That is bad for innovation. It is bad for growth. And it is bad for working people.

    So it’s time to turn the page.

    In our national missions, I see an opportunity to build a long-term, strategic partnership in which we can both invest.

    A partnership anchored in stability – and in a belief that science and technology can benefit every single one of us, wherever we live in the country.

    It begins in the places where research happens: in labs and lecture halls across the country.

    Sometimes, life-changing discoveries can take decades to develop.

    Earlier this week, I spoke at the Terrence Higgins Trust.

    In 1982, Terrence Higgins became of the first people in the UK to die of an AIDS-related illness.

    It was almost thirty years before the treatment now used to prevent HIV infection became available to the public.

    For thirty years, scientists worked tirelessly to find a cure, often without the support they deserved – or, worse – in the face of outright opposition to even working on those solutions.

    If we want to see more breakthroughs like this.

    Breakthroughs that can bring back hope to millions.

    Then we need a coherent, clear-sighted approach.

    An approach grounded not in short-term decisions, but in a realistic, hopeful vision of a future where science makes life in Britain better.

    That is why we are introducing 10-year budgets for certain R&D activities.

    By giving researchers the long-term funding, they need to remain right at the heart of the cutting edge, we will end the uncertainty that undermines innovation.

    We will restore strength and stability to the relationship between industry and our research institutions.

    And we will give businesses in Britain the confidence to invest wholesomely in R&D.

    Above all, our approach will be determined by a relentless focus on delivery.

    We have already commissioned our AI Action Plan which will set out how we can make the very best use of artificial intelligence to grow the economy and improve public services, and the relationship between citizens and the public services that they depend on.

    And we have unlocked new investment in essential R&D infrastructure like the UK Biobank, the world’s leading biomedical database.

    That funding that will supporting scientists who are trying to find cures to devastating diseases like Parkinson’s, dementia and cancer.

    We know that discoveries this could take decades.

    But once they happen, it shouldn’t take decades for people to benefit.

    Because every day of dither or delay is another day that someone misses out.

    On the job that could change their life.

    Or the treatment that could save their life.

    The Regulatory Innovation Office will cut the time it takes for businesses to bring new ideas onto the market and into our lives.

    And Skills England will give them access to a home-grown workforce with the talent to take on the challenges of tomorrow.

    By fixing the foundations of our broken skills system, it will give every young person – no matter where they live – the opportunity to get on life.

    This week, hundreds of thousands of those young people will step into a science lab for the very first time.

    Each of them will have come home full of stories, of what they have done that day.

    The excitement of that first experiment.

    Or the disaster of an attempting a discovery gone wrong.

    As they get older, many of them will hold onto that kernel of inspiration.

    But they will begin to wonder – what does science do for me?

    When I can’t get a good job in my town.

    And my parents have been waiting weeks to see the doctor.

    Science means something different to all of us.

    Whether we are investing in new products in the lab.

    Or putting them to use on the factory floor.

    Our challenge remains the same.

    Not simply to tell people about the power of innovation.

    But to show them, by putting that power to use for the public good.

    In our missions, we have the promise of a partnership with a purpose.

    A partnership with people at its heart.

    Now, we must get on with the job and deliver for them.

    Thank you very much.

  • Peter Kyle – 2024 Speech at the Farnborough International Air Show

    Peter Kyle – 2024 Speech at the Farnborough International Air Show

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, at Farnborough International Air Show on 22 July 2024.

    Good morning.

    It’s great to be here.

    Thank you, Paul, for the kind introduction, and thank you all for being here this morning and crowding around, it’s great to see you all.

    This is my first speech as Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology.

    And I would like to start by telling you why I have chosen Farnborough to make my first speech.

    The first reason is one that I have got from meeting so many people who are working, innovating and driving the space sector.

    The second, personal reason – when I was appointed into the Shadow Secretary of State role by Keir Starmer, now the Prime Minister, back in September, I was keen as possible to get up and meet people who are working in the space sector. And something I’ve noticed straight away, whether it was in aviation, aeronautics, or in space, everyone single person I have met is dedicated to the sector in which you are working, that you go way beyond what I have seen in many other sectors. In innovations in other sectors, I think people, they test, they try, they try and find investment, but when it’s [inaudible] they don’t come together after a certain period, they move on and find another approach.

    But the sheer doggedness, the sheer passion, that I have seen in every single company, every single university research lab, and every aspect of space, it is a sector like no other.

    It is a sector who are so incredibly passionate about the sector, about their innovations, about their contribution to it but also passionate about the possibilities that space has. It’s infectious.

    And I have been infected by their enthusiasm and drive.

    The second reason is something that is personal, and quite interesting for me today because so many people have already said to me ‘Is this your first Farnborough?’.

    This is my fourth Farnborough and the other 3 have always been out there, not on the Monday, but the other days of the week where the public are invited and I’ve sat with my dad and my partner at the time. My partner worked for a commercial airliner and my dad was a Royal Navy aircraft mechanic in the 1960s where he worked in [inaudible] fighter jets of the day.

    So my entire upbringing has been with my dad telling stories on the deck; battling in the most extreme circumstances, keeping our aircraft of the day, fighter jets, in the sky, and when they crash landed, picking up the pieces, and trying to repair some of the aircraft of the day in extreme circumstances.

    Coming here with my dad and my partner for 3 Farnborough’s, sitting out there with one yabbering in my ear with every single detail of civil aviation and the other one being able to tell me the things in the sky by the sound of the engine, gives you an insight into the kind of family life and background I had running up to this moment in time.

    But now we are here, and that spirit of innovation I told you about that I detected from people who are driving from the centre, and that was represented by people around me and in my personal life, I think we bring into the mission-led approach, this government.

    None of the 5 missions of this government, that are going to drive the national renewal over a decade, that we have come into power on, can happen if we stick to the tried and tested.

    To find the bold solutions to the problems that have dogged our country for decades, and the solutions we will face in the decades to come, we must do things differently.

    In other words, we need to innovate.

    I am sure that the irony of a minister standing here and talking to you about national missions, for those of you working in the space sector, will not be lost. I promise not to labour the analogy.

    But I do stand here today because there is no better example than the space sector that explains what we are trying to do as a government.

    Opportunity

    Today, the UK’s space sector is growing 4 times faster than the overall UK economy.

    Its workforce is twice as productive as the British average.

    To create opportunities for companies to start, scale and succeed in the UK, to create the good jobs that bring prosperity to communities up and down our country, these sectors need to learn from space and space needs to lead the way.

    Delivery

    If we want to deliver better public services and better lives for the people up and down our country, then the answer is simply the same.

    • Understanding the effects of our changing climate.
    • Providing rural communities with internet access.
    • Keeping our armed forces safe and aircraft in constant contact.

    These are not just opportunities, they are obligations and none of them can be fulfilled without space.

    Security

    The first obligation for any government, of course, is to keep our country safe.

    Today, space-based services like satellite communications and remote sensing are the cornerstones of our national security.

    Without them, the systems that keep Britain safe will grind to a halt.

    Secure financial transactions that rely on timestamps that are accurate to the millisecond.

    Emergency services that depend on precise GPS data to find the people who need their help.

    In an increasingly unstable world, space will matter more than ever.

    And, as orbits become more congested – and contested – we must work with our NATO allies to protect our people.

    Discovery

    So, to anyone who asks – does space matter?

    These are my 3 principles – security, delivery and opportunity – they provide the beginnings of the answer.

    And yet none of them can quite capture what is so unique about space.

    No metric of growth or productivity can distil what is so breath-taking about the images taken by the James Webb telescope.

    Or the pioneering spirit that will propel the Rosalind Franklin rover to Mars.

    And it would be just as hard to measure the sense of pride I feel knowing that it was the contributions of British scientists that made these missions possible.

    To that trio, then, I would add a fourth – discovery.

    New solutions to new problems

    Because the value of human knowledge is never solely defined by its ability to solve our current crises.

    The astronauts on board Apollo 7 could never have predicted the ways that companies like Space Forge in Cardiff could exploit the cold and uncontaminated properties of microgravity to find new cures to Alzheimer’s and cancer, to 3D print organs for transplant patients or manufacture the semiconductors that will power the digital revolution that is unfolding today.

    The century to come will bring new problems.

    And as we search for new solutions, we simply cannot predict the ways that each discovery in space might matter.

    We can only prepare by supporting the scientists and businesses with the boldness and brilliance to make them better.

    Later today [22 July 2023], I’ll be meeting one of those people – I’ve already met Rosemary Coogan, who became our third ever astronaut earlier this year.

    A strategic partnership with business

    Looking ahead, I will be guided by these 4 principles – discovery and delivery, security and opportunity.

    But I cannot chart a course for success in space alone.

    No mission can succeed without a strong team, united around a common goal.

    Working closely with our international partners, including the European Space Agency, I want to forge a strategic partnership with businesses, researchers, and investors.

