Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance he has published on (a) dance, (b) yoga and (c) swimming and (d) other group indoor sessions for people living under tier 3 covid-19 restrictions.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Sports and physical activity are incredibly important for our physical and mental health, and are a vital weapon against coronavirus. That’s why we made sure that people could exercise at least once a day even during the height of the first period of enhanced national restrictions and why we opened up grassroots sport and leisure facilities as soon as it was safe to do so.
As the Prime Minister said on 23 November national restrictions will end on Wednesday 2 December, and gyms and sport facilities including swimming pools will reopen across all tiers. Under Tier 3, gyms and sports facilities will be open for individual exercise and exercise in single households or support bubbles only. Indoor group activities and exercise classes should not take place. You can continue to do unlimited exercise alone, or in an outdoor public place in groups up to 6.
There are exceptions, however, which can take place in any number for disability sport, sports as part of the curriculum in education and supervised sport and physical activity for under-18s (including those who were under 18 on 31 August 2020).
Government has published overarching guidance for grassroots sport but doesn’t publish guidance for individual sports. It is for the National Governing Body of the sport to consider the steps that would need to be taken, and the conditions that would need to be met, for their activity to resume. The National Governing Body should also publish relevant guidance.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if it remains his policy to create a £500 million Youth Investment Fund; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Government recognises the significant impact of Covid-19 on young people, particularly the most vulnerable, and on the youth services that support them. A £16.5m Youth Covid-19 Support Fund has been announced which will protect the immediate future of grassroots and national youth organisations across the country.
The funding will be allocated from the Government’s unprecedented £750 million package of support which is benefiting tens of thousands of frontline charities, so they can continue their vital work. More than £60 million of this package has already been provided to organisations working with vulnerable children and young people.
The Youth Investment Fund remains a manifesto commitment for transformative levelling up across the country over the course of the parliament. In the recent announced Spending Review £30m of this was committed as capital investment for 2021-22. This will provide a transformational investment in new and refurbished safe spaces for young people, so they can access support youth workers, and positive activities out of school, including sport and culture. Further details of the timetable for allocation will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing gymnasiums to remain open during the November 2020 covid-19 lockdown.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Sport and physical activity are incredibly important for our physical and mental health, and are a vital weapon against coronavirus.
Nobody wanted to be in the position of having to introduce further National Restrictions. However as the Prime Minister said, with the virus spreading faster than expected we cannot allow our health system to be overwhelmed. Therefore, from Thursday 5 November until Wednesday 2 December indoor and outdoor leisure will need to close. The National Restrictions are designed to get the R rate under control through limiting social contact and reducing transmissions.
In order for these measures to have the greatest impact, we will all need to sacrifice doing some things that we would otherwise like to do, for a short period of time. The difficulty is that, when you unpick one thing, the effectiveness of the whole package is compromised. As soon as we're in a position to start lifting restrictions, grassroots sports will be one of the first to return.
People are still allowed to leave their homes for exercise and recreation outdoors, with your household or on your own, or with one person from another household or support bubble.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to help tackle (a) disinformation and (b) abuse on the commenting forums of newspaper websites.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.
The Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit was stood up on 5 March, bringing together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken.
More generally, the Government’s Online Harms White Paper, published in April 2019, set out our plans for world-leading legislation to make companies more responsible for their users’ safety online. We intend to establish in law a new duty of care on companies towards their users which will be overseen by an independent regulator. This regulator will set clear safety standards, backed up by mandatory reporting requirements and strong enforcement powers to deal with non-compliance.
However, Online Harms regulation will not seek to duplicate existing regulation on moderated comment sections on news sites. The government is committed to independent self-regulation of the press. Complaints about user-generated comments on news websites can be directed to the publication itself, or to the appropriate self-regulator. The majority of traditional publishers—including 95% of national newspapers by circulation—are members of IPSO. A small number of publishers have joined IMPRESS
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effect of (a) covid-19 disinformation and (b) other online harms on newspaper comment forums on public safety; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been vitally important that the public has accurate information and DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle disinformation.
