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Written Question
BBC: Television Licences
Tuesday 19th December 2023

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the licence fee settlement on BBC news and current affairs programmes.

Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

In 2022, His Majesty’s Government agreed a settlement with the BBC which saw the licence fee remain at £159 until 2024 to protect licence-fee-payers from inflationary pressures, and then rise in line with inflation until the end of 2027 when the BBC’s current Royal Charter is due for renewal.

HM Government will use the annual rate of inflation as calculated by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in September 2023 to calculate the licence fee uplift in April 2024. This decision will ensure the additional cost to licence-fee-payers is kept as low as possible while giving the BBC over £3.8 billion in annual licence fee funding to spend on world-leading content and to deliver on its mission as set out in its Royal Charter: to serve all audiences with impartial, high-quality, and distinctive output and services which inform, educate, and entertain.

The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of the Government and decides how it delivers its services, including its news and current affairs programming. We are, however, clear that the BBC must deliver its remit to serve all audiences with impartial, high-quality, and distinctive output and services which inform, educate, and entertain. The Royal Charter makes clear that the BBC has a vital role to play in enabling all audiences to engage fully with major local, regional, national, and global issues, and to participate in the democratic process, at all levels. The Government expects Ofcom, as the BBC’s regulator, to ensure that the Corporation is robustly held to account in delivering its public service duty.


Written Question
Refugees: Afghanistan
Tuesday 3rd January 2023

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme dependent visas have been issued to family members of Afghans resettled in the UK under Pathway 1 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme.

Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth

At 4th November 2022:

  • 22,833 individuals from Afghanistan have been brought to safety in the UK (since the end of June 2021).
  • We have granted Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) to 6,314 people under ACRS Pathway 1.

Whilst I am not able to provide a breakdown of this data for family members, work is underway to assure information relating to all the individuals relocated under the ARAP and ACRS on case working systems. Once this work concludes, further statistics on both schemes - including the number of people resettled under each - will be included in the published Immigration Statistics.


Written Question
Refugees: Afghanistan
Tuesday 3rd January 2023

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people they expect to resettle under Pathway 2 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme in the first year of this pathway.

Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth

We anticipate receiving referrals from UNHCR for up to 2,000 refugees during the first year of this pathway and this number will be kept under review.

The pace of arrivals in any particular period will necessarily depend on some key factors, including the flow of referrals from UNHCR, and the availability of suitable accommodation and support in the UK.


Written Question
Sick Pay
Monday 30th May 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Department for Work and Pensions Health is everyone's business: Proposals to reduce ill health-related job loss, published in July 2019, what steps they have taken to bring forward its proposals (1) to allow statutory sick pay to be available from the first day of absence, and (2) to change statutory sick pay rules to help an employee returning from a period of absence to have a phased return to work.

Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott

Health is Everyone’s Business (2019) consulted on a broad package of measures related to the work and health agenda. This included some proposals related to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP).

In the response to the consultation (2021), Government stated that the pandemic was not the time to introduce significant changes to SSP. As we learn to live with COVID-19, Government is continuing to take a broader look at the role of SSP and is keeping the system under review.


Written Question
Social Security Benefits: Chronic Illnesses
Thursday 28th April 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to improve the support that people with long term degenerative conditions like multiple sclerosis receive when they are no longer able to work.

Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.


Written Question
Access to Work Programme
Thursday 28th April 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to make employers aware of the 'Access to Work' scheme to ensure that people with long term progressive conditions can remain in work for longer.

Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.


Written Question
Multiple Sclerosis: Nurses
Thursday 28th April 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many multiple sclerosis specialist nurses work in the NHS; and what plans they have, if any, to ensure all people with multiple sclerosis have access to a specialist nurse.

Answered by Lord Kamall

Data on the number of multiple sclerosis (MS) specialist nurses working in the National Health Service is not held centrally. Services for adults with MS are part of local neurology services commissioned by clinical commissioning groups. NHS England is leading a programme to develop optimal neurology pathways including, MS services. The MS pathway includes access to specialist nurses for all patients diagnosed with MS.

NHS England commissions a highly specialised service for children with MS across seven centres. All children with MS have access to a specialist paediatric nurse with an expertise in paediatric MS. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence advises a multidisciplinary approach and recommends the involvement of professionals to best meet the needs of the patient, including MS nurses.


Written Question
Digital Markets Unit
Wednesday 16th March 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will introduce legislation to provide the Digital Markets Unit with statutory powers in the next parliamentary session.

Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government consulted on our proposed approach to a new pro-competition regime, overseen by the Digital Markets Unit, last year. The consultation closed in October, and we are carefully considering the responses. We will set out the final design of the regime in our response shortly, and will introduce legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.


Written Question
Technology: Companies
Wednesday 16th March 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure a level playing field is established by legislative and regulatory means to allow UK news publishers to negotiate for proper and fair payment by technology companies for the news content they generate.

Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

Newspapers play an invaluable role in the fabric of our society and the Government is committed to considering all possible options in the interest of supporting the sustainability of the press. We understand concerns about the effect of the power and position of some online platforms when dealing with news publishers, as was identified by the Cairncross Review.

The Government set out its proposals for a new pro-competition regime for digital markets in a public consultation in July 2021. The regime will drive a more vibrant and innovative economy across the UK. In line with codes proposed in the Cairncross Review, the regime’s conduct requirements will improve competition and transparency and make an important contribution to the sustainability of the press. We have also sought advice from the Competition and Markets Authority and Ofcom on how the regime would govern the relationship between platforms and content producers including news publishers. No final decisions have been made.

A consultation response will be published in due course and we will legislate to put the regime on a statutory footing as soon as parliamentary time allows.


Written Question
Digital Markets Unit
Wednesday 16th March 2022

Asked by: Lord Dubs (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to support the establishment of a Digital Markets Unit within the Competition and Markets Authority, (2) to provide the necessary financial support for the recruitment of personnel to the new Digital Markets Unit, and (3) to ensure the new Digital Markets Unit has the necessary powers to intervene on a statutory basis.

Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The Government established a new non-statutory Digital Markets Unit (DMU), housed within the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), in April 2021 to begin to put into effect the pro-competition regime. We will legislate to put the Digital Markets Unit on a statutory footing as soon as parliamentary time allows.

At the recent Spending Review, the Government agreed to provide the CMA with an additional £20 million by 2024-25 to support the dedicated Digital Markets Unit and other CMA functions.

The DMU will have a range of powers to monitor and enforce the regime. The focus of the regime will be on resolving concerns through constructive engagement with firms, without the need for formal investigations. The DMU will need, however, robust powers to deter and tackle non-compliance. We set out our proposals for these powers in our 2021 consultation, and will publish our response to that consultation in due course.