Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the uptake to date of funding under the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme during this financial year, and what level of funding they expect to provide in financial year 2026/27.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has allocated up to £23 million to the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme in 2025/26. This year’s scheme will end on 31 March 2026 or when the budget is exhausted, whichever is the sooner. Funding after March 2026 will be considered as we work through the output of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process.
In order to help applicants plan, we publish an online tracker showing remaining funding. This indicates remaining budget and is not an underspend. We typically see an upsurge in claims towards the end of the financial year. £7,774,560 worth of funding has been used to date. The tracker can be found at https://listed-places-of-worship-grant.dcms.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 September (HL10442), whether the Government Art Collection holds or plans to hold any contractual or licensing rights over digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain; and if so, what is the legal basis for those licences.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Art Collection (GAC) does not claim copyright in digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain. The GAC has not sought or received guidance about the assertion of copyright, aside from Crown Copyright. The decision to license images for commercial and non-commercial use through a contractual agreement is an operational decision taken by the GAC, based on commercial contract law for the access and supply of digital assets.
There are no current or scheduled plans for the GAC to allow high-resolution images of works of art that are in the Government Art Collection and in the public domain to be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 September (HL10444), whether they plan to allow high-resolution images of works of art that are in the Government Art Collection and in the public domain to be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use; and if so, what is their timetable for implementing that access.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Art Collection (GAC) does not claim copyright in digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain. The GAC has not sought or received guidance about the assertion of copyright, aside from Crown Copyright. The decision to license images for commercial and non-commercial use through a contractual agreement is an operational decision taken by the GAC, based on commercial contract law for the access and supply of digital assets.
There are no current or scheduled plans for the GAC to allow high-resolution images of works of art that are in the Government Art Collection and in the public domain to be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 September (HL10442), what guidance they have issued to the Government Art Collection about the assertion of copyright, other than Crown Copyright, over digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Art Collection (GAC) does not claim copyright in digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain. The GAC has not sought or received guidance about the assertion of copyright, aside from Crown Copyright. The decision to license images for commercial and non-commercial use through a contractual agreement is an operational decision taken by the GAC, based on commercial contract law for the access and supply of digital assets.
There are no current or scheduled plans for the GAC to allow high-resolution images of works of art that are in the Government Art Collection and in the public domain to be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 17 September (HL10442), whether the Government Art Collection claims any form of copyright, other than Crown Copyright, in digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain, whether or not those reproductions were taken by Government employees.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government Art Collection (GAC) does not claim copyright in digital reproductions of two-dimensional artworks that are in the public domain. The GAC has not sought or received guidance about the assertion of copyright, aside from Crown Copyright. The decision to license images for commercial and non-commercial use through a contractual agreement is an operational decision taken by the GAC, based on commercial contract law for the access and supply of digital assets.
There are no current or scheduled plans for the GAC to allow high-resolution images of works of art that are in the Government Art Collection and in the public domain to be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use.
Asked by: Lord Hall of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the timetable, including key milestones, for the renewal of the BBC Charter by 2027.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We are preparing for the upcoming Charter Review which we expect to launch later this year.
The current Charter sets out the steps that the Government must take during any Charter Review. This includes consulting with the BBC, Ofcom, Devolved Governments and Parliament. We will be seeking views from the public through a consultation before taking any decisions regarding the future of the BBC. The public consultation will ensure that members of the public are able to share their views and inform our policy-making. There will also be the opportunity for Parliamentary debate before the final Charter is published.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the potential savings from the introduction of the £25,000 annual cap on grants under the Listed Places of Worship Scheme.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In January this government announced that we would extend the Listed Places of Worship Scheme for one year with an overall budget of £23 million, coming into effect from April 2025. Previous to that the budget for the scheme was up to £42 million, with an average spend of £29 million per year between 2017 and 2024. However, to ensure the £23 million budget remains affordable, claims are now capped at £25,000 per place of worship.
This means there is a saving of approximately £6m per year.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2025 to Question 68534 on Members: Correspondence, when the hon. Member will receive a reply to the correspondence with reference MW07790.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
A response was sent to the Honourable Member on 25 September 2025. I apologise for the delay.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Church Commissioners on extending the spending cap on the Listed Places of Worship scheme after 2026.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The future of the grant scheme funding after March 2026 will be considered as we work through the results of the Spending Review and Departmental business planning process.
The Department has had various meetings with representatives of the Church and other stakeholders on the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. In June 2025, the Heritage Minister met church leaders including Marsha de Cordova MP, who is the Second Church Estates Commissioner.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to publish an open data policy requiring national museums and galleries to make high-resolution images of public domain artworks freely available for non-commercial use; and if so, what definitions they will use for (1) high resolution, and (2) non-commercial.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The DCMS-sponsored museums take their responsibilities to extend engagement with their Collections seriously. As Arm’s Length Bodies national museums operate independently and are responsible for developing their own policies, including around the provision of images, and for taking appropriate commercial and legal advice. Policies can be found on the respective websites and image licensing portals of the museums, many of which provide users with the ability to view high resolution images.
The government strongly supports efforts to expand the reach and impact of the national museums, including digitally, while also recognising and encouraging efforts to balance this against the need to raise private income. Government-backed digitisation projects and investment in Collections databases since the Covid pandemic have resulted in marked increases in the accessibility of Collections records. The wider museums sector, whilst not directly funded by the department, is also making progress in increasing digital access to Collections, with the support of organisations and initiatives such as Art UK, the Museum Data Service, and the AHRC-funded Towards a National Collection research project.
The department is working with the national museums to understand the extent and pace of further planned digitisation work, alongside opportunities provided by new work to establish a Creative Content Exchange, to ensure we are both maximising public access to culture, and positioning our cultural organisations to engage fruitfully with the AI revolution underway.