Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January to Question 120898 on Internet: Males, if she will fund research online violence against men and boys.
Answered by Paul Scully
The government routinely undertakes research to enhance the online harms evidence base, as well as improve understanding of harms experienced by adults and children. A list of recently published research can be found at this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-harms-research-publications-december-2022
Ofcom also conducts research into online harms. For example, Online Nation is an annual report by Ofcom that looks at what people are doing online, how they are served by online content providers and platforms, and their attitudes to and experiences of using the internet.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, following the recent award of a contract awarded by the Government for violence against women and girls research with a particular reference to online violence against women and girls, whether this research will also include online violence against men and boys.
Answered by Paul Scully
The government is concerned about online safety for all users, including men and boys. This particular research has a focus on online safety for women and girls to understand the drivers of the abuse they can receive online.
It aims to develop an understanding of how design features of online platforms and services can either increase or decrease the risk of online violence against women and girls. Our research will contribute to the UK’s commitments under the Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to undertake regular reviews of the gambling sector to ensure that policy, regulation, stakes and prizes are kept up to date.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of its broad scope, our Gambling Act Review call for evidence included questions on the rules governing land based gambling and the need to ensure an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries.
We are carefully considering all the evidence submitted and a white paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in due course.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department plans to include consideration in the Gambling Act review of the introduction of testing for new amusement machines and games to gather evidence on regulatory reforms and social responsibility measures.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of its broad scope, our Gambling Act Review call for evidence included questions on the rules governing land based gambling and the need to ensure an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries.
We are carefully considering all the evidence submitted and a white paper setting out our next steps and proposals for reform will be published in due course.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
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 support equine rescue charities whose income has reduced as a result of the covid-19 outbreak and who are ineligible for the job support schemes.
Answered by John Whittingdale
There are already generous measures in place to support the voluntary and community sector which include more than £1.3 billion a year in respect of Gift Aid on donations. Charities play an invaluable role in this country which is why the Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector so that they can continue their vital work through the coronavirus outbreak.
The Government has also worked closely with the sector through the Canine and Feline Sector Group and National Equine Welfare Council to agree and update guidance to animal rescue and rehoming organisations, and other animal charities and businesses. This has enabled them to undertake core operations as far as possible, whilst maintaining compliance with the social distancing rules and need for hygiene precautions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.
DCMS and Defra remain committed to continued engagement with the sector to understand the longer-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, monitor the animal welfare implications of this and offer appropriate advice and support.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
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 effect of the introduction of the 14-day quarantine period on the (a) tourism, (b) travel and (c) hospitality sectors.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We remain in regular contact with stakeholders, including UKHospitality, UKInbound and the ABTA, to closely monitor COVID-19’s impact on the tourism, travel and hospitality sectors. No impact assessment has been made by my Department.
The Home Office commissioned Her Majesty's Treasury to assess the economic impacts of the mandatory 14 day self-isolation requirement. The Department for Transport fed into this analysis and ensured that the significant impact of the policy on the transport sector was reflected.
We appreciate that the quarantine measures will present difficulties for these sectors. The quarantine policy will be reviewed regularly and the first review will take place in the week beginning 28 June. We are also working with the transport industry to see how we can introduce agreements with other countries when safe to do so, so people from the UK can go abroad and tourists can come here.
Tourism and hospitality businesses and workers can access the Government’s economic support package. These include the recently extended Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, loan schemes, as well as business rates relief and grants for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the 14-day quarantine period on the financial viability of businesses in the travel sector.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We remain in regular contact with stakeholders, including UKHospitality, UKInbound and the ABTA, to closely monitor COVID-19’s impact on the financial health of businesses in the travel sector. This includes holding discussions about the effect of the 14-day quarantine period.
The Home Office commissioned Her Majesty's Treasury to assess the economic impacts of the mandatory 14 day self-isolation requirement. The Department for Transport fed into this analysis and ensured that the significant impact of the policy on the transport sector was reflected.
We appreciate that the quarantine measures will present significant difficulties for the travel and tourism sectors. The quarantine policy will be reviewed regularly and the first review will take place in the week beginning 28 June. We are also working with the transport industry to see how we can introduce agreements with other countries when safe to do so, so people from the UK can go abroad and tourists can come here.
Travel businesses and workers can access the Government’s economic support package. These include the recently extended Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, generous loan schemes and VAT payment deferrals for firms.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure transparency in the criteria for the (a) allocation and (b) application process for the £360 million allocated from the public purse to supporting charities financially affected by covid-19.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The £750 million funding package announced by the Government on 8 April is to ensure charities providing frontline services to vulnerable people affected by the pandemic can continue their vital work. £360m is being distributed via individual government departments based on evidence of service need. Up to £200m of this will directly support hospices and be administered by the Department of Health and Social Care. Departments are using a range of approaches to allocating funding in order to meet identified needs quickly, including bidding processes and awarding funding directly. Applications are now open for funding for the distribution of food to vulnerable people, safe accommodation for survivors of domestic abuse, armed services charities, and charities working to tackle loneliness and homelessness. Further information has been released on gov.uk.
The criteria for each fund are determined by the department responsible for distributing the funding. Each department is also responsible for due diligence and monitoring of the grants. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will publish an online resource signposting charities to these funding opportunities available for applications through government departments.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
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 prevent false information on covid-19 being spread on the internet.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Government takes the issue of misinformation and disinformation very seriously. It is vitally important that the public has accurate information.
The Counter Disinformation Unit brings together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19.
We are working closely with social media platforms to help them identify and remove incorrect claims about the virus, in line with their terms and conditions, as well as promote authoritative sources of information. We are also working with strategic communications experts to ensure that we are prepared to respond to disinformation campaigns where necessary.
The Government is also running a counter disinformation communications campaign, which aims to increase audience resilience by educating and empowering those who see, inadvertently share and are affected by false and misleading information.
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Department of Culture Media & Sport, whether charity employees furloughed on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme can still participate in fundraising activities for their employer.
Answered by John Whittingdale
HMT guidance on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme confirms that furloughed employees can take part in volunteer work, provided that it does not provide services or generate revenue for their employer. The system has been carefully set up to encourage employees whose working is not required due to social distancing to take up a unique opportunity to support the frontline delivery of essential support services.
However, the scheme is not designed to help charities cut the costs of delivering vital services. Where staff are needed in organisations to provide vital services and help vulnerable people through the Covid-19 crisis, these organisations will be eligible to apply for the new £750m funding package that was recently announced.