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1251483

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
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	Shared Rural Network: 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 he plans to publish the results of the Government's assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the Shared Rural Network programme.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	114869
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>There has been no significant impact to the delivery of the Shared Rural Network programme as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since signing the grant agreement in March, initial radio plans have been submitted to the regulator, Ofcom, and an open, fair and transparent competitive procurement process for the publicly funded elements of the programme has commenced.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Boston and Skegness answering member printed Matt Warman question first answered 16/11/2020 15:33:55 answering member 4361 label Biography information for Matt Warman
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1250437

registered interest
date	11/11/2020
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	Coronavirus: Disinformation
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 assessment he has made of trends in the level of activity of hostile states in relation to spreading disinformation and conspiracy theories on covid-19.
tabling member constituency	St Helens North
tabling member printed	Conor McGinn
uin	113586
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it continues to be vitally important that the public has accurate information about the virus, and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</p><p>That is why we stood up the Counter Disinformation Unit up on 5 March to bring 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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken.</p><p>Whilst disinformation can come from a range of sources, we know that certain states routinely use disinformation as a foreign policy tool. The UK, along with our G7 and Nato partners, is working hard to protect our democracies against disinformation as we work together to tackle the shared threat of Covid-19</p><p>We continue to monitor for any disinformation campaigns and any related conspiracy theories so that we can respond to them quickly and effectively. We are focused on addressing disinformation by any actor, whether state or non-state.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 16/11/2020 14:45:24 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4458 label Biography information for Conor McGinn

1250829

registered interest
date	11/11/2020
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	Broadband and Mobile Phones
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 estimate he has made of the number of (a) elderly people and (b) people who are clinically extremely vulnerable to covid-19 who do not have access to (i) a smart phone and (ii) secure broadband; and what steps he is taking to reduce levels of digital exclusion among those groups.
tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
uin	114266
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>Estimates based on Ofcom data suggest that between 4,920,000 - 5,780,000 people aged 70+ do not personally use a smartphone. Between 2,390,000 - 3,220,000 people aged 70+ do not have household access to connected devices. We do not have robust data on the digital access of people who are clinically extremely vulnerable to covid-19 and we are seeking to improve our understanding of this issue.</p><p>In March, the government agreed a set of voluntary commitments with telecommunications providers to support and protect vulnerable consumers and those who might become vulnerable as a result of Covid-19. This included a commitment to work with customers who are finding it difficult to pay their bills to ensure that they are treated fairly and appropriately supported. The Government also brokered a deal with providers which have allowed half a million NHS staff to benefit from better connectivity, and also ensured that a number of websites, including the NHS website, are zero-rated.</p><p>The introduction of the digital entitlement means that from August 2020, adults with no or low digital skills can undertake new digital skills qualifications up to Level 1 free of charge. The Government also supports the Future Digital Inclusion programme focussing on those hardest to reach. Since 2014, the programme has helped over 1.4 million people to gain the digital skills they need for life and work.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 16/11/2020 14:53:30 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1250989

registered interest
date	11/11/2020
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	Loneliness
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 assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for charities and community projects which tackle loneliness.
tabling member constituency	Nottingham East
tabling member printed	Nadia Whittome
uin	114349
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>In April, Government launched a £750 million charity funding package. This spearheaded a major effort to tackle loneliness, with over £23 million allocated to this activity. Activity includes a £5 million grant fund to support national organisations working to tackle loneliness and build social connections to help them continue and adapt their critical work. This has given grants of between £500,000 and £810,000 to 9 organisations. In addition, a further £44 million of the £750 million package was given to organisations supporting people with their mental health.</p><p> </p><p>Government has also announced a £4 million microgrants fund, in partnership with The National Lottery Community Fund, to provide targeted funding to small grassroots organisations, to build relationships in communities to help reduce loneliness. This funding is due to be available shortly.</p><p> </p><p>Government continues to work closely with the civil society sector to assess both the needs of vulnerable people and the sector itself, and how government can best support the continuation of its vital work.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 16/11/2020 17:29:51 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4869 label Biography information for Nadia Whittome

1250296

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	Facebook: Disinformation
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 pieces of disinformation the Counter Disinformation Unit has reported to Facebook since 1 March 2020; and how many of those disinformation posts have subsequently been removed by Facebook.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
uin	113575
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the amount of misinformation/disinformation seen to date.</p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 113576 113577 113578 113579 question first answered 16/11/2020 14:46:24 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1250297

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	Twitter: Disinformation
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 pieces of disinformation the Counter Disinformation Unit has reported to Twitter since 1 March 2020; and how many of those disinformation posts have subsequently been removed by Twitter.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
uin	113576
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the amount of misinformation/disinformation seen to date.</p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 113575 113577 113578 113579 question first answered 16/11/2020 14:46:24 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1250299

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	TikTok: Disinformation
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 pieces of disinformation the Counter Disinformation Unit has reported to TikTok since 1 March 2020; and how many of those disinformation posts have subsequently been removed by TikTok.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
uin	113577
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the amount of misinformation/disinformation seen to date.</p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 113575 113576 113578 113579 question first answered 16/11/2020 14:46:24 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1250300

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	WhatsApp: Disinformation
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 pieces of disinformation the Counter Disinformation Unit has reported to WhatsApp since 1 March 2020; and how many of those disinformation posts have subsequently been removed by WhatsApp.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
uin	113578
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the amount of misinformation/disinformation seen to date.</p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 113575 113576 113577 113579 question first answered 16/11/2020 14:46:25 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1250302

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	Snapchat: Disinformation
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 pieces of disinformation the Counter Disinformation Unit has reported to SnapChat since 1 March 2020; and how many of those disinformation posts have subsequently been removed by SnapChat.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
uin	113579
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.</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 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken. It would not be appropriate for the Unit to provide a running commentary on the amount of misinformation/disinformation seen to date.</p><p>Throughout the pandemic, we have been working closely with social media platforms to quickly identify and help them respond to potentially harmful content on their platforms, including removing harmful content in line with their terms and conditions, and promoting authoritative sources of information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage grouped question UIN 113575 113576 113577 113578 question first answered 16/11/2020 14:46:25 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1250344

registered interest
date	10/11/2020
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	Local Press: 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 discussions he has had with representatives of local and regional news outlets on matters affecting those outlets as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley East
tabling member printed	Stephanie Peacock
uin	113620
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2020 answer text <p>The Government is clear that local and regional newspapers play an invaluable role in the fabric of our society, and it has been an absolute priority to ensure we do all we can to support news publishers at this time of financial instability. With this in mind, we continue to focus both on alleviating the existential threat posed by the pandemic and simultaneously progressing commitments made in our response to the Cairncross Review.</p><p>Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have held regular roundtable discussions and bi-lateral meetings with stakeholders from across the industry to better understand their developing needs and concerns, and to inform the support measures we have put in place. To date, these include designating journalists as ‘key workers’; issuing guidance to local authorities on the importance of newspaper delivery; ensuring the use of ‘keyword blocklisting’ technology is not disproportionately limiting news publishers’ online advertising revenues for Covid-19 related stories by ad-blocking coronavirus-related terms; implementing a significant public information campaign across the local and national press to ensure that authoritative, up-to-date information about the Government’s response to Covid-19 is distributed through reliable channels; and fast-tracking the commencement of zero-rating of VAT on e-newspapers.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 16/11/2020 14:55:06 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4607 label Biography information for Stephanie Peacock