Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much Huawei equipment analysis has been installed by UK 5G carriers since March 2019.
Answered by Matt Warman
Huawei’s presence in the UK is subject to detailed, formal oversight through the Huawei Cyber Security Evaluation Centre and its oversight board. The recent conclusions of the Telecoms Supply Chain Review set out clear limits on the role of Huawei, as a High Risk Vendor, in the UK telecoms market. The Government examined the full range of threats and risks when making its decision on the use of high risk vendors in the UK telecoms networks.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he has taken to help ensure that (a) website owners' and (b) providers' compliance with GDPR protects the privacy of their (i) customers and (ii) users.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) strengthen the obligations on organisations to process individuals’ data fairly, lawfully and transparently and to keep it safe and secure. It also strengthens individuals’ rights to seek to access, rectify or delete their data.
This legislation is regulated and enforced by the independent Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO has issued comprehensive guidance for organisations on how to comply with the legislation and is also working closely with specific sectors to address areas of risk.
If individuals have concerns about the way online services are processing their data, they may wish to complain to the ICO. The ICO has a range of corrective powers and sanctions to enforce the GDPR, including:
issuing warnings and reprimands;
imposing a temporary or permanent ban on data processing;
ordering the rectification, restriction or erasure of data; and
suspending data transfers to third countries.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the BBC on the proposed removal of free television licences for people aged over 75.
Answered by Jeremy Wright
Since the BBC took its decision, I have met with the Chairman of the BBC Board and the Director-General of the BBC and I have asked them to do more to help the most vulnerable groups affected by the decision.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that social media companies respect freedom of speech when regulating content.
Answered by Margot James
The Government is committed to upholding free speech, and legislation is already in place to protect these fundamental rights. However, this freedom cannot be an excuse to cause harm or spread hatred.
The Online Harms White Paper sets out the Government's proposals for making the UK the safest place to be online. The proposed independent regulator will have an obligation to protect users' rights online, particularly rights to privacy and freedom of expression. It will ensure that the new regulatory requirements do not lead to a disproportionately risk averse response from companies that unduly limits freedom of expression, including by limiting participation in public debate.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that large technology companies are complying with regulations on personal data.
Answered by Margot James
The Data Protection Act 2018 poses strict obligations on organisations to ensure that UK citizens’ data is processed safely and securely. Organisations which fail to comply with the new legislation may be investigated by the Information Commissioner’s Office and subject to increased fines.
It is essential that people are confident their personal data will be protected and used in an appropriate way. The Data Protection Act 2018 and the GDPR is in place to ensure that companies who collect and use data do so appropriately with an appropriate legal basis.