TV Licence Non-payment: Women
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(8 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Baroness Hoey
To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the number of women who have been prosecuted for non-payment of the television licence in the past two years.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay) (Con)
My Lords, the BBC is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee and it has undertaken a review of the disparity between the sexes in prosecutions for TV licence evasion. His Majesty’s Government remain concerned about the fairness of the criminal sanction for TV licence evasion and its disproportionate impact on women. That is why the issue will be considered in the BBC funding model review.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
I thank the Minister for that. He will realise that about 1,000 people a week are prosecuted for non-payment of their licence—of whom 70% are women. Recently, the use of the single justice procedure with one magistrate has meant that the mitigating circumstances are often not heard. The magistrate may even be sitting at home. The elderly, the disabled and the poorest are most likely to be prosecuted. Capita gets £456 million from the BBC for the use of its investigators, most of whom are on a bonus pay scheme, dependent on how many prosecutions they get. Does the Minister not agree that it is time to decriminalise the non-payment of the BBC licence fee, as the Government promised on many occasions before the last general election?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
It is important to emphasise that licence fee evasion is not an imprisonable offence the maximum sanction is a fine of up to £1,000. But the noble Baroness is right to point to the disproportionate impact it has on women. As I said, the Government remain concerned that a criminal sanction for licence evasion is increasingly disproportionate and unfair in our modern public service broadcasting system, which is why we will look at the matter as part of the future funding review.
Football Spectators (Seating) Order 2022
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(2 years ago)
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Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I very much congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Faulkner of Worcester, on getting this opportunity to make a little bit of history. There has been a long campaign by many supporters over many years to get government authorities, the Premier League, football authorities and safety groups all to recognise that safe standing—done properly, properly monitored and with the use of the right technology—can work and be safe. It will make very many football supporters throughout the country happy that this has finally happened.
I find it rather ironic, because 22 years ago this week, as Sport Minister, I did an interview for a programme called “Watchdog”—the noble Lord, Lord Faulkner, will probably remember this—and dared to say that I was going to send the Football Licensing Authority over to Germany to visit the Schalke stadium and to see what the Bundesliga was doing with its new technology and the way it was able to adapt its stadiums. I think it was the great sports writer at that time, Robert Hardman, who said that the reaction to what I had said was as if the Minister for Sport had invited Myra Hindley to the cup final. There was an enormous outburst. How could I dare to call for terraces to be brought back? Of course, I was not calling for that at all; I was calling for precisely what we now have.
I congratulate all those supporters who tried so hard over the years to get this to happen—for example, Phil Gatenby, Adam Brown, Standing Areas for Eastlands and a number of other groups that persevered with a very difficult argument. The Premier League was absolutely opposed to it at that time and for a very long time. We were not helped by the Football Licensing Authority. Its chief executive, John de Quidt, told me at one time, “There’s more chance of Martians landing than the safe standing campaign achieving its goals.” We have not had Martians but we have safe standing.
I thank the Government for recognising that this needed to be looked at, could be done and was perfectly safe. I accept what the noble Lord, Lord Faulkner, said. It is important that it is monitored and that we look at things that can make it better, but this is definitely a great step forward and a day to be celebrated by all football supporters.
BBC Funding
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(2 years, 10 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My noble friend makes two pertinent points on the basis of his considerable experience. As I said, it is not unusual for this much-loved, much-cherished national institution to attract political comment from all quarters from time to time. That is as it should be. We all do it from a position of wanting the best for the corporation and to ensure that it can survive and thrive for its next 100 years. My noble friend is right to reinforce the point that £3.7 billion from licence fee payers this year, at a time when people’s bills and costs of living are rising, is a fair settlement that enables the BBC to continue doing the excellent things that it does, but in a way that shows that it understands how businesses and households across the country are having to tighten their belts—looking at how they can do what they do more efficiently and get more bang for their buck.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I welcome the Statement by the Secretary of State, which will have been welcomed outside in the country if not necessarily in your Lordships’ House. Does the Minister not agree that, in this day and age, when someone might buy a television with absolutely no intention of ever watching the BBC—given all the other choices that they will pay for—it is surely time for that proper debate on whether we can continue to fund the BBC in this arbitrary way that makes it impossible for some people to afford it?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
The noble Baroness is right that the way people are consuming their media is changing, and changing rapidly. I have spoken about the 700,000 fewer licence fees that have been bought over the last three years; that change is happening rapidly. It is essential that we have this debate so that we can protect the BBC to make sure that it continues to thrive alongside, and as part of, a changing media landscape. That is the reason why we want to start having this discussion well in advance of the next charter period.
