The House of Lords COVID-19 Committee has launched a new
inquiry into the impact of the increased digitisation of our
work and personal lives caused by the current pandemic on our
social and economic wellbeing.
The general increased reliance on digital technology
over recent years has been accelerated significantly by the COVID
Pandemic - a recent survey of businesses suggests that companies’
digital transformation has progressed by an average of five years
in the UK since the outbreak began.
While some aspects of life are likely to return to
offline, in-person interactions again once social distancing is
no longer required, in other areas the rapidly increasing
reliance on digital technology is likely to be a long-term
trend.
The Committee are inviting interested parties
to get in touch with them and share their views on how a rapidly
increasing reliance on digital technology, may impact on our
wellbeing. They are particularly interested in hearing
about the impact of digitalisation on four key drivers of
wellbeing: physical health, mental health, social interaction and
quality of working life.
The deadline for the submission of written evidence
is 11 December 2020.
Commenting at the launch of the inquiry
, Chair of the Committee said:
“I want to thank everyone who contributed to the
Committee’s first piece of work. The scale of the responses, and
the honesty with which people shared both the hardships they’d
experienced and their hopes for the future, was incredible. It
has given the Committee a huge amount to think about in terms of
the complex different ways that this pandemic is likely to affect
us in the long-term.
“We will now be moving on to explore the key themes
that emerged from this work in more depth, beginning with the
inquiry we are launching today. The last six months have
accelerated the digitalisation of our lives dramatically. This is
affecting everything from the sustainability of high-street
retailers to our opportunities for social connection, and so we
want to explore the long-term impact of this on our economic and
social wellbeing.
“We will then turn our attention to some of the other
themes that emerged from our first piece of work, as topics for
our future inquiries.”
Notes to Editors
-
The full call for evidence and details of how to
engage with this new inquiry are available on the Committee’s
webpage.
