Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to support arts charities with community outreach work which have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
In order to support the arts sector specifically, including those charitable organisations within the sector, DCMS has worked closely with Arts Council England to provide a tailored package of financial support. In March, Arts Council England announced a £160m emergency response package to complement the financial measures already announced by the Government and support the resilience of this vital sector. This funding package will support organisations and individuals who need the most support to see them through this crisis. More details can be found on the Arts Council’s website (https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid19).
Many charitable organisations within the Arts are continuing to provide their world class content in innovative and unique formats and continue to engage with their communities. The Globe Theatre, The National Theatre and The Royal Opera House are all providing access to their online catalogues and providing access to culture in digital formats in order to maintain their links with communities. In addition, Sadler's Wells is presenting a programme of full-length dance performances and workshops online to connect people through dance, and Wiltshire Creative is working with its young ambassadors to plan a Takeover Festival which will run over the summer online and consist of events, performances and activities.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of students taking subjects linked to design at (1) primary, (2) secondary, and (3) tertiary level, in each year since 2009; and what steps they are taking to increase the uptake of those subjects.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The number and percentage of students taking design and technology (D&T) and art and design qualifications is set out in the attached tables.
The government believes that both art and design and D&T are important subjects. All state maintained secondary schools must teach art and design and D&T to pupils aged 5-14. There is also a statutory entitlement for every pupil aged 14-16 to take D&T and an arts subject, if they wish to do so.
Like maintained schools, academies must provide a broad and balanced curriculum. Ofsted’s new inspection arrangements, which will be introduced in September, place a renewed focus on schools ensuring all pupils receive a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum.
The arts are an essential part of a broad and balanced education and high-quality arts education should not be the preserve of the elite, but the entitlement of every single child. Between 2016-20, we are spending almost £500 million on a range of arts and cultural education programmes.
At primary school, data from the Teacher Voice Omnibus 2016 survey revealed that the average amount of time spent teaching art and design and D&T was broadly similar to the amount of time spent teaching history and geography. GCSE art and design remains a popular choice and 2019 Ofqual provisional GCSE data shows the proportion of pupils taking this subject has increased since 2018.
The department has worked closely with organisations such as the James Dyson Foundation and Royal Academy of Engineering to strengthen the new D&T curriculum and GCSE. The new GCSE will be taken for the first time in summer 2019. To improve the quality of teaching D&T in schools, the department offers D&T graduates bursaries of up to £12,000 to enter the profession.
Both art and design and D&T GCSEs count towards the progress and attainment 8 secondary accountability measures, which is the headline measure of secondary school performance.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the value of UK exports to (1) EU, and (2) non-EU, countries are linked to the design sector.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The design sector plays a significant role across the UK economy, contributing to the production of goods and services in a number of sectors.
The sector is one of our fastest growing industries, and continues to outperform the wider UK economy. DCMS Economic Estimates show that in 2016, the UK exported £380 million of design and designer fashion services, representing a 212.2% increase since 2010. This includes £151 million worth of exports to the EU, and £229 million to non-EU countries.
Furthermore, the Design Council’s report entitled ‘The Design Economy 2018’ estimates that the total value of exports where design had made a key contribution was £48.4 billion in 2015, representing 7% of all UK exports.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the distribution of grant-in-aid funding; and what plans they have to increase the number of museums which are in receipt of grant-in-aid funding.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport provides grant-in-aid funding to the 15 sponsored museums and galleries in England - with culture being a devolved matter - and the Ministry of Defence for the three armed forces service museums. The 2017 Strategic Review of DCMS-Sponsored Museums examined their functions, effectiveness, efficiency and accountability, and included a commitment to review grant-in-aid allocations at the next Spending Review, taking into consideration whether changes are required to meet current needs and performance.
At this time, the government has no plans to directly fund other museums through grant-in-aid. However, many other museums are subject to public funding and the 2017 Mendoza Review of Museums in England confirmed that, over the last ten years, the museum sector has received more than £800 million annually from at least 16 different public sources. Arts Council England is the main funding body for the wider museums sector and, between 2018 and 2022 will invest more than £146m in grant-in-aid in museums across England.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential merits of the removal of VAT on digital (1) books, (2) magazines and (3) newspapers.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much VAT on digital (1) books, (2) magazines, and (3) newspapers was paid by all Government departments in the last (a) year, and (b) five years.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the cost of VAT on digital (1) books, (2) magazines, and (3) newspapers to public institutions in the last (a) year, and (b) five years.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the application of VAT to e-publications but not to physical publications does not have a negative impact on the growth of the UK's digital sector and the use of digital technologies.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the application of VAT to e-publications but not to physical publications does not discriminate against readers from any social backgrounds.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.
Asked by: Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the application of VAT to e-publications but not to physical publications does not disadvantage, in terms of price, readers who rely on digital content.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government keeps all taxes under review, including VAT on e-publications. Policy development also includes consideration of equalities impacts.
HMRC does not hold detailed information about the VAT paid on specific products by government departments or public institutions.
The Government is committed to making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business and we are taking action to ensure innovative firms can access the skills, investment and infrastructure they need to thrive. Last year, jobs in the digital sector grew at twice the rate of those in the wider economy.