Sport: Transgender Inclusion
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(3 years ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, this varies from sport to sport. I took part in your Lordships’ full-bore rifle shooting match against the other place, which I regret to say that we lost. That is a sport on which men and women already compete on an equal basis. Some sports are games of skill, some of stamina and some of strength. That is why it is right that there is a case-by-case approach for each sport. I will take forward the meeting suggestion, as I did for the noble Lord, Lord Triesman.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, sport really does have the power to change lives. I saw that when I was Sports Minister. Competition is also hugely important for enjoyment in sport, but it must be fair and it must be seen to be fair. Does the Minister agree that the evidence increasingly suggests that the approach of simply measuring testosterone levels in the blood does not take into account the full breadth of biological differences between those who have gone through male versus female puberty, and that this can lead to unfairness in competitive sport?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
As I said, the sports councils looked into this and said that
“the research that we currently have shows that testosterone reduction or suppression does not negate all the physiological advantages of having developed testosterone-driven strength, stamina and physique.”
That is why the advice to the individual governing bodies is to look at what is right for their sport and to balance inclusion with fairness and safety, so that people can enjoy sport, whether it is competitive or recreational.
Charities Bill [HL]
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(3 years, 4 months ago)
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Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I refer to my declaration in the register of interests. I am the honorary president of a wonderful charity, the London Playing Fields Foundation.
There is clearly a huge amount of expertise in this Committee on charities and charitable law. I think we all recognise how charity lies at the heart of our society. No Government, however good, can ever do everything, so we need our charities. This has been evident during the pandemic, where charities have helped to alleviate the strain right across the country. Of course, we witnessed the contributions made so quickly and so hugely by the public to the heroic fundraising efforts for NHS charities made by the late Captain Sir Tom.
I welcome the changes being made, particularly as they will, I hope, help smaller charities, and the work that was done by the Law Commission report. I recognise that its report was built around the report done by the noble Lord, Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts. Having listened to his contribution earlier today, I can see why his report was supported so widely. I am not quite sure why it has taken nearly 10 years to begin to implement it, but I welcome it very much. I also welcome what he said about the situation at the Royal Albert Hall; I think that we have all heard and read about it, but he put it into context. I look forward to the Minister’s response to the question of why it has been left out of the Bill.
May I ask the Minister a couple of questions? Clause 24 and Schedule 1 apply in part to Northern Ireland and Scotland. I recognise that quite a lot of this will be taken forward by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, which is consulting at the moment, but can the Minister give us a little more detail on which part applies in part, if she understands my meaning?
The Minister mentioned the changes to remuneration to trustees and used the term “relatively small payments”. I share the concern expressed by the noble Baroness, Lady Rawlings, on payments to trustees. As the noble Baroness, Lady Goudie, said at the very beginning, when people give money to a charity they want to know and see what it is being used for. They want that transparency. I do not think most people who give small amounts to charities want to see it used to pay so-called volunteers—the trustees—and they do not want it spent on huge salaries for chief executives. We have seen some horrific salaries for chief executives, and the larger the charity, the larger the salary. Sometimes a smaller charity doing a lot of really good work in the same area can be completely squeezed out by these huge charities.
Public trust and confidence in our charities is still very high, but that can change. It is very important that all of us who care about the charitable sector speak out when we see some of these abuses that have happened because, in the long term, that will not give confidence to the public that the small amount—which is very hard earned, in many cases—that they give to something they care deeply about will actually be spent in the way that they thought it would be.
To mention Northern Ireland again, the recent Charity Commission for Northern Ireland trust and confidence survey demonstrated that 84% of people in Northern Ireland supported a charity in the previous six months. The Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action’s survey showed that 68% donated to charity. Of course, there is a difference between donating and supporting—in terms of being a volunteer—but I do not think any of those people want to see their money being spent on trustees. Trustees should do it because they want to donate their time, effort and expertise to a charity.
