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 question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1221990

registered interest
date	08/07/2020
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	Digital Technology
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 plans his Department has to (a) publish a long-term, costed strategy on closing the digital divide and (b) make that strategy available for consultation.
tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
uin	71113
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/07/2020 answer text <p>I announced last month that the government will be publishing a new digital strategy in the Autumn that reflects the new post-COVID reality. This will focus on growth and using tech to power us out of the recession, to drive productivity and to create jobs in all parts of our economy.</p><p> </p><p>For the aspirations of this strategy to be delivered successfully, we recognise people will need the capability and confidence to get the most out of an increasingly digital world, and we welcome ideas for the strategy from stakeholders.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 13/07/2020 15:03:45 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1180147

registered interest
date	24/02/2020
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	Digital Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9674 on Digital Technology, whether the Government’s target for digital exclusion target is zero per cent.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	20062
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>There is currently no percentage target on digital exclusion. However, as per the Digital Strategy, this Government is actively committed to tackling digital exclusion and ensuring that everyone can increase their digital capability to make the most of the digital world.</p><p> </p><p>From August of this year, the new Digital Entitlement will allow adults with no or low digital skills to undertake new digital qualifications free of charge.</p><p> </p><p>Community-based programmes like those based across the Libraries network are also vital in supporting those digitally excluded. For example, the Future Digital Inclusion programme, funded by the Department for Education and delivered by the Good Things Foundation, has supported 1.3m people with their Essential Digital Skills to date.</p><p> </p><p>Government will always offer support to those who need it to use digital by default public services, be it over the phone, face to face, or via webchat. We call this ‘assisted digital support’, and it is a requirement of the service standard, which all government services must meet if they are to go onto<a href="http://gov.uk/" target="_blank"> GOV.UK</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 27/02/2020 10:04:49 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1180149

registered interest
date	24/02/2020
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	Digital Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9674 on Digital Technology, what progress his Department has made on tackling the root causes of digital exclusion since the publication of the Digital Strategy in March 2017.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	20064
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/03/2020 answer text <p>Since the publication of the Digital Strategy, the Government has been tackling the root causes of digital exclusion.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Lack of connectivity is a root cause of digital exclusion. £1.7bn has been spent to bring superfast broadband to over 96% of UK premises and we are continuing to deliver in rural and remote areas of the UK using funds generated from this success. The Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review set out Government’s ambition for full fibre in the UK, including an ‘Outside-In’ approach to ensure that those who do not have good connectivity today will soon benefit from it. Government is also working with industry on the Shared Rural Network (SRN) proposals to significantly extend the reach of mobile networks in rural and remote areas.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Further, lack of skills and confidence are also a root cause of digital exclusion. 99% of libraries in England offer free wifi to users; there people can also gain access and support in using computers and other technology to get online and achieve the benefits that digital services can offer. Libraries can also support people with Assisted Digital and they provide access to a wide range of digital public services where individuals are unable to access these services independently. Some library services (such as Leeds and Lewisham) also offer device loans to enable those who are not confident to trial technology such as iPads in their own homes.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Another cause of digital exclusion is inaccessible services for those with access needs, and access to public services, technology and websites is crucial to reducing digital exclusion. Government will always offer support to those who need it to use digital by default public services, be it over the phone, face to face, or via webchat. We call this ‘assisted digital support’, and it is a requirement of the service standard, which all government services must meet if they are to go onto GOV.UK.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Further, as mentioned in our previous answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9674, from August of this year the Government will introduce a legal entitlement for adults with no or low digital skills to undertake new digital qualifications free of charge.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 04/03/2020 10:26:42 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1178788

