Asked by: Lord Framlingham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the English Cricket Board’s intention not to schedule matches at Old Trafford in Lancashire and Headingly in Yorkshire as part of the next Ashes series held in this country; and what steps, if any, they will take to persuade the ECB to reverse this decision.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The hosting of Ashes test matches is a matter for the ECB as the governing body for cricket in England and Wales.
His Majesty’s Government is committed to supporting the hosting of sporting events across the UK and encourages all event organisers to consider not only the economic benefits that their events will generate, but also the wider social benefits they will bring such as volunteering, community engagement, and physical and mental wellbeing.
Asked by: Lord Framlingham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to allow amateur choral societies to practice and perform indoors within COVID-19 guidelines.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Non-professional activities are permitted indoors within the legal gathering limits in a group of up to 6 people, or as a group of 2 households/bubbles. Activities can take place with multiple permitted groups, provided the groups are kept separate throughout the activity, and the event is organised in line with the organised events guidance for local authorities. However, non-professional singing indoors should only take place in a single group of up to 6 people. Activities should be organised to allow for social distancing to be maintained.
We have followed the views of public health experts on singing. We are aware that singing can increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission through the spread of aerosol droplets. We will continue to keep guidance and restrictions under review, in line with the changing situation. Further detail on step 4 will be set out as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Framlingham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to protect primary school children from being exposed to hard-core pornography on the internet.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
As part of our commitment to making the UK the safest place in the world to be online we have introduced the requirement for commercial providers of online pornography to have robust age verification controls in place to prevent children and young people under 18 from accessing pornographic material.
In February the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) was officially designated as the age-verification regulator with responsibility for making sure providers meet this requirement. The BBFC is currently undertaking a public consultation on its draft guidance on the age verification arrangements that it will treat as compliant and the approach that it will take to ancillary service providers. This guidance will require parliamentary approval.
We continue to aim for the conclusion of the parliamentary proceedings as soon as possible. We will ensure that there is a sufficient period after the regulator’s guidance has been approved for the public and the industry to prepare for and comply with the new rules. It is anticipated that age verification will be enforceable by the end of the year.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is also working closely with the Department for Education to ensure that online safety forms part of new compulsory Relationships Education in primary schools.