Finally, I hope that these provisions will reduce the regulatory pressure on trustees and reduce bureaucracy, making the governance of charities easier and perhaps making it less likely that they need to pay trustees. They should make it simpler and enable trustees to better get on with the job of helping their beneficiaries and maximising their impact, which is so important at this crucial time. Of course, we must not forget that none of these provisions should detract from adequate oversight of the Charity Commission. I hope the Bill will confer the right balance between the regulatory oversight and greater flexibility in charity administration with the associated reduction in administrative costs for charities.
BBC: Freedom of Information Legislation
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(3 years, 5 months ago)
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Baroness Hoey
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have, if any, to amend Freedom of Information legislation to ensure that the British Broadcasting Corporation is more transparent.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Barran) (Con)
My Lords, the BBC is a public authority for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act. As with other public service broadcasters under the Act, the right of access extends to all information held other than that held for the purposes of journalism, art or literature. There are no plans to amend this provision.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, the BBC is a huge institution that took £3.5 billion from the public last year, yet it is the least transparent in its attitude toward freedom of information requests, using, as the Minister has just said, journalism as a broad way of getting out of FoI. BBC Northern Ireland is particularly bad: it even refused an FoI request to tell us what it paid the polling company LucidTalk, which it employed when it could have used other existing polls. The BBC is unaccountable, and now that GB News is established and it has some rivalry, when will the Government change the FoI rules to ensure that the BBC becomes more transparent and more accountable for our money?
Baroness Barran (Con)
As I said in my initial Answer, there are no current plans to amend the rules. As I am sure the noble Baroness is aware, requesters have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner if they believe that a public authority has not complied with the Act. However, my understanding is that in no recent decisions has the Information Commissioner upheld any appeals against the BBC based on journalistic and other exclusions.
Television Licence Evasion
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(3 years, 10 months ago)
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Baroness Hoey
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to introduce legislation to decriminalise television licence evasion.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Barran) (Con)
My Lords, the Government’s response to the consultation states that
“decriminalisation will remain under active consideration while more work is undertaken to understand the impact of alternative enforcement schemes.”
We remain concerned that a criminal sanction for TV licence evasion is increasingly disproportionate and unfair in a modern public service broadcasting system. However, we recognise that changing the sanction would have wide-ranging impacts for licence fee payers and has the potential for significantly higher fines and costs for the small minority who evade.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I am glad that the Minister repeated what the Secretary of State said last week—that he remained
“concerned that a criminal sanction for TV licence evasion is increasingly disproportionate and unfair in a modern public service broadcasting system.”—[Official Report, Commons, 21/1/20; col. 48WS.]
How then can the Minister possibly justify the continued harassment, intimidation and bullying by Capita of the many elderly, vulnerable households just trying to survive in the midst of a pandemic? Is it not time that the Government recognised that older people are turning off the BBC, younger people have never even turned it on, and the licence fee itself represents a bygone age and should be abolished and replaced by a choice-based alternative?
Sport Sector: Financial Support
Baroness Hoey Excerpts(3 years, 12 months ago)
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Baroness Barran (Con)
The noble Lord is absolutely right about the role that broadcasters can play, and my colleagues within the department are liaising closely with them on this point.
Baroness Hoey (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I welcome very much the financial support for this level of sport, but does the Minister share my concerns about the really grass-roots sports clubs—the little clubs, the Saturday morning football clubs that are losing their match fees, and clubs with huge numbers of volunteers whom they are losing at the moment? I join the noble Lord, Lord Moynihan, who asked earlier whether the Government might consider, once the Covid situation has been sorted, that we may need a really root-and-branch review of everything that is happening in grass-roots sport and how it has been affected?
Baroness Barran (Con)
I am happy to reassure the noble Baroness and my noble friend Lord Moynihan that I will take the suggestion of a thorough review back to the department, but I reiterate what I said earlier about our constant communication. In terms of the real grass roots, I absolutely echo the noble Baroness’s recognition of the value of those organisations to their communities, particularly during this Covid period, in which they have been setting up food banks and providing all sorts of extraordinary help in their communities. That is also why we committed £220 million earlier this year to make sure that exactly those organisations survive.