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	Digital Technology
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 his Department is taking to minimise (a) the digital divide and (b) digital exclusion particularly among older people.
tabling member constituency	Linlithgow and East Falkirk
tabling member printed	Martyn Day
uin	15152
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2020 answer text <p>The UK Government recognises the vital importance of digital skills at all levels - from the basic digital skills people need to make the most of being online, to the general digital skills increasingly needed in every job, through to the high level digital skills for the growing number of specialist digital roles across the economy. As nearly all future jobs will require digital skills we are taking action across the entire education and training pipeline.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The UK Government recognises that, although we live in an increasingly online world, a significant part of the population remains digitally excluded Government is committed to helping elderly people acquire basic digital skills as part of our broader strategy to reduce digital exclusion as outlined in the Digital Strategy.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Government is addressing the digital divide through a number of initiatives.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We are funding the Future Digital Inclusion programme delivered through Online Centres based in libraries and other community spaces. This supports some of the hardest to reach groups in society, including older people. Over the last five years, the programme has supported over 1.3 million adult learners to engage with digital technology and develop their basic digital skills in community settings.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Through its £400,000 Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund, the Government is supporting three pilot projects aimed at addressing the digital exclusion of older and disabled people. One pilot, led by Uttlesford Council for Voluntary Service, is developing “smart homes” for elderly people to improve their digital skills, supported by their peers and younger ‘digital buddies’.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 25/02/2020 17:12:06 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4488 label Biography information for Martyn Day

1174210

registered interest
date	29/01/2020
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	Digital Technology
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the Government's target is for achieving digital literacy among the UK population.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	9674
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>The Government is committed to ensuring all users, children and adults, are empowered to understand and manage risks so that they can stay safe online. Online media and digital literacy can equip users with the skills they need to spot dangers online, critically appraise information and take steps to keep themselves and others safe online. The Government is ensuring that children get high quality education at school to develop their digital literacy. The Online Harms White Paper, published in April 2019, also set out the government’s intention to develop an online media literacy strategy. The strategy will ensure a coordinated and strategic approach to online media literacy education and awareness for children, young people and adults. It will be published in summer 2020.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government’s Digital Strategy, published in March 2017, sets out the Government’s approach to tackling digital exclusion. Our objective is to tackle the root causes of digital exclusion so that everyone can increase their digital capability to make the most of the digital world. We also committed to facilitating strong collaboration between the public, private and third sector to tackle the digital skills gap in a coordinated and coherent way.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Further, from August, we will introduce a legal entitlement for adults with no or low digital skills to undertake new digital qualifications free of charge.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Boston and Skegness answering member printed Matt Warman question first answered 03/02/2020 17:23:14 answering member 4361 label Biography information for Matt Warman
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1122000

registered interest
date	18/04/2019
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
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 his priorities are for the digital economy in the next five years.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	245760
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/04/2019 answer text <p>We have a number of priorities for the digital economy in the next five years, in line with both our Digital Strategy and Industrial Strategy. Firstly, we will ensure that the UK remains the best place to start and grow a digital business. We will do this by fostering a supportive business environment, encouraging support to scale-ups, and by means of access to talent. Secondly, we want to ensure that the UK is well positioned to develop and adopt emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) to drive productivity. This will be achieved by means of the AI sector deal, funding for research posts, and by meeting our target of public and private sector investment in R&amp;D to reach 2.4% of GDP by 2027. Thirdly, we will ensure that the benefits and opportunities of technology, including digital connectivity, are felt by all and are spread across the UK. A key priority is to achieve Government plans to have 15 million premises connected to full fibre (so-called 'outside-in') by 2025, and nationwide coverage by 2033. We will continue to deliver the Digital Skills Partnership to improve digital capability across the whole skills spectrum. Importantly, we will continue to emphasise the importance of diversity within the tech sector, as this is an area I feel strongly about.</p><p> </p><p>The Online Harms White Paper sets out the Government’s plans for world leading laws to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online. These will make companies more responsible for their users’ safety online, especially children and other vulnerable groups. A new statutory duty of care is being introduced, to make companies take responsibility for the safety of their users and to tackle harm caused by content or activity on their services. Compliance with this duty of care will be overseen and enforced by an independent regulator. The establishment of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI), to investigate and advise on how we maximise the benefits of data-enabled technologies, including AI, is also an important step forward.</p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 30/04/2019 17:39:51 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1077758

registered interest
date	26/02/2019
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
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 the target is for digital inclusion.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	226104
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/03/2019 answer text <p>The Government’s Digital Strategy, published in March 2017, sets out the Government’s approach to tackling digital exclusion. Our objective is to tackle the root causes of digital exclusion so that everyone can increase their digital capability to make the most of the digital world. We also committed to facilitating strong collaboration between the public, private and third sector to tackle the digital skills gap in a coordinated and coherent way so the sum is greater than the parts and everyone everywhere has better access to the training they want. <strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 04/03/2019 16:39:39 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1037220

