All 3 Petitions debates in the Commons on 18th Dec 2012


Mon 17th Dec 2012

House of Commons (46) - Written Statements (23) / Commons Chamber (11) / Westminster Hall (6) / Petitions (3) / Ministerial Corrections (3)

House of Lords (13) - Lords Chamber (11) / Grand Committee (2)


Wed 19th Dec 2012
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Petitions

Tuesday 18th December 2012

(11 years, 5 months ago)

Petitions
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Tuesday 18 December 2012
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“Opt-in” filter for internet service providers

Tuesday 18th December 2012

(11 years, 5 months ago)

Petitions
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The Petition of a local women’s group in Wiltshire,
Declares that the Petitioners regard the accessibility of adult and pornographic material on the internet as having harmful effects on young people, both girls and boys; notes that a similar petition has been signed by 17 people; further notes the campaign of the Member of Parliament for Devizes to require internet service providers to introduce an “opt-in” filter for accessing adult material online, and declares the Petitioners' support for this campaign.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to encourage internet service providers to have an “opt-in” filter to prevent children accessing adult or pornographic material on the internet.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Duncan Hames, Official Report, 18 September 2012; Vol. 550, c. 7P.]
[P001121]
Observations from the Secretary of State for Education:
The Government, through the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS), have recently consulted on options for parental internet controls which would improve children’s safety online. The consultation responses made very clear that parents want to take responsibility for their children’s online safety, and there was no majority support for any of the three options consulted on, including “opt-in” filtering (i.e. default filtering at network level).
Through UKCCIS, the Government have been encouraging the information and communication industries, including internet service providers (ISPs) to ensure that parents face an unavoidable choice in whether or not to have parental controls installed on their internet service or devices. Expert advice is that children have the greatest protection online if their parents engage with the issues on their children’s access to the internet. Relying on default filters on the internet does not encourage parents to engage with the issues and take responsibility for their children’s safety. It is not possible to filter all the potentially harmful content, helpful sites could be blocked as well as harmful ones, and filters do not deal with harms such as bullying, abuse or grooming.
Following the consultation, the Government now wish to go further than their previous approach. We are asking ISPs to prompt the setting up of parental controls by existing customers as well as new ones, allow those controls to be tailored more to individual children’s needs, and check that the person setting up the controls is over 18. The Government are also making clear that every part of the industry should be working on family-friendly internet access which is easy to use, and that we would like to see all internet-enabled devices equipped with tools to help keep children safe.
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Nippers Nursery, Leicester

Tuesday 18th December 2012

(11 years, 5 months ago)

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The Petition of staff and parents of Nippers Nursery, Saxon House, Leicester,
Declares that on 30 November Nippers Nursery will be closed by HMRC and that the reason given is that there is a declining number of children attending; further that the Petitioners believe that this is simply not true and that Nippers Nursery is a valuable, viable and well-loved local nursery used by staff of HMRC and local parents alike.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges Her Majesty’s Treasury to reverse the decision to close Nippers Nursery.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Jonathan Ashworth, Official Report, 20 November 2012; Vol. 553, c. 552.]
[P001134]
Observations from the Secretary of State for the Treasury:
On 30 November, this nursery, run by private sector provider Bright Horizons, closed. The nursery operated from HMRC’s premises in Saxon House Leicester. HMRC decided not to renew the contract for this (and seven other nurseries) in March 2012 and informed Bright Horizons of this in May 2012.
As part of the decision, HMRC considered the usage of the Nippers nursery, which at the time was only 61% (around 30% of those parents worked for HMRC). Of course the numbers may have changed slightly from month to month but it is clear that even when the accommodation and utilities were provided free by HMRC and a subsidy offered to HMRC parents, the nursery was not full. In addition, HMRC was providing subsidised accommodation within its offices for a nursery that was used primarily by people who did not work there. That was not sustainable so the decision was taken to end the contract.
There has been a lot of speculation about whether HMRC will use the space that was occupied by the nursery. HMRC recently closed its office at Attenborough House and moved the staff to Saxon House. Next year, HMRC will close its other office in Leicester (Citygate House) and again staff will move into Saxon House.
As a result, HMRC has greater need for the space within Saxon House. Therefore, it could not continue to provide space to an external service provider when it needs it to better enable its core purpose and, at the same time, meet Government targets to reduce the estates footprint and costs associated.
The Government will not be overturning HMRC’s decision.
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