Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government (1) which public bodies are subject to the data sharing agreement under the Digital Economy Act 2017, (2) which public bodies have received data under the Digital Economy Act 2017, and (3) what checks they have performed on the accuracy of the entries added to the register of information sharing agreements.

Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Digital Economy Act 2017 (DEA) contains data sharing powers that allow specified authorities to share information, including personal data, for specific purposes. Anyone sharing information under Chapters 1- 4 of Part 5 of the DEA is required to have regard to the relevant Code of Practice when doing so. This states that those authorities, listed in schedules 4-8 and Chapter 2 of the DEA, should enter an information sharing agreement (ISA) when sharing data under these powers.

The codes of practice provide details to practitioners on how information sharing powers under the DEA must be operated. Those relating to public service delivery (PSD), debt and fraud and civil registration place a requirement on the Data Controller(s) to set out information about their ISA within a publicly available register.

The register, operated by Government Digital Service (GDS) and publicly available on GOV.UK, provides a central repository of all data shares made under the powers provided by Chapters 1 - 4 of Part 5 of the DEA. It is a key transparency measure which outlines details of each data share, including the bodies involved, why it is shared, for how long and the expected benefits.

The register currently contains 525 entries and 464 public bodies. It is available at https://www.digital-economy-act-register.data.gov.uk.

While GDS is responsible for maintaining the register, the DEA’s statutory Code of Practice makes clear that responsibility for the accuracy of register entries rests with the public authorities involved in each data share, except in relation to the debt and fraud provisions, where responsibility falls under the debt and fraud secretariat.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of increased business rates on grassroots music venues; and what steps they intend to take in response to the open letter sent to the Prime Minister by the Music Venue Trust on 10 December.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

At the Budget, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. Music venues are valued in the same way as any other class of non-domestic property, through applying the statutory and common law principles that apply across non-domestic rating.

Some properties, including in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, have seen their rateable values increased. This is in part because the last revaluation updated rateable values to align with market values at 1 April 2021 – during the COVID pandemic. This meant rateable values were lower due to the atypical economic situation the pandemic created. This latest revaluation reflects a post Covid world, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties.

To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Valuation Office Agency about valuations of grassroots music venues.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

At the Budget, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. Music venues are valued in the same way as any other class of non-domestic property, through applying the statutory and common law principles that apply across non-domestic rating.

Some properties, including in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, have seen their rateable values increased. This is in part because the last revaluation updated rateable values to align with market values at 1 April 2021 – during the COVID pandemic. This meant rateable values were lower due to the atypical economic situation the pandemic created. This latest revaluation reflects a post Covid world, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties.

To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.