Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to introduce user advocacy arrangements to represent children to the regulator to help tackle online harms, funded by an industry levy; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Protecting children is at the heart of our plans to transform the online experience for people in the UK and the strongest protections in the online harms framework will be for children. Under these new laws, Ofcom will have a duty to establish ongoing mechanisms for user advocacy. This is to ensure Ofcom understands the experiences of users, including children, and is able to detect and address issues early on.
The costs incurred by Ofcom in carrying out its functions under the Online Safety Bill, will be met by proportionate fees charged to industry.
The Online Safety Bill, which will give effect to the regulatory framework outlined in the Online Harms White Paper full government response, will be ready this year.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of different content ratings systems on different streaming platforms which are not aligned with standards for cinema or DVD releases nor based on research into the expectations of UK audiences.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
As the designated body for age classification of film content, the government has great trust in the British Board of Film Classification’s best practice age ratings. While adoption of the BBFC’s age ratings by online platforms is currently voluntary, we welcome their usage by Video on Demand platforms.
This includes Netflix who on December 1st announced that they have become the first platform to achieve complete coverage of their content under the BBFC’s ratings.
According to recent BBFC research, nearly nine in ten parents find BBFC age ratings on Netflix useful in helping them to choose content well for their family. To build on this success, we will continue to engage with industry to encourage other platforms to adopt the same ratings, and will keep the evidence for legislation in this area under review.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to use British Board of Film Classification age verification guidance in setting standards to restrict the most harmful content from access by children under legislative proposals on online harms.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
It is vital that children are protected from accessing age-inappropriate, harmful content online. The government’s Online Harms legislation will establish in law a new ‘duty of care’ on companies towards their users. The ‘duty of care’ will ensure companies have robust systems and processes in place to keep their users safe and will deliver a higher level of protection for children than for the typical adult user. Details of how the online harms legislation will protect children from harmful content will be published later this year in the Full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper consultation.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to include in legislative proposals on online harms provisions that (a) protect children from online pornography and (b) apply to all pornographic sites accessible from the UK regardless of where they are based and whether their content is user-generated.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Our Online Harms proposals will deliver a higher level of protection for children than for the typical adult user. We expect companies to use a proportionate range of tools, including age assurance and age verification technologies, to prevent children accessing age-inappropriate content, such as online pornography, and to protect them from other harms. The new regulatory framework will cover social media companies, where many children access pornography, and all sites on which there is user-generated functionality, including pornography sites, regardless of where they are based. Further details of how the online harms legislation will protect children from harmful content, including online pornography, will be published later this year in the Full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper consultation.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress the Government has made on its plans to review the Gambling Act 2005.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government has committed to review the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it is fit for the digital age. Further details will be announced in due course.
Operators are required both by law and by the conditions of their licence from the Gambling Commission to prevent underage gambling. In May 2019 the Commission strengthened requirements for age verification so that operators must verify a customer’s age before they are able to deposit money, place a bet, or access free-to-play games. According to the Gambling Commission’s Young People and Gambling Survey 2019, 7% of 11-16 year olds said they had ever gambled online (a category including both National Lottery games and commercial sites), 5% had used a parent’s account with the parent’s permission and 2% had used a parent’s account without permission, showing that parents also have an important role to play in controlling children’s access to gambling. For further detail, the full survey report can be found at: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/Young-People-Gambling-Report-2019.pdf
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has assessed the effectiveness of safeguards in place to prevent underage gambling via smartphone apps.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government has committed to review the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure it is fit for the digital age. Further details will be announced in due course.
Operators are required both by law and by the conditions of their licence from the Gambling Commission to prevent underage gambling. In May 2019 the Commission strengthened requirements for age verification so that operators must verify a customer’s age before they are able to deposit money, place a bet, or access free-to-play games. According to the Gambling Commission’s Young People and Gambling Survey 2019, 7% of 11-16 year olds said they had ever gambled online (a category including both National Lottery games and commercial sites), 5% had used a parent’s account with the parent’s permission and 2% had used a parent’s account without permission, showing that parents also have an important role to play in controlling children’s access to gambling. For further detail, the full survey report can be found at: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/Young-People-Gambling-Report-2019.pdf
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent progress he has made in discussions with Ofcom on the regulation of online harms.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
In February this year, the government announced that it was minded to give Ofcom the role of the online harms regulator. We are committed to working closely with Ofcom as we continue to develop the regulatory framework.
The government will set out the final details of the policy in a full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper consultation.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of subsidising newspapers to provide online copy to people self-isolating on medical grounds during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government recognises the vital role of newspapers in supporting communities and isolated individuals by ensuring the provision of reliable, high-quality information throughout the current pandemic. Safeguarding the UK’s news media at this time of financial instability is a key priority for Government and we are in constant dialogue with publishers to ensure that our response to the challenges they are facing is as effective as it can be.
With schools closed and the nation confined to their homes during lockdown, millions have been relying on e-publications to help home school their children, keep up to date with the latest news and to pass the time. To support this, the Chancellor has brought forward the zero rating on e-publications. The zero rate of VAT will now apply to all e-publications from the 1st May - seven months ahead of schedule. The Government expects the tax relief to be passed on to consumers in the form of reduced prices for online copies.
The Government will continue to consider all possible options in the interests of promoting and sustaining high-quality news journalism. Never have the activities of journalists been more popular and critical; providing quality news to all, including those self-isolating, and binding communities together, a fundamental function of our modern day democracy.