Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to establish a publicity campaign to reduce the stigma of suicide.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
While there are no specific plans to establish a publicity campaign to reduce the stigma of suicide, the Suicide Prevention Strategy for England 2023 – 2028 highlights the importance of reducing the stigma surrounding suicide. The strategy aims to destigmatise help-seeking for those who are at risk of suicide.
The Government believes that suicide prevention is everyone’s business. Every person, organisation, and service up and down the country has a role to play. In recent years, good progress has been made in tackling the stigma surrounding suicide and mental health.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 7 January (HL3653), what estimate they have made of the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions that will be saved through the ‘future policies or those currently under development’ referred to in that Answer.
Answered by Lord Wilson of Sedgefield - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We will publish estimates of the emissions savings from future and developing policies by October 2025. These will cover all sectors of the economy out to the end of Carbon Budget 6 in 2037.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions that will have been saved by 2030 by (1) the removal of the ban on onshore wind turbines, (2) the increase in offshore wind generation, (3) the increase in solar power generation, and (4) Great British Energy.
Answered by Lord Wilson of Sedgefield - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
According to the National Energy System Operator's independent analysis, plans to achieve Clean Power by 2030 will reduce emissions by over 31MtCO2 per year by 2030, compared to 2023 levels. It is not possible to disaggregate emissions savings by technology or policy as their impacts are interconnected. As such, figures tend to cover the power sector as a whole, in line with the reporting approach taken by the Climate Change Committee.
Source: https://www.neso.energy/document/346806/download
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 21 May (HL7312), what sources of evidence they are consulting to gain a comprehensive and impartial understanding of the impacts of gambling advertising.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to consulting the best available evidence on the impact of advertising from a wide range of sources when assessing best next steps in this space. Additionally, developing quality evidence is a key priority for the statutory levy, and up to 20% of funding will be directed towards high-quality, independent research to fill gaps in the evidence base, including on the impacts of gambling advertising. We will continue to monitor developments in the evidence and take action where appropriate.
The Government currently has no plans to conduct an independent review on the impacts of gambling advertising. As part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Review of the Gambling Act 2005, an extensive call for evidence was conducted which included a range of questions on evidence on gambling advertising and its impacts.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 21 May (HL7312), what recent assessment they have made of the merits of conducting an independent review of the impacts of gambling advertising.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to consulting the best available evidence on the impact of advertising from a wide range of sources when assessing best next steps in this space. Additionally, developing quality evidence is a key priority for the statutory levy, and up to 20% of funding will be directed towards high-quality, independent research to fill gaps in the evidence base, including on the impacts of gambling advertising. We will continue to monitor developments in the evidence and take action where appropriate.
The Government currently has no plans to conduct an independent review on the impacts of gambling advertising. As part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Review of the Gambling Act 2005, an extensive call for evidence was conducted which included a range of questions on evidence on gambling advertising and its impacts.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which Schengen Area countries currently allow British citizens to use e-Gates; which additional countries are expected to do so before the introduction of the Entry/Exit System (EES) later this year; and whether passport stamping will still be required in all cases for British citizens before the full implementation of the EES.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
We have secured confirmation that there will be no legal barriers to eGates use for UK nationals travelling to and from EU Member States after the introduction of the EU's Entry/Exit System (EES). But the Prime Minister has been clear that there should be no reason why European countries cannot go further and faster on this now. We are now working with individual Member States to make that happen as soon as possible. Until EES is fully implemented all third-country passports will still require a stamp on entry/exit to the Schengen Area. But where eGates are used, the process is likely to be swifter and more straightforward as, in most circumstances, border guards will not need to carry out further passport checks. UK nationals' access to eGates in the Schengen Area is a decision for each individual country.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have had any discussions with their EU counterparts about an exemption from the requirements of the forthcoming Entry/Exit System for British citizens.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
UK national travellers will be required to register in the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES). Exemptions will be in place for UK nationals who are Withdrawal Agreement beneficiaries or otherwise long-term resident in the EU. Implementation of the EES is a matter for the EU and its Member States, and subject to ongoing EU legislative processes.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the appropriateness of gambling-related content on the online programming platform Scratch which is used by children in schools.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The department does not support or mandate individual products. Schools should follow the statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’, supported by the department’s filtering and monitoring standards. Schools should monitor pupils’ use of devices whilst in school.
The relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance states that young people should be taught the risks of online gambling and how to seek help if they have concerns. The computing curriculum supports pupils to make informed decisions whilst online or using other technologies.
The department-funded National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE) provides training and resources to improve computing provision, including support for teaching programming concepts through languages such as Scratch.
The NCCE is reviewing all teacher resources that include Scratch content. Guidance for keeping children safe when using Scratch will be included in all relevant content by June 2025. NCCE materials do not use gambling as a programming exercise for pupils. None of the NCCE’s lessons or courses recommend pupils use the search function or engage with other people's content on Scratch. Teachers are advised to use the offline version of the platform to prevent pupils from searching ready-made code.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent loot boxes from appearing in video games designed for children.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This Government recognises that gambling advertising can have a disproportionate impact on particular groups, such as children and vulnerable people. This is why there are robust rules on content, tone and placement enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Gambling operators must ensure that their advertising is not targeted at children and must not appear in media created for children or for which children make up 25% or more of the audience, including video games. Operators must also ensure that they take all reasonable steps to use data available to exclude individuals on the basis of their age or other relevant criteria. Compliance with these rules is required as part of the Gambling Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). The ASA continues to closely monitor and enforce compliance but, if needed, can refer gambling operators’ advertising to the Gambling Commission which can and does take action.
The Department has not had any recent conversations with Apple regarding gambling advertising. However, we recognise that more can be done to improve protections. We have set the gambling industry a clear task to raise standards and this work will be monitored closely.
We are committed to ensuring video games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone and that, where they contain loot boxes, appropriate protections are in place for players of all ages, including children. In 2020, the previous Government ran a call for evidence on loot boxes which found an association between purchasing loot boxes and problem gambling behaviours, although research has not established whether a causal link exists.
In response, DCMS convened a Technical Working Group of video game representatives which developed new industry-led guidance, published in July 2023, to improve player protections, including making the purchase of loot boxes unavailable to children unless enabled by a parent or guardian. The Government has urged all video games companies to adopt the guidance in full and we have commissioned independent academic research to assess its effectiveness.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of gambling advertising on children and young people.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This Government recognises that gambling advertising can have a disproportionate impact on particular groups, such as children and vulnerable people. This is why there are robust rules on content, tone and placement enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Gambling operators must ensure that their advertising is not targeted at children and must not appear in media created for children or for which children make up 25% or more of the audience, including video games. Operators must also ensure that they take all reasonable steps to use data available to exclude individuals on the basis of their age or other relevant criteria. Compliance with these rules is required as part of the Gambling Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). The ASA continues to closely monitor and enforce compliance but, if needed, can refer gambling operators’ advertising to the Gambling Commission which can and does take action.
The Department has not had any recent conversations with Apple regarding gambling advertising. However, we recognise that more can be done to improve protections. We have set the gambling industry a clear task to raise standards and this work will be monitored closely.
We are committed to ensuring video games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone and that, where they contain loot boxes, appropriate protections are in place for players of all ages, including children. In 2020, the previous Government ran a call for evidence on loot boxes which found an association between purchasing loot boxes and problem gambling behaviours, although research has not established whether a causal link exists.
In response, DCMS convened a Technical Working Group of video game representatives which developed new industry-led guidance, published in July 2023, to improve player protections, including making the purchase of loot boxes unavailable to children unless enabled by a parent or guardian. The Government has urged all video games companies to adopt the guidance in full and we have commissioned independent academic research to assess its effectiveness.