Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1178434

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to help ensure that misinformation on Corvid-19 on social media channels is removed.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	1981
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2020 answer text <p>The Government is clear that inaccurate information about public health matters can be harmful. The response to Covid-19 is being led by Cabinet Office, Department for Health and Social Care and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The Government is actively working to ensure that the public has access to accurate information. The Government launched a public information campaign setting out how every member of the public, including members of this House, can help by taking simple steps to minimise the risk to themselves and their families, with up-to-date information available online through Gov.UK and trusted NHS channels such as NHS.UK. The Government also welcomes actions taken by social media companies to limit the spread of inaccurate information, including about Covid-19, on their platforms.</p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 25/02/2020 17:32:16 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1186080

registered interest
date	18/03/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when the Counter Disinformation Unit on covid-19 became operational; how many full-time equivalent staff work in that unit; from which Departments those staff were recruited; and whether any new staff have been hired to work in that unit.
tabling member constituency	Folkestone and Hythe
tabling member printed	Damian Collins
uin	31484
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2020 answer text <p>Whilst this cross-government counter-disinformation capability was recently stood up to support COVID-19 response efforts, existing structures have been monitoring for disinformation related to the disease as part of their ongoing work.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The capability is resourced full time through existing cross-government teams and there are no additional costs associated with it.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>There are a number of organisations that have relevant capabilities and responsibilities which are brought together through this work. This includes existing teams in DCMS, the Home Office, the Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office, the Cabinet Office and No10.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 23/03/2020 10:01:46 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	3986 label Biography information for Damian Collins

1186182

registered interest
date	18/03/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many cases of disinformation have been considered by the Counter Disinformation Unit on covid-19 to date; what action was taken in response to cases of disinformation by that unit; and if that unit will publish examples of identified cases of disinformation on covid-19.
tabling member constituency	Folkestone and Hythe
tabling member printed	Damian Collins
uin	31485
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2020 answer text <p>It would not be appropriate to provide a running commentary on instances of misinformation or disinformation. We will address instances of misinformation or disinformation using the most appropriate mechanism. We are grateful for the work civil society and academica are doing to highlight and correct misinformation.</p><p><strong><br></strong>As Government one of the best things we can do is make sure that everyone has access to the correct information about the virus. As such, we are working with industry to support the introduction of systems and processes that promote authoritative sources of information. The Government’s public information campaign provides the latest and most accurate information about Covid-19.</p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 23/03/2020 10:01:12 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	3986 label Biography information for Damian Collins

1186288

registered interest
date	18/03/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how her Department's covid-19 misinformation unit will differ from the anti-disinformation unit in the Cabinet Office; and for what reasons that unit is separate from the anti-disinformation unit.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	31504
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2020 answer text <p>Addressing the challenges of disinformation and misinformation is a whole of government effort. DCMS is coordinating a cross-government capability which brings together existing expertise from within Government to provide the most comprehensive picture possible about the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation on the Covid-19 crisis.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>There are a number of other organisations that have relevant capabilities and responsibilities which are brought together through this work. This includes teams in, DCMS, the Home Office, the Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office, the Cabinet Office and No10.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 23/03/2020 10:00:15 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1190284

registered interest
date	24/04/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to prevent false information on covid-19 being spread on the internet.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	39666
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/05/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of misinformation and disinformation very seriously. It is vitally important that the public has accurate information.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Counter Disinformation Unit brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We are working closely with social media platforms to help them identify and remove incorrect claims about the virus, in line with their terms and conditions, as well as promote authoritative sources of information. We are also working with strategic communications experts to ensure that we are prepared to respond to disinformation campaigns where necessary.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government is also running a counter disinformation communications campaign, which aims to increase audience resilience by educating and empowering those who see, inadvertently share and are affected by false and misleading information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 06/05/2020 15:07:42 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1192919

registered interest
date	04/05/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what resources have been allocated to tackling the spread of misinformation on covid-19.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	43223
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/05/2020 answer text <p>In support of the Government’s central Covid-19 response, the Counter Disinformation Unit stood up on 5 March 2020. The Unit brings together cross-government capabilities, including monitoring, analysis and strategic communications. It includes teams in DCMS, the Home Office, the Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office and the Cabinet Office.</p><p> </p><p>The capability is resourced full time through existing cross-government teams. We have reallocated staff from within the Department to treble the size of the team at DCMS.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 11/05/2020 10:02:47 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1195645

