It is a priority action of the UK's International Technology Strategy to create the world's most extensive and capable technology diplomacy network, increasing the number of Technology Envoys, increasing our tech expertise across our global network, and uplifting the capability of our diplomats through training, secondments and recruitment. We are in the process of recruiting a North America Technology Envoy.

What steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology to help increase inward investment into the science and technology sector.

Mr Speaker, you can see that I am using my freedom on the Back Benches to improve my fitness and to make myself as fit as the Department.

May I take this opportunity to thank and congratulate the Secretary of State and the team at the Department for Business and Trade on the work they are doing, particularly with the global investment summit? There is a wall of money out there globally to invest in UK science and tech—in life science, quantum, fusion and agritech—and we are beginning, finally, to attract that money. What plans does the Department have to make it easier for global investors to deploy money at scale in UK clusters?

Will the Secretary of State and her team pay much more attention to the science and innovation possibilities in the hydrogen sector—that is, hydrogen energy and power? This is something we are good at, and the research is there. We need to be there quickly before the Chinese dominate the market.

My Secretary of State was so savvy that she brought in a science Minister and now, under her stewardship, science and technology is booming in the Department for Business and Trade. The UK has the No. 1 tech ecosystem in Europe, raising more venture

capital than France and Germany combined. Science and tech is not just for fans; we have now mainstreamed it with the Office for Investment, which is reaching out to companies around the world to highlight the advantages of investing in the UK, bringing in over £5 billion of investment, as was announced at the global investment summit just last year.

The Government works with public finance institutions such as UK Infrastructure Bank, British Business Bank, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), Export Credit Agency and UK Export Finance, to support investment in green technologies.

Chemical recycling covers a range of emerging technologies that could potentially offer a complementary recycling route for plastics where mechanical recycling is impractical or uneconomic. The Government has funded innovative demonstrator projects, including on chemical recycling, through UKRI’s Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging programme. In April of this year HM Treasury announced plans to consult on whether and how chemically recycled content could be accounted for in the Plastics Packaging Tax using a mass balance chain of custody model.

Chemical recycling covers a range of emerging technologies that could potentially offer a complementary recycling route for plastics where mechanical recycling is impractical or uneconomic. The Government has funded innovative demonstrator projects, including on chemical recycling, through UK Research and Innovation’s Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging programme. In April of this year HM Treasury announced plans to consult on whether and how chemically recycled content could be accounted for in the Plastics Packaging Tax using a mass balance chain of custody model.

The Government works with public finance institutions such as UK Infrastructure Bank, British Business Bank, UK Research and Innovation, Export Credit Agency and UK Export Finance, to support investment in green technologies.

The Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) and the long-term Advanced Propulsion Centre R&D programme continue to support the development and commercialisation of cutting-edge automotive technologies. The ATF enabled the £1bn electric vehicle hub in Sunderland in partnership between Nissan and Envision AESC.

In October 2022 we announced a record £211m of funding for the Faraday Battery Challenge, to support battery research and innovation, bringing the overall budget of the Challenge to £541m since 2017.

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Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon) (Con):

Wimbledon, Morden, Raynes Park and Motspur Park are home to many high-tech companies, including GripAble, which is developing solutions for neuro diseases. What are the Government doing in these trade deals and what steps are they taking to ensure that we get investment and trade in high-tech companies?

The Government recognises the importance of scale-up finance for breakthrough technology firms. Since launch in 2018, British Patient Capital (BPC) has committed more than £1.6bn into innovative later stage firms, with a further £9.1bn invested alongside it by private investors.

Future Fund: Breakthrough, launched by BPC in 2021, is a £375m programme enabling direct co-investment into promising later stage R&D-intensive UK businesses. The programme has made twelve investments totalling over £80m, including six investments into deeptech companies, making BPC the UK’s most active late-stage investor in deeptech in rounds above £30m. BPC recently invested £10m in Cambridge-based manufacturer PragmatIC Semiconductor.

The overall net effect of automation and AI on employment is unclear, but a plausible assumption based on historical trends and economic research for the UK would see a broadly neutral effect overall. Research published by BEIS in 2021 estimated that around 7% of existing UK jobs could face a high (over 70%) probability of automation over the next 5 years, rising to 18% after 10 years and just under 30% after 20 years. However, AI will also create many jobs through the boost it gives to productivity and economic growth.

The Government also welcomes research from academics and experts in the field including the ongoing work of the Pissarides Review into the Future of Work and Wellbeing, which is exploring the impacts of automation on work and wellbeing, and analysing how these are differently distributed between socio-demographic groups and geographical communities in the UK.

The Government has not seen evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have a significant effect on the marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. Any wash water discharges are controlled under these IMO Guidelines.

