Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether any funding opportunities are available for the development of cinemas and other cultural venues in urban areas that are currently underserved in terms of cultural infrastructure.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government recognises that cinemas and cultural venues are a hugely important part of the UK’s cultural landscape. We are committed to supporting them and the cultural sector more broadly.
HM Government provides funding opportunities for the arts and other cultural organisations in a range of ways, including direct Government funding, via arm’s-length bodies like Arts Council England, and indirectly through local authorities.
Through Arts Council England’s current investment programme, more than £444 million of public money is being invested each year in arts and culture across England. This is an increase from £410 million in the previous portfolio, and will support 985 organisations across England – more than ever before. In addition, through Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project Grant funding, over £105 million of awards were provided to individuals and arts organisations in 2022/23. This funding programme is open for applications from organisations anywhere in England.
The British Film Institute (BFI) is also conscious of the pressures faced by the cinema sector. The BFI’s Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film hubs are centres of expertise and support which connect cinemas, festivals, and creative practitioners. You can read more about the National Lottery funding the BFI makes available to bring film to a wider UK audience, including through BFI FAN, at: https://www.bfi.org.uk/get-funding-support/bring-film-wider-uk-audience.
The Government’s £150 million Community Ownership Fund helps to ensure that important parts of the social fabric, such as cinemas, pubs, sports clubs, and theatres, can continue to play a central role in towns and villages across the UK. Round 4 is the final round of the Community Ownership Fund, and the last window for bids will open in late May. You can find out more about the next round of the Community Ownership Fund at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-ownership-fund-prospectus
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to support the (a) establishment and (b) maintenance of (i) cinemas and (ii) cultural venues in towns.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government recognises that cinemas and cultural venues are a hugely important part of the UK’s cultural landscape. We are committed to supporting them and the cultural sector more broadly.
HM Government provides funding opportunities for the arts and other cultural organisations in a range of ways, including direct Government funding, via arm’s-length bodies like Arts Council England, and indirectly through local authorities.
Through Arts Council England’s current investment programme, more than £444 million of public money is being invested each year in arts and culture across England. This is an increase from £410 million in the previous portfolio, and will support 985 organisations across England – more than ever before. In addition, through Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project Grant funding, over £105 million of awards were provided to individuals and arts organisations in 2022/23. This funding programme is open for applications from organisations anywhere in England.
The British Film Institute (BFI) is also conscious of the pressures faced by the cinema sector. The BFI’s Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film hubs are centres of expertise and support which connect cinemas, festivals, and creative practitioners. You can read more about the National Lottery funding the BFI makes available to bring film to a wider UK audience, including through BFI FAN, at: https://www.bfi.org.uk/get-funding-support/bring-film-wider-uk-audience.
The Government’s £150 million Community Ownership Fund helps to ensure that important parts of the social fabric, such as cinemas, pubs, sports clubs, and theatres, can continue to play a central role in towns and villages across the UK. Round 4 is the final round of the Community Ownership Fund, and the last window for bids will open in late May. You can find out more about the next round of the Community Ownership Fund at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-ownership-fund-prospectus
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) museums, (b) theatres, (c) art galleries, (d) sports venues and (e) other public buildings for which her Department is responsible have reported RAAC in their roofs; and what estimate she has made of the cost of remediation in each such area.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Individual building owners are responsible for health and safety, including responding to safety alerts such as the one relating to reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
The Department for Culture Media & Sport is in regular contact with our arm’s-length bodies about all aspects of building management, including RAAC. We are aware of one instance of RAAC in an arm’s-length body and have advised it, and other organisations in the cultural and sporting sector for which DCMS does not have direct responsibility, to follow the latest guidance from the Office of Government Property and Institution of Structural Engineers.
Asked by: George Eustice (Conservative - Camborne and Redruth)
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 7 February 2024 to Question 12565, whether she plans to instruct the Civil Procedure Rule Committee not to amend the Civil Procedure Rules as recommended in paragraphs 73 and 74 of Part L of the Leveson Inquiry.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has no plans to instruct the Civil Procedure Rule Committee to amend rules of court in regard to the commencement and implementation of section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013. This aligns with its commitment to repeal section 40.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool, West Derby)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to direct the Horse Race Betting Levy Board to increase the proportion of the levy for aftercare provision for vulnerable horses leaving the racing industry.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is aware of the vital work the horseracing industry does in supporting and retraining former racehorses. However, we have no current plans to direct the Levy Board to make amends to levy schemes.
