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1356094

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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	Digital Technology: Rural Areas
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	What steps her Department is taking to improve digital infrastructure and connectivity in rural areas.
tabling member constituency	Buckingham
tabling member printed	Greg Smith
uin	903489
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/09/2021 answer text <p>The government is focused on improving digital infrastructure and connectivity in rural areas, with our £5bn Project Gigabit and £1bn Shared Rural Network. As such, the government recently announced more details about our procurement pipeline, specifically, for the 2.2 million hard to reach premises in England in Phases 1 and 2 of the delivery plan.</p><p>Alongside Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network, we are continuing with our strategy to reduce barriers and to promote competition and investment.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 24/09/2021 15:54:41 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4778 label Biography information for Greg Smith

1356095

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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	Digital Technology: Disadvantaged
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	What steps she is taking to help prevent people from becoming digitally excluded.
tabling member constituency	Halifax
tabling member printed	Holly Lynch
uin	903490
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/09/2021 answer text <p>The Government has worked closely with providers to put in place social tariffs. These provide low cost landline and broadband services for people on means-tested state benefits. We are encouraging providers who do not currently offer social tariff packages to do so. The telecoms industry has also removed data caps on fixed broadband packages, and provides free or low cost data boosts on mobile services to support vulnerable consumers.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In February DCMS also launched a £2.5 million Digital Lifeline Fund to reduce the digital exclusion of people with learning disabilities.This fund has provided tablets, data and free digital support to over 5,000 people with learning disabilities, enabling them to connect with friends and family, and access services and support groups, promoting overall well being.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government has also introduced a digital entitlement for adults with no or low digital skills to undertake specified digital qualifications, up to level 1, free of charge.</p><p><strong><p><p></strong></p><p>Finally, around 2,900 public libraries in England provide accessible locations offering free Wi-Fi, computers, and other technology. Library staff, often supported by volunteers, can provide library users with digital support.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 28/09/2021 10:39:56 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4472 label Biography information for Holly Lynch

1356171

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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: Advertising
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 she has been made of the implications for her policies in respect of the settlement of the US cases of United States Department of Housing and Urban Development vs Facebook.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	50662
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/09/2021 answer text <p>The Equality Act 2010 prohibits service providers from discriminating against people on the grounds of protected characteristics.</p><p>In response to the Joint Committee on Human Rights report on The Right to Privacy (Article 8) and the Digital Revolution, the government stated that it and other bodies have considered issues around online targeting. The full report can be found here:</p><p><a href="https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt5801/jtselect/jtrights/313/313.pdf" target="_blank">https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt5801/jtselect/jtrights/313/313.pdf</a></p><p>The work undertaken which is referenced in the report includes the Information Commissioner’s Office’s (ICO) work on advertising technology (AdTech):</p><p><a href="https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/what-we-do/our-work-on-adtech/#blogs" target="_blank">https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/what-we-do/our-work-on-adtech/#blogs</a></p><p>The Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation has published its review into online targeting and bias in algorithmic decision making:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cdei-review-of-online-targeting" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cdei-review-of-online-targeting</a></p><p>The Competition and Markets Authority market has published its study into online platforms and the digital advertising market in the UK.</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/online-platforms-and-digital-advertising-market-study" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/online-platforms-and-digital-advertising-market-study</a></p><p>In a public consultation called <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/data-a-new-direction" target="_blank">Data: A new direction</a> (launched 10 September 2021) the government is also consulting on reform proposals to enable organisations to use personal data and sensitive personal data for the purpose of managing the risk of bias in their AI systems. The ICO has also drafted <a href="https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/key-dp-themes/guidance-on-ai-and-data-protection/" target="_blank">Guidance on AI and Data Protection</a>, which explains how to process personal data in order to design and test algorithms.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 23/09/2021 14:41:28 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1356175