We have asked for more evidence from ship owners and industry associations about the content of wash water, and there are a number of ongoing industry-led studies on the issue. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found, but we will seek further amendments to the IMO Guidelines if it becomes clear that additional controls are needed.

The Department and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, played an active role in the development of the Guidelines for the use of scrubbing technology at both European and international level. Ships’ installed scrubbers must be approved in accordance with the Guidelines before operating in UK waters.

Along with other European States, we recognise that more ship owners are installing these systems in order to comply with the 0.5% sulphur cap, and that large numbers of ships using scrubbers in enclosed waters might have an impact on local water quality. This is why we have asked for more evidence from ship owners and industry associations about the content of wash water, and there are a number of ongoing studies being undertaken by the industry on the issue. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found, but we will seek further amendments to the IMO Guidelines if it becomes clear that additional controls are needed.

The Government has not seen any evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have a significant effect on the marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. The potential effects of the use of scrubber technologies on the marine environment was taken into consideration when developing the Guidelines. To be compliant, the systems collect and store any sulphur residue and solid particulate matter on-board the vessel, to be deposited at a port waste reception facility.

Some scrubbers discharge treated wash water back into the sea – which is also controlled under the IMO Guidelines. There are ongoing studies which are looking at the impact of wash water discharges within European waters, which we are monitoring. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found. However, we will respond appropriately at international level, if these or any other studies, conclude that further controls are needed.

Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems (EGCS), or ’scrubbers’ as they are commonly known, are an internationally recognised technology which ships can use to comply with sulphur limits, providing an alternative to using low sulphur marine fuel. The systems are subject to controls at an international level through the adopted International Maritime Organization (IMO) Guidelines, which are mandatory.

The Guidelines ensure sulphur dioxide emissions from scrubbers are equivalent or better than would be obtained from using compliant fuel. They also address water quality and environmental impacts, in order to mitigate risks to the marine environment.

The Department and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, played an active role in the development of the Guidelines at both European and international level with input from the Marine Management Organisation, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, system manufacturers, as well as approval organisations and industry stakeholders.

Ships’ installed scrubbers must be approved in accordance with the Guidelines before operating in UK waters.

The Government has not seen any evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have any significant effect on marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. The potential effects of the use of scrubber technologies on the marine environment was taken into consideration when developing the Guidelines. To be compliant, the systems collect and store any sulphur residue and solid particulate matter on-board the vessel, to be deposited at a port waste reception facility.

Some scrubbers discharge treated wash water back into the sea – which is also controlled under the IMO Guidelines. There are ongoing studies which are looking at the impact of wash water discharges within European waters, which we are monitoring. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found. However, we will respond appropriately at international level, if these or any other studies, conclude that further controls are needed.

The Government has not seen any evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have any significant effect on marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. The potential effects of the use of scrubber technologies on the marine environment was taken into consideration when developing the Guidelines. To be compliant, the systems collect and store any sulphur residue and solid particulate matter on-board the vessel, to be deposited at a port waste reception facility.

Some scrubbers discharge treated wash water back into the sea – which is also controlled under the IMO Guidelines. There are ongoing studies which are looking at the impact of wash water discharges within European waters, which we are monitoring. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found. However, we will respond appropriately at international level, if these or any other studies, conclude that further controls are needed.

The Government has not seen any evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have any significant effect on marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. The potential effects of the use of scrubber technologies on the marine environment was taken into consideration when developing the Guidelines. To be compliant, the systems collect and store any sulphur residue and solid particulate matter on-board the vessel, to be deposited at a port waste reception facility.

Some scrubbers discharge treated wash water back into the sea – which is also controlled under the IMO Guidelines. There are ongoing studies which are looking at the impact of wash water discharges within European waters, which we are monitoring. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found. However, we will respond appropriately at international level, if these or any other studies, conclude that further controls are needed.

The Government has not seen any evidence that the use of scrubbing technology would have any significant effect on marine environment.

All scrubbers must comply with mandatory Guidelines, which were developed by the International Maritime Organization, before they are allowed to become operational. The potential effects of the use of scrubber technologies on the marine environment was taken into consideration when developing the Guidelines. To be compliant, the systems collect and store any sulphur residue and solid particulate matter on-board the vessel, to be deposited at a port waste reception facility.

Some scrubbers discharge treated wash water back into the sea – which is also controlled under the IMO Guidelines. There are ongoing studies which are looking at the impact of wash water discharges within European waters, which we are monitoring. At this stage, we are not aware of any significant issues which have been found. However, we will respond appropriately at international level, if these or any other studies, conclude that further controls are needed.