The Horserace Betting Levy Board’s expenditure covers all its three statutory purposes, all of which support horse welfare to some extent, with one of their goals to drive high quality care and support for the horse in Racing. In total, the Horserace Betting Levy Board spends around £3.5 million annually on horse-related areas, such as educational research and on a number of horse welfare projects. The Levy Board funds the Retraining of Racehorses charity, which is British Horseracing's official charity for the welfare of horses who have retired from racing.
The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) is responsible for the safety of horses at races in Britain and works with animal welfare organisations like the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare to keep racecourses as safe as possible for horses. The British Horseracing Authority created a cross-industry Horse Welfare Board in April 2019. The Board makes recommendations including a multi-year strategy for improving welfare. In February 2020, the Welfare Board published its five-year strategic plan for the welfare of horses bred for racing. The strategy focuses on the ambition that every horse bred to race should lead – and be seen to lead – “a life well-lived”. The Horse Welfare Board is funded by the HBLB and The Racing Foundation.
Furthermore, in April 2024 the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and Great British Racing (GBR) launched a new campaign, HorsePWR, designed to promote the facts around welfare in horseracing and challenge and correct inaccurate information shared by people who are opposed to it.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the impact of the Youth Parliament on the involvement of younger people in politics.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25 and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised. In parallel, we will be leading engagement with young people and key stakeholders to plan for the longer-term future of the UKYP.
An evaluation of the impact of the Youth Parliament was conducted between October 2022 and March 2023 and found that all stakeholders, participants, delivery staff and policy officials, agreed that the programmes were important vehicles to engage young people in the UK political processes and support youth-informed policy development. A new evaluation of the UK Youth Parliament programme was started in 23/24 and is due to conclude in 24/25.
Since 2017, Government has provided a total amount of c.£2.4m to the British Youth Council to deliver youth voice activities including the UK Youth Parliament, Youth Select Committees and Make Your Mark.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the impact of the British Youth Council on the political literacy of young people.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25 and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised. In parallel, we will be leading engagement with young people and key stakeholders to plan for the longer-term future of the UKYP.
An evaluation of the impact of the Youth Parliament was conducted between October 2022 and March 2023 and found that all stakeholders, participants, delivery staff and policy officials, agreed that the programmes were important vehicles to engage young people in the UK political processes and support youth-informed policy development. A new evaluation of the UK Youth Parliament programme was started in 23/24 and is due to conclude in 24/25.
Since 2017, Government has provided a total amount of c.£2.4m to the British Youth Council to deliver youth voice activities including the UK Youth Parliament, Youth Select Committees and Make Your Mark.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to help ensure that the British Youth Council remains active.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25 and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised. In parallel, we will be leading engagement with young people and key stakeholders to plan for the longer-term future of the UKYP.
An evaluation of the impact of the Youth Parliament was conducted between October 2022 and March 2023 and found that all stakeholders, participants, delivery staff and policy officials, agreed that the programmes were important vehicles to engage young people in the UK political processes and support youth-informed policy development. A new evaluation of the UK Youth Parliament programme was started in 23/24 and is due to conclude in 24/25.
Since 2017, Government has provided a total amount of c.£2.4m to the British Youth Council to deliver youth voice activities including the UK Youth Parliament, Youth Select Committees and Make Your Mark.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with British Youth Council on its closure.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years.
Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised. In parallel, we have been engaging with young people and key stakeholders to plan for the longer-term future of the UKYP.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the cost to the public purse was of supporting the (a) Youth Parliament, (b) Youth Select Committee and (c) Make Your Mark Programme since their inception.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25 and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised. In parallel, we will be leading engagement with young people and key stakeholders to plan for the longer-term future of the UKYP.
An evaluation of the impact of the Youth Parliament was conducted between October 2022 and March 2023 and found that all stakeholders, participants, delivery staff and policy officials, agreed that the programmes were important vehicles to engage young people in the UK political processes and support youth-informed policy development. A new evaluation of the UK Youth Parliament programme was started in 23/24 and is due to conclude in 24/25.
Since 2017, Government has provided a total amount of c.£2.4m to the British Youth Council to deliver youth voice activities including the UK Youth Parliament, Youth Select Committees and Make Your Mark.