Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to regulate companies' use of technological systems to monitor people.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
Organisations that process personal data for the purposes of monitoring their activities or surveillance must comply with the requirements of the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. This means that the data processing must be fair, lawful and transparent. Any adverse impact of monitoring on individuals must be necessary, proportionate and justified by the benefits to the organisation and others. A Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) would usually be required, particularly where the processing involves the use of new technologies, or the novel application of existing technologies.
Where people’s biometric data are processed, such as through fingerprint, voice or facial recognition technology, companies would generally need to conduct a DPIA. Companies conducting live facial recognition would generally need to show that processing was necessary for one of a limited number of specified reasons of substantial public interest - for instance, preventing or detecting unlawful acts. They would also need to show that specific conditions and safeguards were met.
The Information Commissioner’s Office is the UK’s independent regulator for data protection and has published extensive guidance to help organisations comply with their data protection obligations. This includes guidance for employers on the rules in relation to monitoring of employees, as well as guidance on monitoring employees in connection with Covid-19 related measures.
The Information Commissioner has also published an opinion on the non-law enforcement use of live facial recognition technology in public spaces which explain the requirements of the legislation and stress that data protection and people’s privacy must be at the heart of any decisions to deploy live facial recognition technology in public spaces.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether polling by the Government on public opinion on covid-19 was conducted on 14 February 2020.
Answered by Michael Ellis
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to PQ45797 on 14 September 2021.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether polling by the Government on public opinion on covid-19 was conducted on 13 February 2020.
Answered by Michael Ellis
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to PQ45797 on 14 September 2021.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether polling by the Government on public opinion on covid-19 was conducted on 12 February 2020.
Answered by Michael Ellis
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to PQ45797 on 14 September 2021.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether polling by the Government on public opinion on covid-19 was conducted on 11 February 2020.
Answered by Michael Ellis
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to PQ45797 on 14 September 2021.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether polling by the Government on public opinion on covid-19 was conducted on 10 February 2020.
Answered by Michael Ellis
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer given to PQ45797 on 14 September 2021.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the results of 16 polls on public opinion on covid-19 conducted or commissioned by his Department which took place on Sundays between March and July 2020, which covered public opinion on Covid-19.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 82315 and 82316 on 9 September 2020, and PQ 156454 on 2 March 2021.
Covid-19 polling for the cross-government public information campaign has been conducted regularly since the start of the pandemic. This work allows the Cabinet Office to optimise campaign messaging and maximise effectiveness, ensuring vital public health information reaches as many people as possible. The insight gathered continue to inform the Government’s ongoing communications strategy and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so shall not be published at this time.
The Cabinet Office publishes details of all contracts over £10,000 on Contracts Finder and spend over £500, including on public information campaigns, on a rolling basis. This will include expenditure on this campaign and will be broken down by supplier.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, which companies the Cabinet Office's Insight and Evaluation Team commissioned to carry out covid-19 polling on behalf of the Government.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 82315 and 82316 on 9 September 2020, and PQ 156454 on 2 March 2021.
Covid-19 polling for the cross-government public information campaign has been conducted regularly since the start of the pandemic. This work allows the Cabinet Office to optimise campaign messaging and maximise effectiveness, ensuring vital public health information reaches as many people as possible. The insight gathered continue to inform the Government’s ongoing communications strategy and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so shall not be published at this time.
The Cabinet Office publishes details of all contracts over £10,000 on Contracts Finder and spend over £500, including on public information campaigns, on a rolling basis. This will include expenditure on this campaign and will be broken down by supplier.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the (a) contents and (b) results of the 265 covid-19 polling files held by his Department's Insight and Evaluation Team.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 82315 and 82316 on 9 September 2020, and PQ 156454 on 2 March 2021.
Covid-19 polling for the cross-government public information campaign has been conducted regularly since the start of the pandemic. This work allows the Cabinet Office to optimise campaign messaging and maximise effectiveness, ensuring vital public health information reaches as many people as possible. The insight gathered continue to inform the Government’s ongoing communications strategy and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so shall not be published at this time.
The Cabinet Office publishes details of all contracts over £10,000 on Contracts Finder and spend over £500, including on public information campaigns, on a rolling basis. This will include expenditure on this campaign and will be broken down by supplier.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, on what dates between 1 January 2020 and 28 July 2020 covid-19 polling was undertaken by (a) his Department's Insight and Evaluation Team and (b) companies on behalf of his Department.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
I refer the Rt Hon. Member to the answer given to PQs 82315 and 82316 on 9 September 2020, and PQ 156454 on 2 March 2021.
Covid-19 polling for the cross-government public information campaign has been conducted regularly since the start of the pandemic. This work allows the Cabinet Office to optimise campaign messaging and maximise effectiveness, ensuring vital public health information reaches as many people as possible. The insight gathered continue to inform the Government’s ongoing communications strategy and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and so shall not be published at this time.
The Cabinet Office publishes details of all contracts over £10,000 on Contracts Finder and spend over £500, including on public information campaigns, on a rolling basis. This will include expenditure on this campaign and will be broken down by supplier.