Electronic Equipment: Coronavirus

(asked on 1st May 2020) - View Source

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 27 April 2020 to Question 38575, what funding his Department has made available to organisations to provide devices and connectivity to the vulnerable adult population who have been asked to shield by Government during the covid-19 outbreak.


Answered by
Caroline Dinenage Portrait
Caroline Dinenage
This question was answered on 6th May 2020

The government has worked with telecoms providers to agree a package of measures to support vulnerable consumers through Covid-19, including those who have been asked to shield. We have not, so far, provided funding specifically for the purchase of devices or connectivity for vulnerable adults asked to shield, but as previously mentioned in answer 38575, 38576, 38577 we continue to assess what needs to be done to address issues faced by vulnerable people who may also be digitally excluded.

My Department has been promoting the DevicesDotNow campaign, which is working with community organisations to distribute devices to vulnerable adults and help them get online. The aim is to enable elderly and vulnerable people, particularly those to who are shielding, to communicate with the outside world and get access to vital services. The Minister for Digital and Culture wrote to a number of industry Chief Executives to raise awareness of the campaign and to encourage them to donate tablets and laptops.

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