BBC: Royal Charter

Baroness Thornton Excerpts

Monday 15th January 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

The increase has been calculated based on the annual rate of CPI inflation in September. That is the same measure that we use for the increases to the pension and to those in receipt of benefits. It ensures that the BBC can get income from the licence fee while being fair to those who pay it at a time when household budgets are also hard pressed. That money delivers the BBC more than £3.8 billion per year. It is for the BBC to decide how it carries out its obligations as set out in the royal charter.

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

My Lords, I am very tempted to sling “Winterwatch” into this debate as it is being reduced because it is an expensive programme, which is a great shame. However, I will return to the issue that my noble friend Lord Dubs raised, because “Newsnight” is a much-respected and cherished institution. I would like to understand the need for the BBC to make changes in response to this funding challenge. Is the Minister satisfied with the BBC’s assurances in relation to the continuation of investigative journalism? Is he equally satisfied that now that privatisation is off the table and there is a clearer strategy for its future, Channel 4 can also continue to play its important informing and investigative role?

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

The royal charter sets out clear expectations for how the BBC impartially delivers news output. It is for the BBC to decide how it does this and through which programmes, however beloved they are in your Lordships’ House. I know that Members of your Lordships’ House have worked on “Newsnight” and many watch it and get their news that way. However, it is important that the BBC makes the decisions on how it adheres to the obligations set out in the royal charter and in its public purpose. It is also important that we do not have a Government who tell the national broadcaster how to report the news.

Charitable and Voluntary Sector

Baroness Thornton Excerpts

Thursday 30th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

My Lords, I declare an interest as patron of Social Enterprise UK and as a senior associate of Social Business International. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Addington, for the opportunity to take part in this important debate. I will raise a series of questions about social enterprises, mutuals and social businesses, because these are DCMS’s responsibility at the moment, as the Minister will know.

I am very concerned that this growing sector of our economy is falling between the provisions to support businesses and the provisions to support charities and the third sector. It is therefore in jeopardy. I briefly remind noble Lords that this sector is bigger than agriculture; it makes a £60 billion contribution to the UK economy and employs 2 million people. It is estimated that 50% of social enterprises are at risk of running out of cash by June. That could risk 1 million jobs.

If the Minister cannot address the questions that I am about to ask, I would be very happy for her to write to me. First, social enterprise business leaders have said that 1 million jobs are potentially at risk due to gaps in existing government support measures, and they have put forward a plan of action. Will the Government act on their recommendations and extend business grants and improve access to finance to save tens of thousands of social enterprises?

Secondly, can the Government explain why business grants have been provided to massage parlours, betting shops and casinos, but social enterprises employing vulnerable people or working in the most deprived communities are not getting access to these cash grants?

Thirdly, the Government have promised £330 billion in loan guarantees, but social enterprises, like other businesses, are struggling to access them. What are the Government going to do to develop tailored financial support for social enterprises within the social investment market?

Fourthly, social enterprises are reporting that they are not getting business grants due to eligibility restrictions, but some businesses that possibly have questionable value are being given grants. Can the Minister explain what criteria the Government are using to measure the social value of businesses when deciding which organisations get support?

Finally, social enterprises are delivering front-line public services on behalf of the state, but many are reporting not getting access to emergency funding for PPE, additional equipment and staffing costs. Will the Government ensure that social enterprises and charities delivering front-line public services can access the unlimited emergency funding that the state is providing to statutory bodies?

Internet Encryption

Baroness Thornton Excerpts

Tuesday 14th May 2019 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Thornton]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the deployment of the Internet Engineering Task Force’s new “DNS over HTTPS” protocol and its implications for the blocking of content by internet service providers and the Internet Watch Foundation; and what steps they intend to take in response.

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper and, in doing so, declare as an interest that, until recently, my husband was an unpaid adviser to successive Governments on matters concerning online child safety for the last 17 years.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Lord Ashton of Hyde) (Con)]

My Lords, DCMS is working together with the National Cyber Security Centre to understand and resolve the implications of DNS over HTTPS, also referred to as DoH, for the blocking of content online. This involves liaising across government and engaging with industry at all levels, operators, internet service providers, browser providers and pan-industry organisations to understand rollout options and influence the way ahead. The rollout of DoH is a complex commercial and technical issue revolving around the global nature of the internet.

[Baroness Thornton]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for that Answer, and I apologise to the House for this somewhat geeky Question. This Question concerns the danger posed to existing internet safety mechanisms by an encryption protocol that, if implemented, would render useless the family filters in millions of homes and the ability to track down illegal content by organisations such as the Internet Watch Foundation. Does the Minister agree that there is a fundamental and very concerning lack of accountability when obscure technical groups, peopled largely by the employees of the big internet companies, take decisions that have major public policy implications with enormous consequences for all of us and the safety of our children? What engagement have the British Government had with the internet companies that are represented on the Internet Engineering Task Force about this matter?

[Lord Ashton of Hyde]

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for discussing this with me beforehand, which was very welcome. I agree that there may be serious consequences from DoH. The DoH protocol has been defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force. Where I do not agree with the noble Baroness is that this is not an obscure organisation; it has been the dominant internet technical standards organisation for 30-plus years and has attendants from civil society, academia and the UK Government as well as the industry. The proceedings are available online and are not restricted. It is important to know that DoH has not been rolled out yet and the picture is complex—there are pros to DoH as well as cons. We will continue to be part of these discussions; indeed, there was a meeting last week, convened by the NCSC, with DCMS and industry stakeholders present.