registered interest
date	13/05/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the role of (a) anonymous and (b) pseudo-anonymous social media accounts in spreading disinformation about the covid-19 pandemic.
tabling member constituency	East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow
tabling member printed	Dr Lisa Cameron
uin	46703
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2020 answer text <p>We are working closely with technology companies, civil society and academia to support users to understand and manage the risks and benefits of being online during this period. The Cross-Whitehall Counter-Disinformation Unit was stood up on 5 March 2020 to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation on Covid-19, and is working with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. On April 23rd DCMS published new guidance for all users on staying safe online during the Covid-19 pandemic. It includes detailed advice on privacy settings, cyber security and disinformation.</p><p>The Government is committed to making the UK the safest place to be online. We expect companies to take responsibility for tackling abusive behaviour on their services such as taking steps to limit anonymised users abusing their services, including harassing others. We are continuing work to develop the final policy position on the new online harms regulatory framework and intend to publish a full government response later this year.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 46702 question first answered 21/05/2020 13:11:55 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4412 label Biography information for Dr Lisa Cameron

1196618

registered interest
date	18/05/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding from the public purse the Government has allocated to preventing the spread of misinformation on covid-19 since 1 March 2020.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	48419
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/05/2020 answer text <p>Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. The DCMS-led Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU) was stood up on 5 March 2020, bringing together cross-government monitoring and analysis capabilities from DCMS, the Home Office, the Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office and the Cabinet Office. In response to the current situation, we have trebled the size of the coordination team at DCMS.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>CDU capability is resourced full time through existing cross-government teams.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Addressing the challenges of disinformation and misinformation is a whole of government effort and we are working around the clock with Whitehall departments, the social media platforms, and disinformation specialists in academia and civil society to lead the fight against misinformation and disinformation.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 27/05/2020 09:32:07 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1196671

registered interest
date	18/05/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to tackle the spread of fake news relating to covid-19 circulating (a) on social media and (b) in print media.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	48542
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/06/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. It is vitally important, at this time of national emergency, that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation. The Government has seen positive steps taken by social media platforms to curtail the spread of harmful and misleading narratives related to COVID-19. We are working closely with platforms to help them identify and remove dangerous and incorrect claims about the virus, in line with their terms and conditions, as well as promote authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p><p>To help drive awareness of the Government’s national campaign to provide information and reassurance to the public about COVID-19, we have created new and innovative partnerships to drive awareness, engagement and compliance. This includes a significant public information campaign across the local and national press which is providing information and reassurance to the public and is ensuring that authoritative, up-to-date information about the Government’s response to Covid-19 is distributed through reliable channels. The government does not intervene in what the press can and cannot publish. Newspapers are subject to independent self-regulation.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is running a counter disinformation campaign, “Don’t feed the Beast” which aims to increase audience resilience by educating and empowering those who see, inadvertently share and are affected by false and misleading information. The campaign promotes the SHARE checklist, providing the public with five easy steps to identify false content, encouraging users to stop and think before they share content online.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 02/06/2020 08:48:02 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson

1196703

registered interest
date	18/05/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Disinformation: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to take steps to obtain an independent assessment of the performance of technology companies in tackling the spread of disinformation on covid-19.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	48423
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/05/2020 answer text <p>The Government has seen positive steps taken by social media platforms to curtail the spread of harmful and misleading narratives related to Covid-19. Major platforms have updated their terms of service and made technical changes to their products in order to reduce the impact of harmful misinformation. This includes measures to ensure users see accurate information on Covid-19, including links to NHS and other authoritative sources.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government continues to work closely with platforms to help them identify and take action to remove dangerous, incorrect claims about the virus, and suspend the accounts of people who wilfully post and share it. While there has been positive engagement so far, we want the platforms to continue to take further steps to address misinformation and disinformation relating to Covid-19 on their systems.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 27/05/2020 10:19:08 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah