Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking with the Advertising Standards Authority to ensure subscription services do not mislead consumers into signing up for their services when they make a purchase through a website.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Advertising in the UK is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which enforces the Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) in non-broadcast media, including online, print, outdoors, video-on-demand, direct marketing and cinema, through a system of self-regulation.
The CAP Code incorporates all relevant legislation, and sets standards for accuracy and honesty to which advertisers must adhere, including specific conditions on advertising to children, causing offence and social responsibility. It is regularly reviewed and updated by the industry to ensure it remains effective, and proposed changes to the Code are routinely subject to public consultation.
The Code includes rules designed to ensure that advertisers do not mislead consumers, reflecting that the ASA is recognised by the government, the courts and Trading Standards as the ‘established means’ for the enforcement of misleading advertising legislation. On the specific issue of subscription traps, the Code also includes rules designed to ensure that advertising for promotions must state all significant conditions likely to affect a consumer’s decision to participate in the promotion. The ASA has also published guidance to advertisers on how to ensure that advertising of free trials and other promotional offer subscription models are compliant with the Code.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking with the Advertising Standards Authority to ensure subscription services do not mislead consumers into signing up for their services when they make a purchase through a website.
Answered by Nigel Adams
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government has made an assessment of the effect on levels of nuisance calls of companies requiring consumers to provide their phone numbers when purchasing products or signing up for services.
Answered by Margot James
Companies who process personal data and use it to make marketing communications are regulated by the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR). Both of these are administered and enforced by the Information Commissioner (ICO). If a company collects phone numbers from customers, it must be clear and transparent about how personal data will be handled, and ensure that the data is processed in a way which individuals would expect. Personal data must not be shared with third parties without an appropriate legal basis. Organisations that fail to comply may be subject to enforcement action by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO has the power to impose a monetary penalty on those who break the law.
The Government has not made an official assessment of the effect on levels of nuisance calls of companies requiring consumers to provide their phone numbers when purchasing products or signing up for services.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with social media platforms on removing scam modelling agencies from their listings.
Answered by Margot James
Ministers and officials have regular meetings and discussions with social media companies on a range of issues. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly on the Gov.uk website.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance this Department has made available to local community groups seeking to install a blue plaque commemorating key (a) local figures, (b) establishments and (c) the Blue Moon Club in Cheltenham.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The English Heritage blue plaque scheme, which is limited to London, links the people of the past with the buildings of the present. The scheme is managed by English Heritage and follows guidance set out by them.
However, there are many other plaque schemes throughout the country in various cities and towns. More than seventy civic societies have worked together to standardise the schemes and each of these has a set of guidance for assessment. A register of other plaque schemes can be found and downloaded on the English Heritage website at https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/siteassets/home/visit/blue-plaques/propose-plaque/other-plaque-schemes.pdf . The Cheltenham Civic Society has further information on their website, https://cheltenhamcivicsociety.org.uk/.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government plans to roll out its Cyber Schools Programme after the pilot phase has concluded.
Answered by Margot James
The government’s Cyber Schools Programme, or Cyber Discovery will roll out across the UK in November 2018. Learning from the pilot year has been factored into plans for year two of the programme.
31,000 students registered for the pilot year with 22,000 taking part in the first stage which gauged students’ aptitude for cybersecurity. Exceptional talent was identified through the following two phases, with approximately 1,000 students meeting the criteria for the Elite phase by the end of the pilot year.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to his Department's green paper on internet safety strategy, published in October 2017, when his Department plans to publish the codes of practice for social media companies.
Answered by Margot James
As part of its work to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online, the Government published the Internet Safety Strategy Green Paper in October 2017 and published its consultation response in May this year.
The consultation response included a draft statutory social media code of practice. This provides guidance to social media providers on appropriate reporting mechanisms and moderation processes to tackle abusive content. By setting out clear standards for industry, we will make sure there is improved support for users online, and that more companies are taking consistent action to tackle abuse.
The Government will continue to consult with tech companies, charities and other stakeholders on the draft statutory social media code of practice ahead of the publication of a joint DCMS and Home Office White Paper.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to protect people from offensive and defamatory online broadcasting content.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Online TV channels licensed by Ofcom must comply with robust rules in the Ofcom Broadcasting Code on harmful or offensive content. Video-on-demand services within UK jurisdiction are subject to higher level rules which focus on harmful material, for example prohibiting incitement to hatred. More widely, as part of the work on the Digital Charter, the government is considering a range of options to counter internet harms. This includes an Internet Safety Strategy, published on 11 October, which considers the responsibilities of companies to their users, the use of technical solutions to prevent online harms and government’s role in supporting users.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of £530 million his Department allocated to Broadband Delivery UK remained unspent at the end of the Phase 1 broadband delivery period.
Answered by John Whittingdale
As of 1 May 2016, over £476m of BDUK funding had been spent on Phase 1 of the superfast broadband programme. Funding is released on completion of project delivery milestones. The remainder of the funding will be spent by end 2017 which is the completion date for some of the Phase 1 projects.
Asked by: Alex Chalk (Conservative - Cheltenham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of the funding allocated by Broadband Delivery UK to Fastershire remained unspent at the end of the Phase 1 broadband delivery period.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
To date, Fastershire have spent almost £17m of the £18.2m BDUK funding allocation. The project is on track to complete by December 2016.