Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the priorities of the Digital Economy Council are.

The Digital Economy Council was set up in 2017 following publication of the 2017 UK Digital Strategy. The original aim of the Council was to drive progress on the implementation of the Strategy in the areas where the expertise and reach of members could have the greatest impact, and it has served as a valuable advisory group to Government on a range of digital and tech policy issues.

I announced last month that the government will be publishing a new digital strategy in the Autumn that reflects the new post-COVID reality. This will focus on growth and using tech to power us out of the recession, to drive productivity, and to create jobs in all parts of our economy. Members of the Digital Economy Council have shared a number of ideas with me for the Strategy, and I look forward to their further input.