Asked by: Lord Falconer of Thoroton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they made of the benefits of using a (1) centralised, and (2) decentralised, model for the COVID-19 contact tracing application; which of those benefits they plan to realise from the model in use; and what plans they have, if any, to change the model should those benefits not be realised.
Answered by Lord Bethell
Our priority has been to maximise the public health value of the app to save lives, while preserving privacy. We have gone for a centralised model because it provides the most flexibility from an epidemiological and disease management point of view.
Our centralised approach for the app gives the National Health Service a clear picture of which phones have been in close contact with each other. The model allows us more flexibility in how we decide to notify users and will help us give the most accurate advice to individuals. This flexibility will help to better spot false alarms and unnecessary alerts asking people to self-isolate.
We continue to work with Apple and Google to deliver the NHS COVID-19 app. The app will continue to evolve as our understanding of the virus increases and we will continue to revisit our design decisions as that understanding grows and we move to a national roll out.
Asked by: Lord Falconer of Thoroton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish (1) a data protection impact assessment, (2) a privacy impact assessment, (3) advice received from the Information Commissioner, and (4) advice received from the ethics committee chaired by Professor Sir Jonathan Montgomery, for the COVID-19 contact tracing application; and if so, when.
Answered by Lord Bethell
We have prioritised security and privacy at all stages of the National Health Service COVID-19 app’s development. An initial Data Protection Impact Assessment and a privacy notice have already been published on 7 May and, to ensure ongoing transparency, these will be updated as the app develops. A member of the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) staff has been working alongside the NHSX team since 23 March and the ICO’s most recent thinking on this matter is published and updated frequently on their website. The Ethics Advisory Board of the NHS COVID-19 app has published a letter to the Secretary of State summarising its advice in relation to the COVID-19 application. A copy of the letter is attached.
Asked by: Lord Falconer of Thoroton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many prison inmates are enrolled on courses or treatments to help them stop smoking.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
Validated information is not available centrally.