Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to reduce covid-19 misinformation and suspected scam-related phone calls to the general public.

Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. The Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit was stood up on 5 March 2020 to look for trends on social media platforms so that we can work with them and other partners to respond to misleading content rapidly.

The Rapid Response Unit in the Cabinet Office has also tackled a range of harmful narratives online. Up to 70 incidents a week have been identified and resolved - from false public health advice to criminal fraudsters running phishing scams. When alerted to Covid-19 vaccination fraud or scams in particular, the unit works alongside partners across the government and beyond, including NHS England to address and resolve the issues quickly.