Asked by: Mick Whitley (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will set out a long-term funding strategy for youth services in England.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Local Authorities have a statutory duty to allocate funding to youth services in line with local need. This is funded from the Local Government settlement, which was over £12 billion last year. DCMS are currently reviewing the guidance associated with the statutory duty.
Last year, DCMS conducted a Youth Review to ensure that our spending, policy and programmes meet the needs of young people. The review heard from over 6,000 young people and 120 youth organisations. Grounded in the findings from this review, the government has committed to a National Youth Guarantee: that by 2025 every young person will have access to regular clubs and activities, adventures away from home and volunteering opportunities. This will be supported by a three year £560 million investment in youth services, reflecting young people's priorities and addressing the inconsistencies in national youth spending, with a firm focus on levelling up.
Asked by: Mick Whitley (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has plans to address the regulatory differences between the online and land-based gambling sectors in the forthcoming Gambling White Paper.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 to ensure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. The Review will be wide-ranging and evidence-led. Our terms of reference can be found at the link here.
A core objective of the review is to ensure that customers are suitably protected whenever and wherever they are gambling, and that there is an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land based industries. We will publish a white paper setting out our planned proposals for the online and land-based gambling sectors in the coming months.
Asked by: Mick Whitley (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What assessment she has made of the impact of the potential privatisation of Channel 4 on jobs in the independent media production sector.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The government’s decision on the future of Channel 4, including its role with the independent production sector, will be informed by the responses to our recent consultation, which are still being analysed.
We are pleased that the UK’s independent production sector is flourishing and has become less reliant on income from PSBs over the years. Between 2008 and 2018, the contribution of PSB commissions to sector revenue fell from 64%-42%. But Channel 4 - and other PSBs - still has an important role to play in supporting independent production and the wider creative economy.
Whatever decision is made, it will not compromise the government’s commitment to this sector. Channel 4’s ability to work with independent producers is a strength to be celebrated and maintained into its future, and is not at odds with private investment.
Asked by: Mick Whitley (Labour - Birkenhead)
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 introducing restrictions on malicious online content intended to trigger photosensitive epilepsy.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
We are protecting epilepsy sufferers from malicious content online through the online harms regulatory framework and a review of criminal law. As part of the online harms regulatory framework, companies will need to have robust systems and processes in place to tackle illegal content on their services. This includes tackling illegal online abuse which provokes epilepsy seizures. Companies who offer high-risk, high-reach services will also need to take action with regard to legal but harmful content. The Online Safety Bill, which will give effect to the regulatory framework, will be ready this year.
The Government has sponsored a Law Commission review of harmful online communications, which is considering whether current law needs updating to account for online abuses, including abuse targeted at epilepsy sufferers. The Law Commission has consulted on provisional reforms and will issue final recommendations later this year, which we will carefully consider.