Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to develop an internet service provider children protection policy; and what plans they have to require British telecommunications companies to demonstrate that they are taking steps to block child pornography wherever they operate or invest.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government has no plans to develop a specific internet service provider child protection policy.
Tackling child sexual exploitation and abuse is a priority for the new online safety regulatory framework. All companies in scope will need to ensure that illegal content is removed expeditiously and that the risk of it appearing is minimised through effective systems.
Internet service providers will not be in scope of the duty of care. This is because they do not directly host user generated content or provide search engine services. It would not be proportionate to impose duties on such companies as they do not control if, or how, content is hosted or promoted. Subjecting them to new duties could incentivise broad blocking or removal of websites or apps, which would pose significant risks to freedom of expression and users’ ability to access services. However, they will have duties with regard to enforcement action and Ofcom will be able to require these services, where appropriate, to cooperate with business disruption measures.
Furthermore, the government will produce voluntary best practice guidance for infrastructure service providers, setting out where their actions can help identify and prevent child sexual exploitation and abuse. This guidance will be separate from the online harms regime.
Pornography is a legal activity amongst consenting adults. Children cannot consent to sexual activity under UK law, and “child pornography” is an inappropriate description of illegal sexual abuse. The terms used in the UK are indecent imagery of children (IIOC) or child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether staffing and other running costs of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham will be covered by (1) admission charges, (2) sponsorships, (3) advertising income, and (4) other means; and if not, who will be responsible for any deficit.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The budget for the 2022 Commonwealth Games that was announced on 25th June 2019 includes funding for staffing and running costs for the Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. In addition to public funding, commercial revenue will be raised from ticketing, sponsorship, merchandise and broadcast rights sales. The funding arrangements are as described in the Written Ministerial Statement of 25th June.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the capital costs of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham; and how those costs will be split among (1) central government, (2) local and regional authorities, and (3) the Commonwealth and other sources.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The public funding for the 2022 Commonwealth Games was announced on 25 June 2019 and will be £778m. This funding will be split approximately 75%/25% between investment from central government (£594m) and Birmingham City Council and a number of its key partners in the region (£184m). Further funding will be raised from commercial revenue. This funding includes public contribution to the stadium and aquatics centre which are both currently subject to commercial negotiations.
A number of other infrastructure projects with funding from other sources will deliver benefits for the Games. These include a £496m development of 1,400 new homes at Perry Barr, which will include government funding of £165m from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, with the remainder coming from BCC and its partners, which will serve as the athletes’ village.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to establish an official agency before the next general election to expose and refute lies and misinformation, spread through social media and other means from Russia or other countries; and whether they intend to discuss any such plans with other European states and the EU to urge them to take similar action.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The Government is working closely with industry, civil society and international partners to do what is necessary to safeguard against the use of online disinformation to undermine our democratic values and processes. Ahead of the European Parliamentary elections, the Government worked to enhance coordination and information sharing across HMG to ensure an effective response in the event of a significant disinformation threat.
We have seen no evidence of successful interference in UK democratic processes, but we are not complacent. We are at the forefront of a growing international consensus on the need to take action against disinformation, whatever its source or intent. We are working with international partners, including in the EU, to create a sustained platform for international cooperation among like-minded nations.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish their response to General Recommendation No. 32 from the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, published on 14 November 2014, in particular those recommendations concerning female interviewers and interpreters for women asylum-applicants, and those relating to legal representation.
Answered by Baroness Garden of Frognal
Unlike the concluding observations which the CEDAW Committee issues to the UK specifically after each of our periodic examinations, General Recommendations are issued by the Committee to all 188 States which are party to the Convention. That means that not all the General Recommendations will actually be relevant to the UK's circumstances and policies, and it is not the normal practice of the Government to respond specifically to the publication of General Recommendations.
If a General Recommendation is relevant to the UK, then the Committee will assess us against it during our periodic examination. We will receive their evaluation and we will have the opportunity to respond fully at that stage. The Government has, however, noted the publication of General Recommendation No. 32 on the gender-related dimensions of refugee status, asylum, nationality and statelessness of women by the Committee, and the content has been conveyed to the Home Office.
The Home Office will of course be able to answer any specific questions the noble Lord has on female interviewers and interpreters for women asylum applicants.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of any improvement in the balance and fairness of media reports of incidents of hate-motivated offences and of prejudice against religious and ethnic groups since the Leveson report was published.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
No such assessment has been made. In the Royal Charter we have introduced a new system of independent press self-regulation that protects press freedom whilst offering real redress when mistakes are made. Importantly, the Government recognises the importance of a free press and does not interfere with what it does and does not publish.