Asked by: Baroness Twycross (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the test of the UK’s emergency alert system on 23 April.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Last month’s UK-wide Emergency Alert was the largest simultaneous public message in British history. 88% of the public knew the test was coming and we reached 93% of eligible phones in the country within 3 minutes of the test alert being sent. The system is now fully operable in the event of a real emergency, and is a vital tool in our toolkit to keep people safe.
We are aware that some people did not receive the test alert. There are several reasons why this may have been the case, which we are working with the Mobile Network Operators to resolve.
However, we would like to reassure those who did not receive an alert that Emergency Alerts are just one of many tools the Government has to communicate with the public about emergency situations. Existing procedures for warning and informing the public remain in place, including the use of local emergency services and local/national news.
Asked by: Baroness Twycross (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they forecast rolling out the UK’s emergency alert system.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Following the test on 23 April, the system is now fully operable. During the initial pilot phase, which started on 23 April and will last 3 months, alerts will be limited to severe weather events and flooding. However, future messages are also expected to include fires, public health emergencies and other life-threatening or major incidents.
Asked by: Baroness Twycross (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total cost to date of developing, maintaining and testing the UK’s emergency alert system.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
I refer the Noble Baroness to the previous answer HL7733 on 24th May.