    A meaningful relationship anchored not in the short-term solutions and shorter funding cycles, but in certainty and stability. Because businesses don’t want a new strategy every 6 months. I’ve heard this repeatedly day in, day out.

    They need a clear signal from a government that isn’t afraid to make hard choices about where to focus our efforts. Because we know that we cannot do everything.

    But that makes it all the more important to invest in those technologies where we really can lead the world. I know that this strategic partnership will take time to build. But that work starts here today.

    National Space Innovation Programme

    So, here in Farnborough, I am announcing £33 million in funding for innovative businesses from the UK Space Agency’s National Space Innovation Programme (NSIP).

    From the smallest start-ups to global giants, the recipients of the fund aren’t just creating cutting edge technologies, they want to use that technology to build a better future for Britain.

    In Cambridge, SuperSharp are designing a heat-detecting telescope to gather the data that we will need to tackle the climate crisis.

    In Hereford, ETL Systems are building ground equipment that links satellites to 5G and 6G mobile networks, transforming connectivity.

    In Harwell, Orbit Fab and Lunasa are working on refuelling and docking technologies that will extend the lifespan of satellites and preserve our space environment for future generations.

    Later this week, I’ll be travelling up to Glasgow to meet one of the winners myself.

    Spire Global are developing technology to supply unique weather forecasting data to global weather prediction centres.

    And their success in Scotland embodies the phenomenal potential of our science and tech economy.

    Once the shipbuilding capital of the world, Glasgow now makes more satellites than anywhere in Europe.

    Someday soon, the phrase ‘Clyde Built’ – used in previous generations to describe the incredible ships built on the banks of the Clyde – will be used for small satellites, too.

    Travel fifty miles East through the Central Belt, and you will find a unique combination of world-class universities and innovation centres that are cementing Edinburgh’s reputation as a ‘space data capital.’

    Fly north to the Shetland Islands, as I soon will do, and before long you’ll get to SaxaVord. In Autumn, that space port will host the first ever vertical satellite launch in Europe, putting Britain on the map in an increasingly competitive global market.

    Conclusion

    In all of these places, a better future for Britain is coming into view.

    Here in Farnborough, you can see that future very clearly indeed.

    People with decades of experience in aerospace and oil and gas are using their expertise to build the industries of tomorrow and create prosperity for their communities.

    Talented researchers in world-leading universities are developing technologies to tackle some of our toughest problems.

    Innovative start-ups and spinouts are taking those solutions out of the lab and into our lives.

    I will be a champion for those people. Those researchers. And those businesses too. Because we have an extraordinary opportunity here.

    Together, we can grow our economy and create good jobs for the future for our people.

    We can deliver the public services they deserve.

    And we can protect our country in an increasingly volatile world.

    If change is our mission.

    Then this is right here is where we start.

    Thank you.

  • Daisy Cooper – 2024 Speech on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    Daisy Cooper – 2024 Speech on CrowdStrike – IT Outage

    The speech made by Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat MP for St. Albans, in the House of Commons on 22 July 2024.

    This is my first opportunity to welcome Ministers to their places. I thank the Minister for advance sight of the statement. I want to focus on the impact on the NHS. My thanks, and I am sure those of the entire House, go to all NHS staff who have been scrambling to deal with urgent inquiries from distressed patients.

    I wonder if I might press Ministers for assurances on two patient groups who need time-critical care. First, some patients require blood test results before they can commence urgent treatment or have operations. Are there any assurances on the attention that they will be given by the NHS, both now and in any future scenarios? Secondly, there are patients at great risk of becoming extremely ill from getting covid. Since the previous Government scrapped the covid medicines delivery unit, many vulnerable patients have been struggling to get the anti-virals that they need from their GP in time. That situation is made much worse when this kind of disruption happens. Can the hon. Lady provide assurances about any attention that NHS England has given to those two patient cohorts? If not, is she willing to meet me to discuss what we might do in future?

    Ellie Reeves

    I thank the hon. Member for her question highlighting the issues facing vulnerable patients. I am pleased to report that there was no reported impact on 111 or 999 services, and that patients were able to access emergency care. The majority of the impact on GP services was in accessing patient records, GP appointments and prescriptions. Patients who could not access GP appointments were able to attend urgent care services, and GPs were able to issue paper prescriptions. However, I will pass on the hon. Lady’s concerns to my colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care, because they are incredibly important issues and we need to ensure that vulnerable patients are protected, going forwards.