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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	Mobile Phones: Aerials
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will review the potential effect of the 2017 Electronic Communications Code on rents paid to landowners to allow mobile masts on their land.
tabling member constituency	Leeds Central
tabling member printed	Hilary Benn
uin	50616
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/09/2021 answer text <p>Since the introduction of the reforms in 2017 we have continually listened to feedback from stakeholders on the impact those changes have had on the expansion and improvement of digital networks across the UK. The culmination of this process was a consultation on potential further reform to the Code, published in January 2021. The consultation closed in March 2021 and responses are being considered. The Government’s response will be published shortly.</p><p>The provisions concerning how rents are calculated were not part of that consultation. The 2017 reforms were intended to strike a balance between ensuring individual landowners do not incur any losses and enabling the deployment of digital networks more cost effective. It is the Government’s view that the cost of acquiring rights to install digital infrastructure prior to 2017 was too high and needed to be addressed. The pricing regime now in place is more closely aligned to those for utilities such as water and electricity and reflects the fact that access to good quality digital services is an increasingly critical part of daily life for residents across the UK.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 23/09/2021 14:35:40 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	413 label Biography information for Hilary Benn

1356196

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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: Somerton and Frome
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 she is taking to accelerate the rollout of gigabit-capable broadband across Somerton and Frome.
tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
tabling member printed	David Warburton
uin	50735
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/09/2021 answer text <p>We are backing Project Gigabit with £5 billion so hard to reach communities are not left out. The constituency of Somerton and Frome falls within Phase 3 (Lot 6) of Project Gigabit. Somerton and Frome’s designation as a ‘Future Phase’ reflects the extensive gigabit delivery now contracted to take place across Devon and Somerset, including the extensive additional delivery now confirmed by Openreach following their announcement of their target to reach 25 million premises by 2026.</p><p>The last of Project Gigabit’s Phase 2 procurements start in late 2022 and we expect Phase 3 procurements to follow directly, with all areas under contract as soon as possible. Due to the dynamic nature of the UK telecoms market we will regularly review and respond to opportunities for future procurement wherever possible.</p><p>The Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) programme is delivering new gigabit-capable connections in Somerton and Frome via contracts with Wessex Internet and Truespeed which were awarded in December 2020.</p><p>Somerton and Frome is covered by Wessex Internet’s full fibre network for North and South Barrow, Babcary, Woolston, Queen Camel and Marston Magna. This particular project is nearing completion, with Wessex Internet being ready to connect customers in these areas from October 2021.</p><p>If it becomes clear that any premises will miss out from the UK’s broadband upgrade, Project Gigabit will make sure that they are included in its plans.</p><p>To accelerate delivery, premises in rural areas may also be in line for funding through the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme, with up to £210m allocated to the scheme over the next four years to support hard to reach communities. The voucher scheme offers up to £1,500 for homes and £3,500 for businesses to help to cover the costs of installing gigabit broadband to people’s doorsteps when used as part of a group scheme. Home and business owners can check the eligibility of their address and then look up suppliers in their area by going to <a href="https://gigabitvoucher.culture.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://gigabitvoucher.culture.gov.uk/</a>.</p><p>Somerton and Frome has made good use of the scheme so far, seeing 698 voucher connections worth £1.1m, with a further 699 vouchers to be connected, totalling over £2.3m.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/09/2021 15:49:58 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1356226

registered interest
date	16/09/2021
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	Channel Four Television: Privatisation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if her Department will make an assessment of the impact of privatising Channel 4 on the availability of distinctive British content.
tabling member constituency	Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross
tabling member printed	Jamie Stone
uin	50746
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/09/2021 answer text <p>The government has recently consulted on whether an alternative ownership model for Channel 4 (but one where it retains a public service remit) may be better for the broadcaster, and better for the country.</p><p>We want Channel 4 to continue to be a public service broadcaster, and we want it to continue to contribute socially, economically and culturally to life across the UK. But there is a wealth of evidence - including Ofcom’s recent report - on the future challenges facing our traditional linear TV broadcasters. Channel 4 is uniquely constrained in its ability to meet these challenges while it remains under public ownership - particularly because its access to capital and ability to pursue strategic partnership opportunities is limited.</p><p>Channel 4’s remit, and its wider social and cultural contributions to life in the UK, are issues we have consulted on. The consultation opened on 6 July, running for 10 weeks, before closing on 14 September. We are currently analysing responses to inform our policy-making decisions. Once we have answered the questions set out in the consultation, we will know what specific impacts to assess and will therefore be in a position to carry out an impact assessment.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 21/09/2021 15:53:36 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4612 label Biography information for Jamie Stone