Tag: Chi Onwurah

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-11-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the use of alternative currencies for benefits payments.

Priti Patel

Customers living abroad and in receipt of payments delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions can have their payments made either:

• Direct into a UK bank or building society account in sterling; or
• Direct into an overseas account in the local currency;

All payments made to overseas customers, whether in sterling or local currency, are subject to fluctuating exchange rates. However, for payments made directly to overseas accounts in the relevant local currency, the Department has negotiated a competitive exchange rate which is more favourable that that available on the open Market.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with (a) Talk Talk and (b) other internet service providers on measures that can be taken to prevent breaches of security relating to customer data.

Mr Edward Vaizey

My Departmenthas been in contact with TalkTalk from the early stages of this incident, but this remains primarily a matter for the company itself and for law enforcement

This Governmenttakes issues of customer data protection very seriously, andhas regular discussions with internet service providers and telecommunications companies on the resilience and security of services. I recently wrote to FTSE 350 companies to remind them of the steps the Government expects them to take and the robust procedures businesses need to have in place. I also invited them to take part in the Government’s annual Cyber Governance Health Check to help companies understand and improve their level of cyber security.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-12-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2015 to Question 18920, how the local body contracts with BT have been funded.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The local body contracts are funded by from the BDUK public funding allocations to projects, local authority or community interest company funding and supplier funding.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has (a) guidelines and (b) a template contract for the leasing of government property to mobile telephone operators for the purposes of erecting masts.

Matthew Hancock

The Government Property Unit have developed guidelines and a standardised commercial agreement for Departments to make it easier for mobile telephone operatorsto erect masts on Government buildings. Government Property Unit also provided a London Rate Card for use by Departments and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) that sets out indicative rents for a range of locations. The Government Property Unit have also issued further technical guidance for Departments’ Estates.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he or Ofcom have made an assessment or hold information on the proportion of BT’s ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the superfast broadband rollout.

Mr Edward Vaizey

BT and other suppliers with funding from BDUK are obliged to provide wholesale access to all new ducts and poles built using public subsidy, in line with the requirements of the BDUK European State aid approval.

Ofcom has not conducted an assessment of the proportion of ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the subsequent superfast broadband rollout. Ofcom does not hold any other information on the proportion of BT’s ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-03-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Angolan counterparts on the current outbreak of yellow fever in Angola.

James Duddridge

The British Embassy in Luanda has been in close contact with the Government of Angola and the World Health Organisation regarding the current outbreak of yellow fever. The UK is the largest donor to Gavi (the Vaccine Alliance) and is providing £1.44 billion for 2016-2020. Gavi is supporting Angola’s response through the International Coordination Group’s Revolving Fund. We understand that Angola has received 7 million doses from the International Coordination Group to respond to the outbreak. The UK is also supporting vaccinations for yellow fever in Luanda through the World Health Organisation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-04-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding has been allocated for the establishment of a Northern branch of the New Schools Network; what the timetable for the establishment of that branch of Network is; and what plans he has for where that branch of the Network will be located.

Edward Timpson

The New Schools Network (NSN) is an independent charity that aims to improve the quality of education in the state sector, particularly for the most deprived children. It works with free school groups from all regions of England.

In the Budget, NSN was allocated £200,000 grant funding for a new Northern centre to encourage more innovative free schools in the region. NSN has already allocated a member of staff, who is based in Manchester, to work specifically with groups in the North and further recruitment will begin shortly.

NSN has plans to operate a similar model in the Midlands.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-05-05.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the remit of the Council of Data Science Ethics will extend beyond big data and personal data and include (a) wearable technologies, (b) health monitoring and (c) robotics.

Matthew Hancock

The Science and Technology Committee report on the Big Data Dilemma recommended that a Council for Data Ethics be established. The Government response was published on 26th April 2016 and can be found at the following link: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmselect/cmsctech/992/99204.htm

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-06-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department or Ofcom has made of the effect on consumers of data leakage (a) between applications on a consumer device and (b) between a consumer’s device and application servers.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The privacy aspects of this issue are regulated under the Data Protection Act (DPA). Compliance with the DPA is regulated and enforced by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) which maintains guidance relating to the Act. ICO guidance for app developers on privacy in mobile apps is available here: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/online-and-apps/ (PDF document here:https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisations/documents/1596/privacy-in-mobile-apps-dp-guidance.pdf)

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-07-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the (a) adequacy and (b) effectiveness of regulatory frameworks related to algorithms for (i) Facebook, (ii) Google and (iii) other online platforms.

Matt Hancock

The Government Office for Science published an evaluation report on Distributed Ledger Technology: beyond block chain on 19 January 2016, which provides an assessment. In addition, the report recommends 8 actions for government to maximise the opportunities and reduce the risks of this new technology. A copy of the report is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/492972/gs-16-1-distributed-ledger-technology.pdf

Consumers’ rights with regard to the collection, processing and disclosure of their personal data are governed by the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA). The DPA provides rights for individuals in respect of their personal data, including rights in relation to automated decision-making, the right of subject access, the right to prevent processing likely to cause damage or distress compensation for failure to comply with certain of the Act’s requirements, and the right to have data rectified, blocked, erased or otherwise destroyed in certain circumstances.

There have been significant advances in digital technology since the DPA came into force nearly 20 years ago. The Government is reviewing the current regulatory framework to ensure it is fit for purpose for the digital age.