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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the London Fire Brigade’s proposal for a single, publicly accessible UK register of product recalls.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

We want to ensure consumers have easy access to information on product recalls. We have already asked an industry led Recall Review Steering Group to explore how a single source of information on product recalls can be delivered for business and consumers. We will be discussing proposals on this with them shortly. The London Fire Brigade are represented on the Recall Review Steering Group by the Chief Fire Officers Association.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to require manufacturers of household appliances to make publicly available the risk assessments they carry out on their appliances.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

We have no plans to do so.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for reviewing the legislation concerning the safe use of electrical products at home.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

The Government takes consumer safety extremely seriously. This country has some of the most robust product safety legislation in the world. We cannot be complacent. We have the legislation in place to protect consumers, but we do sometimes see unsafe products on the market. That is why in November 2014 the Government announced an Independent Review of the Product Recall System.

Following this review we invited a team of industry experts to form a Steering Group to consider how the review’s recommendations might be implemented. The Steering Group has set itself a timeframe of 2 years in which to complete its work.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the number of people in the UK who do not have access to superfast broadband.

Baroness Mobarik

We want everyone to have access to high speed broadband as part of our commitment to building a stronger, more connected economy that works for all.

Through the Government’s investment of over £780 million, superfast broadband is now available to 90% of homes and businesses in the UK, compared to less than half in 2010. By the end of 2017 it will be available to 95% of homes and businesses.

But we are determined to go further, and extra funding from clawback and efficiency savings in the local broadband contracts with BT will allow this coverage to be extended.

We are also committed to introducing a Universal Service Obligation for broadband through the Digital Economy Bill. Our ambition is to set the minimum speed at 10Mbps – enough to meet the needs of a typical family and many small businesses so no-one is left behind.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what actions they are taking to support local television services.

Baroness Mobarik

A total of 21 local television services have launched since November 2013 with a further 13 local services due come on air next year. The development of local television has been supported by up to £40m of ring-fenced funding under arrangements agreed with the BBC in 2011. Under these arrangements, the BBC will provide up to £25 million to cover the capital costs of building the local television transmission network and up to £15m for content funding from the BBC for each station’s first three years on air.

The draft Charter agreement published on 15 September included an extension to the content funding arrangements. This would ensure that all local television stations launching by 31 July 2017 and that wish to receive BBC support for their first three years on air will able to receive funding under these arrangements until March 2020.

In addition to BBC funding, local television also benefits from having prominence on electronic programme guides (EPG) on Freeview and on other platforms and from certain exemptions to requirements in broadcasting legislation, such as having to source a proportion of their content from independent producers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the contribution that busking makes to community life.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen

The Government is clear that live music and street entertainment play an important role in community life and can generate a positive atmosphere that can be enjoyed by all. It can help in introducing performers to new audiences and contributes significantly in establishing and developing new talent.