registered interest
date	07/01/2019
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
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 potential effect on the UK’s digital sector of the UK leaving the EU without an adequacy agreement to ensure uninterrupted UK-EU data transfers.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Hodge Hill
tabling member printed	Liam Byrne
uin	205834
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/01/2019 answer text <p>The impact of exiting the EU has been modelled for the UK economy as a whole. Several potential exit scenarios were explored in the government's EU Exit: Long-term Economic Analysis which was published in November 2018. No specific assessment has been made about the potential disruption to the UK’s digital sector. However, the Government has consistently made clear that many EU and UK businesses and public sector organisations rely on the free flow of personal data to fulfil their obligations and therefore maintaining the free flow of personal data is a priority for the Government.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Data Protection Act 2018 updated the UK’s rules in accordance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and transposed the Law Enforcement Directive, ensuring our data protection laws will be aligned with those of the EU at our point of exit. We are confident that we will strike a positive relationship on data. The UK and the EU start from a position of trust in each other’s standards and regulatory alignment on data protection. As set out in the Political Declaration, the EU will begin its assessment of the UK as soon as possible after the United Kingdom's withdrawal, endeavouring to adopt decisions by the end of the implementation period. The UK is ready to begin those assessments.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to prioritising an early adequacy decision, it is the job of a responsible Government to prepare for the possibility that we leave the EU without an adequacy agreement in place. On 13 December the Government and the Information Commissioner's Office published detailed information and guidance on data protection in the event that this were to happen. DCMS is engaging with businesses across all sectors of the economy, including the digital sector, to mitigate risks to disruption of international data transfers. In recognition of the unprecedented degree of alignment between the UK and EU’s data protection regimes, the UK would at the point of exit continue to allow the free flow of personal data from the UK to the EU.</p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 10/01/2019 17:05:13 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
tabling member	1171 label Biography information for Liam Byrne

1013164

registered interest
date	23/11/2018
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
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 targets he has set for digital inclusion and whether he plans to update the Government Digital Inclusion Strategy 2014.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	195077
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/11/2018 answer text <p>The Government’s Digital Strategy, published in March last year, sets out the Government’s approach to tackling digital exclusion. It recognises that for the UK to be a world-leading digital economy that works for everyone, it is crucial that everyone has the digital skills they need to fully participate in society. The Government is committed to addressing the digital divide between those who have been able to embrace the digital world and those who have not.</p><p>We recently published our plans to improve adult basic digital skills by updating the national standards setting out the digital skills people need to get on in life and work and by introducing improved basic digital skills qualifications at two levels:</p><ul><li>‘beginner’ designed for adults with little or no prior experience of using digital devices or the internet</li><li>‘essential’ designed for adults with some experience of using digital devices and the internet but lacking the full range of basic digital skills needed for life and work.</li></ul><p>We will be introducing a national entitlement to basic digital skills courses from 2020, similar to the existing legal entitlements for English and Maths.</p><p>DCMS launched an innovation fund in September specifically targeting the digital inclusion of disabled and older people, with a further focus on those in rural areas, and on using digital to tackle loneliness. The aim of the fund is to help ensure that ‘what works’ on digital inclusion is identified, replicated and scaled. We have also commissioned a feasibility study to look at whether outcomes based commissioning models, including Social Impact Bonds, could be used to improve outcomes, particularly for those groups that are most likely to be digitally excluded.</p><p>Government is also tackling digital exclusion via the ‘Future Digital Inclusion’ programme funded by DfE and managed by the Good Things Foundation and delivered through the 3,000 strong Online Centres network. To date, this programme has supported over 800,000 adult learners to develop their basic digital skills, many of whom are socially excluded. Further, the NHS Digital ‘Widening Digital Participation’ programme develops projects that enable people in England to improve their digital health skills and to increase their access to digital services and tools that support their health and care.</p> answering member constituency Stourbridge answering member printed Margot James question first answered 28/11/2018 19:43:27 answering member 4115 label Biography information for Margot James
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah