Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to increase public awareness of deepfakes.
Answered by Damian Collins
The Government takes seriously the threat of disinformation and online manipulation which includes digitally manipulated content such as deepfakes. Building public awareness and resilience is a key part of our whole society approach to tackling the threat.
Last year, the government published the Online Media Literacy Strategy, setting out our plans to support the empowerment of citizens with the skills and knowledge they need to make safe and informed choices online. This includes supporting citizens to: critically think about online content, understand how the online environment works including how images can be manipulated, and understand that the online world is not always reflective of reality.
In April 2022 we published our £2.5 million year two Action Plan setting out our work programme to meet the ambition of the Strategy. This included launching the Media Literacy Programme Fund which will award grant funding to organisations undertaking activity to build citizens' resilience to misinformation and disinformation. We have committed to publishing future actions plans each Financial Year until March 2025.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the number of (a) crimes and (b) scams involving deepfake technology.
Answered by Damian Collins
Ministers and officials have regular meetings with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues, including deepfake technology. Details of ministerial meetings are published on the GOV.UK website.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the (a) impact of the rise in the cost of energy on the charity sector’s ability to maintain services and (b) potential merits of providing energy grants to charity organisations.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We recognise that many organisations, including charities, are facing pressures due to the significant increases in global gas prices. The Government’s priority is to ensure costs are managed and supplies of energy are maintained.
Extensive engagement continues at both a ministerial and official level on this situation. Though we do not anticipate a need for sector-wide support at this time, we will continue to work closely with the sector to monitor the impact of increased energy costs.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the safety of young people online.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Protecting young people online is a priority for the government. In May 2021, we published the draft Online Safety Bill, which places duties on platforms to protect their users from harmful content and activity. The strongest protections in the legislation are for children. Services which are likely to be accessed by children will have to protect children from inappropriate and harmful content like pornography, and behaviour such as bullying. The regulator, Ofcom, will be able to take enforcement action against companies that fail to comply.
Ahead of online safety legislation, the UK’s regulatory regime for video sharing platforms requires UK-established platforms to take appropriate measures to protect children from harmful material. In addition, the Information Commissioner’s Age Appropriate Design Code, which came into force in September 2021, provides stronger protections for children’s personal data.
The government also recognises that it is important that children and parents are supported to stay safe online. In July 2021, we published the Online Media Literacy Strategy. This supports the empowerment of users, including young people, with the skills and knowledge they need to make safe and informed decisions online, whilst making the most of all the internet has to offer. In June 2021, we also published Safety by Design guidance and a “One Stop Shop” on child online safety. These provide voluntary guidance on steps that platforms can take to design safer services and protect children.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of introducing a national register of defibrillators located in (a) football stadiums, (b) sports pitches, (c) gyms and (d) leisure centres.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
My Department holds discussions with the Department for Health and Social Care on a variety of matters, including the safety and welfare of those who participate in sport and physical activity.
Events at UEFA EURO 2020 earlier this year demonstrated the immense value of access to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) and first aid training for anyone involved in sport. Sports facility owners have a responsibility to make the safety and welfare of those who use their facilities their top priority, including through access to life-saving first aid equipment and relevant training and education.
The NHS in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been working in partnership with The British Heart Foundation, the Resuscitation Council UK and the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives to set up a pioneering database that will register AEDs across the UK, called The Circuit.
The Circuit will link a UK wide network of AEDs to every ambulance service in the country and the public in a bid to help save more lives from Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest.
Sports venues can register their AEDs via The Circuit (www.thecircuit.uk) and we would encourage them to do so in order to increase the chances of successful life-saving outcomes.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to promote anti-racism in football.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is clear that racism has no place in football, sport, or society at large. The sport and physical activity strategy ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation’ has diversity and inclusion at its heart.
The Government continues to liaise closely and regularly with all the football authorities about their work to tackle discrimination. This includes actions targeted at and around football grounds, such as improving reporting systems, providing better training and support for referees and stewards, and improving the quality of CCTV around stadia.
We also welcomed the launch of The FA’s ‘Football Leadership Diversity Code’ last year which is a step in the right direction to ensure English football better represents our modern and diverse society, on and off the pitch.
In January, the Government convened a roundtable with footballers, alongside the Chair of The FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board and the Professional Footballers’ Association, to discuss social media abuse and the upcoming Online Safety Bill. There is still progress to be made and the Government will continue to press the football authorities to build on their work to date to tackle discrimination.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many referees in the (a) professional and (b) grassroots football sector are trained in administrating CPR.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
First aid skills, including how to administer CPR, are important life skills for everyone. Recent events at UEFA EURO 2020 have demonstrated the particular value of first aid training for anyone involved in football, or indeed any sport.
The department does not hold information about the number of professional or grassroots referees who have been trained in CPR. This information is held by the relevant national governing body, which in England is The Football Association.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
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 potential merits of requiring all football clubs operating stadiums and pitches to provide defibrillators at those locations.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
First aid skills, including how to administer CPR, are important life skills for everyone. Recent events at UEFA EURO 2020 have demonstrated the immense value of first aid training and access to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) for anyone involved in football.
While I fully support everyone acquiring first aid skills, it is for The Football Association, as the national governing body for football in England, and the operators of the various league competitions to determine what courses should be mandatory for participants in football.
AEDs are already recommended best practice at all sports stadia, including football stadia, as set out in guidance from the Sports Grounds Safety Authority. Local authorities are able to mandate AED provision (at grounds designated under the Safety of Sports Grounds 1975 Act or sports grounds with regulated stands under the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987 Act) through medical plans included in General Safety Certificates.
At the grassroots level, support over recent years has been provided by the Football Association and the British Heart Foundation to help ensure AEDs are available in football facilities. Building on this, I welcomed the Premier League’s announcement in June 2021 of their new Defibrillator Fund, which will fund AEDs at thousands of football clubs and facilities across the country. Each grant recipient will be required to have at least one person successfully complete The FA Education’s free online Sudden Cardiac Arrest course.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
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 potential merits of requiring all (a) players, (b) coaches and (c) referees at each club level of football to undertake an emergency first aid course.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
First aid skills, including how to administer CPR, are important life skills for everyone. Recent events at UEFA EURO 2020 have demonstrated the immense value of first aid training and access to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) for anyone involved in football.
While I fully support everyone acquiring first aid skills, it is for The Football Association, as the national governing body for football in England, and the operators of the various league competitions to determine what courses should be mandatory for participants in football.
AEDs are already recommended best practice at all sports stadia, including football stadia, as set out in guidance from the Sports Grounds Safety Authority. Local authorities are able to mandate AED provision (at grounds designated under the Safety of Sports Grounds 1975 Act or sports grounds with regulated stands under the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987 Act) through medical plans included in General Safety Certificates.
At the grassroots level, support over recent years has been provided by the Football Association and the British Heart Foundation to help ensure AEDs are available in football facilities. Building on this, I welcomed the Premier League’s announcement in June 2021 of their new Defibrillator Fund, which will fund AEDs at thousands of football clubs and facilities across the country. Each grant recipient will be required to have at least one person successfully complete The FA Education’s free online Sudden Cardiac Arrest course.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment with the Secretary of State for International Trade of the potential merits of working with his counterparts in the (a) EU and (b) US Administration to create a digital free trading zone.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Digital trade is one of the government's top trade priorities. The ongoing World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations on electronic commerce present an excellent opportunity to agree plurilateral rules on digital trade. The UK is an active participant and the government is fully committed to a successful outcome that liberalises digital trade across all those WTO members taking part, which includes the European Union and the United States.
The UK’s digital ambition will also be driven through bilateral trade agreements. The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement includes some of the world's most liberalising provisions for digital trade. The government is also negotiating a modern, ambitious digital trade chapter with the US as a part of the UK-US FTA.