Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Geraint Davies and Oliver Dowden

Thursday 10th December 2020 Commons Chamber

[Geraint Davies (Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op) [V]]

  The Secretary of State will know that millions of people—both children and adults—with speech and language difficulties have had a very difficult time in the pandemic through lack of physical and digital support. Will he meet me, as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on speech and language difficulties, and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists to discuss how to improve digital support for those with speech and language difficulties at this very difficult time?

[Oliver Dowden]

The hon. Gentleman is right to raise the issue of digital exclusion across the board. My Department is working closely to address that, and of course I would be very happy for either me or one of my ministerial colleagues to meet him and that group to discuss those ideas further.

UK Telecommunications

Debate between Geraint Davies and Oliver Dowden

Tuesday 14th July 2020 Commons Chamber

[Oliver Dowden]

As ever, my right hon. and learned Friend, and predecessor, is correct. It is just the reality that telecoms networks will always be vulnerable, particularly to sophisticated hostile state actors, so we are bringing forward a telecoms security Bill to seek to address that. We should not kid ourselves into thinking that there is a panacea and that with one silver bullet we remove the risk by banning Huawei.

[Geraint Davies (Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op) [V]]

The Secretary of State focuses on delays and costs, but he also knows that Huawei has contracts in the Xinjiang public security bureau to deliver digital surveillance that oppresses a million Muslims. It also benefits from the slave trade. Does he agree that in any major public procurement contract, there should be due diligence on human rights? Why has he not done so in this case?