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Written Question
Independent Press Standards Organisation
Tuesday 20th September 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what data her Department holds on (a) the number of fines imposed and (b) how many standards investigations have been launched by IPSO since 2014.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Since the report of the Leveson Inquiry was published in 2012, we have seen a fundamental reform of the self-regulatory landscape for the press, including the establishment of two new regulators, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) and The Independent Monitor for the Press (IMPRESS). The majority of traditional publishers—including 95% of national newspapers by circulation—are members of IPSO. A small number of publishers have joined IMPRESS.

These regulators enforce codes of conduct which provide guidelines on a range of areas, including discrimination, accuracy, privacy, and harassment. If they find that a newspaper has broken the code of conduct, they can order corrections.

The Government is committed to independent self-regulation of the press, and does not intervene in or oversee the work of IPSO.


Written Question
Press: Privacy
Tuesday 20th September 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of current trends in the levels of press (a) intrusion and (b) harassment of grieving families in the UK.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to a free and independent press, and does not intervene in what the press can and cannot publish. We are clear, however, that with this freedom, comes responsibility, which media organisations must take seriously. It is important that there exists an independent self regulatory regime to ensure that the press adheres to a wide set of clear and appropriate standards, and to offer individuals a means of redress where these are not met.


Written Question
Telecommunications: Prices
Tuesday 20th September 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps are being taken by her Department to help prevent price increases over and above CPI by telecoms companies.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Annual price increases are contained within the terms and conditions that consumers agree to when taking out their communications service. Ofcom General Condition (c1.3) requires operators to provide customers with a clear summary of their contract terms - including any elements relating to price rises - prior to final sale.

We continue to engage with the sector regarding affordability and pricing. Customers should check whether they are in their minimum contract period as they may be able to save money by negotiating with their existing provider or consider switching. Figures released by Ofcom in November 2021, show that 35% of consumers in 2020 were out of contract, and the average out of contract broadband customer could save more than £61 a year by switching providers.


Written Question
Cultural Development Fund
Wednesday 7th September 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will provide details on the fourth round of the Cultural Development Fund; and if she will make a statement.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The fourth round of the Cultural Development Fund (CDF) is expected to launch in Spring 2024. As per the announcement in May 2022, CDF rounds 3 and 4 will see up to £49.4m of further capital investment in innovative cultural and creative projects outside London over the Spending Review period 2022/23 - 2024/25.

CDF round 3 was launched in May 2022. Building on the success of the previous two rounds, this third round of funding will level up through cultural investment, increase access to creativity and culture, and support the visitor and wider local economies in places all over England.


Written Question
Arts: EU Countries
Thursday 7th July 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to enable UK creative artists to tour freely across the EU.

Answered by Nadine Dorries

We are committed to supporting the creative sector to adapt to new arrangements with the EU. Ministers attended the Touring Working Group in June to hear directly from the sector.

Nearly all Member States offer visa and work permit free routes for creatives. This includes Spain and Greece, who changed their position following extensive engagement from the government and industry.

The Government is also implementing ‘dual registration’ to support specialist concert hauliers, taking effect this summer.


Written Question
Arts: EU Countries
Tuesday 14th June 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with the EU Commission on access for UK creative artists.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to supporting UK creative industries to adapt to new arrangements with the EU.

We are supporting the sector by clarifying arrangements on visas, movement of goods and haulage, including through bilateral engagement with Member States. We have taken steps to support specialist concert hauliers, and worked across government and with industry to develop guidance including ‘landing pages’ on GOV.UK specifically for touring musicians and other creative sectors.

We have clarified existing arrangements and established that:

  • Nearly all Member States offer visa and work permit free routes for musicians and creative performers. This includes, following extensive engagement by the government and the creative sector, Spain and most recently Greece, who announced a visa and work permit free route in June 2022;

  • Portable musical instruments, carried or in a vehicle, can be transported cost-free and should not require ATA Carnets; and

  • Small ‘splitter vans’ are not subject to the Trade and Cooperation Agreement limits around ‘haulage for the creative sectors’ and ‘cross trade’. In addition, the Department for Transport is implementing dual registration to support specialist hauliers, meaning they can benefit from more generous market access and cabotage arrangements in GB and the EU.

The Government raised touring with the European Commission at the first meeting of the UK-EU Partnership Council in June 2021. We continue to work with the few remaining Member States that do not allow any visa or permit free touring to encourage them to make touring easier.


Written Question
Arts: EU Countries
Tuesday 14th June 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help allow UK creative artists to tour freely across the EU.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to supporting UK creative industries to adapt to new arrangements with the EU.

We are supporting the sector by clarifying arrangements on visas, movement of goods and haulage, including through bilateral engagement with Member States. We have taken steps to support specialist concert hauliers, and worked across government and with industry to develop guidance including ‘landing pages’ on GOV.UK specifically for touring musicians and other creative sectors.

We have clarified existing arrangements and established that:

  • Nearly all Member States offer visa and work permit free routes for musicians and creative performers. This includes, following extensive engagement by the government and the creative sector, Spain and most recently Greece, who announced a visa and work permit free route in June 2022;

  • Portable musical instruments, carried or in a vehicle, can be transported cost-free and should not require ATA Carnets; and

  • Small ‘splitter vans’ are not subject to the Trade and Cooperation Agreement limits around ‘haulage for the creative sectors’ and ‘cross trade’. In addition, the Department for Transport is implementing dual registration to support specialist hauliers, meaning they can benefit from more generous market access and cabotage arrangements in GB and the EU.

The Government raised touring with the European Commission at the first meeting of the UK-EU Partnership Council in June 2021. We continue to work with the few remaining Member States that do not allow any visa or permit free touring to encourage them to make touring easier.


Written Question
Digital Technology and Video Recordings: Hearing Impairment
Tuesday 5th April 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure equitable access to (a) digital resources and (b) videos for the deaf community in the UK.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

We want to build a world-leading digital economy in which no one is left behind by the digital revolution. That means ensuring that as many people as possible can reap the benefits of being online and the technologies that can transform our lives, benefit society and drive prosperity and growth.

However, we are aware that for disabled people, poor design of apps or websites - which does not take disabled users into account - remains a significant issue. This is why, in early 2022, DCMS collected evidence about the nature and scale of the inaccessibility of private sector websites. We are now exploring how the government can effectively intervene and will report back in spring 2022.

This work will complement the government’s 2018 publication of the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations. Led and monitored by the Government Digital Services (GDS), these regulations require UK public sector websites and apps to be made accessible, unless it would be disproportionate to do so.

In relation to video-on-demand (VoD) content, the Digital Economy Act 2017 amended the Communications Act 2003 to give the Secretary of State the power to impose statutory requirements on on-demand services regulated in the UK in relation to access services - including subtitling and signing. Following recommendations from Ofcom in December 2018 and July 2021, officials are considering their proposals and will set out next steps for implementation in due course.


Written Question
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Public Appointments
Monday 28th March 2022

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department makes an assessment of prospective trustee candidates' views on (a) climate change and (b) climate governance prior to their appointment.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Candidates are not routinely assessed on climate change and climate governance prior to their appointment.


Written Question
Football: Sportsgrounds
Wednesday 27th October 2021

Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of ending the ban on drinking alcohol in the seats at football grounds.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

No assessment has been made. The legislation relating to the consumption of alcohol at football matches is a matter for the Home Office.