The Cross-Whitehall Counter Disinformation Unit was stood up on 5 March, bringing together cross-Government monitoring and analysis capabilities. The Unit’s primary function is to provide a comprehensive picture of the extent, scope and impact of disinformation and misinformation regarding Covid-19 and to work with partners to ensure appropriate action is taken.
More generally, the Government’s Online Harms White Paper, published in April 2019, set out our plans for world-leading legislation to make companies more responsible for their users’ safety online. We intend to establish in law a new duty of care on companies towards their users which will be overseen by an independent regulator. This regulator will set clear safety standards, backed up by mandatory reporting requirements and strong enforcement powers to deal with non-compliance.
However, Online Harms regulation will not seek to duplicate existing regulation on moderated comment sections on news sites. The government is committed to independent self-regulation of the press. Complaints about user-generated comments on news websites can be directed to the publication itself, or to the appropriate self-regulator. The majority of traditional publishers—including 95% of national newspapers by circulation—are members of IPSO. A small number of publishers have joined IMPRESS
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether racist abuse and disinformation will be within the remit of the Government’s planned online harms regulatory system.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The new online harms regulatory framework will require companies to put effective systems and processes in place to protect UK users. The Online Harms White Paper set out an indicative list of harms which will be in scope of the new regulatory framework. Further details will be included in the full government response to the consultation, which we will publish later this year.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether comments on newspaper website forums will be considered to be user generated content for the purpose of the Government's legislative strategy for tackling online harms.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Online harms regulation seeks to improve online safety while ensuring pluralism, freedom of expression and media freedoms are protected online, Online harms regulation will not duplicate existing regulatory activity. The former DCMS Secretary of State made it clear in his 2019 letter to the Society of Editors that existing regulation on moderated comment sections on news sites would not be duplicated. Full details on the scope of online harms regulation will be published in the full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper Consultation later this year.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what representations his Department received from representatives from the Ten-pin Bowling Proprietor's Association in advance of the Government's decision to require bowling alleys to remain closed as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased; and what the scientific evidence is underpinning the decision for those venues to remain closed.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
DCMS officials have spoken to a representative of the Ten-pin Bowling Proprietor’s Association and also several other key sector members to discuss guidance and next steps to reopening the sector.
Bowling alleys will be able to reopen from 1 August provided they have written a Covid-19 risk assessment.
We have worked closely with stakeholders to develop further Covid-19 Secure reopening guidance for venues such as bowling alleys. Specific guidance on bowling alleys has been published within UKHospitality’s ‘Covid-19 Secure Guidelines for Hospitality Businesses’. We continue to meet regularly with the wider sector through the Cultural Renewal Taskforce’s Sport and Visitor Economy working groups.
As with all aspects of the Government’s response to Covid-19, our decisions have been and will continue to be based on scientific evidence and public health assessments.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to announce a timeframe for the reopening of live entertainment venues without the need for social distancing.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
We are committed to reopening creative businesses, including live entertainment venues, in line with the latest Government regulations and advice.
The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport recently set out a five stage roadmap that the government will work through to get the performing arts and live entertainment sectors back up and running as soon as possible.
The ministerially-chaired Events and Entertainment Working Group was established to support the Secretary of State’s Cultural Renewal Taskforce. It focuses on developing covid-19 secure guidance to enable the safe reopening of the performing arts, music and entertainment sectors.
Asked by: Emma Hardy (Labour - Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department plans to set up a taskforce on the reopening of live entertainment venues after the covid-19 outbreak; and if he will take steps to ensure that representatives of the National Arena Association, the Concert Promoters Association and the British Association of Concert Halls sit on such a taskforce.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The ministerially-chaired Events and Entertainment Working Group was established to support the Secretary of State’s Cultural Renewal Taskforce. It focuses on developing covid-19 secure guidance to enable the safe reopening of the performing arts, music and entertainment sectors.
The National Arenas Association and the Concert Promoters Association are active and valued members of the Working Group, and DCMS is in regular dialogue with a range of stakeholders from across the live entertainment sector.