Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the financial effect on the horse racing industry of one betting shop closing on (a) media and (b) levy payments.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Media payments are a commercial matter for racing and betting and we do not hold specific figures relating to individual Licensed Betting Offices (LBOs). Payment of the Horserace Betting Levy is based on gross profits and not directly linked to the number of LBOs.
On 7 March we laid a Statutory Instrument to reform the current Levy. This includes extending its scope to betting operators based offshore that are selling to consumers in Britain. This will ensure a level playing field for betting operators that are based in Britain and offshore operators, and increase funding for racing.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with relevant stakeholders on the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on horse-racing and bloodstock industries in the UK and Ireland.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
The UK’s negotiations for exiting the EU will be complex and the Government is focused on securing the best deal for Britain. We continue to engage with businesses and key stakeholders in the horseracing and bloodstock industries. We will listen to their concerns and ensure our new relationship with the EU works for business and consumers.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate her Department has made of the contribution of the horse-racing industry to the economy in the (a) North West and (b) UK.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Horseracing is enjoyed by many and makes a significant contribution to Britain’s economy. A 2013 report from Deloitte for the British Horseracing Authority estimated that British racing has a Great Britain-wide economic impact of £3.45 billion. We do not hold specific figures on the contribution of the horse racing industry to the economy in the North West.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to promote and develop cricket in (a) St Helens, (b) Merseyside and (c) the North West.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Since 2010, Sport England has invested £39,097 in cricket projects in St Helens, £305,466 in Merseyside and £3,035,554 in the North West. In addition, Sport England have recently agreed funding of £7.6m for the ECB to deliver cricket nationally between 2017 and 2021.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding her Department has provided for the promotion and development of darts in each year since 2010.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
The Government's strategy Sporting Future sets out that we want more people to engage in sport and physical activity and to enjoy the benefits that this brings.
The recently published Active Lives survey shows that 7,400 people in England regularly play darts.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what (a) financial and (b) other support her Department has provided for Gaelic Athletic Association activities in England.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
The Government has not directly invested in the Gaelic Athletic Association.
Since 2010, Sport England has invested £961,414 in 24 multi-sports projects which include Gaelic sport.
Sport England has received an application from the British Gaelic Athletic Association to be the recognised NGB for Gaelic sports in Britain, and has met the representatives from the British Gaelic Athletic Association to offer help and advice on its application.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the proportion of households which have access to superfast broadband in (a) St Helen North constituency, (b) Merseyside and (c) the UK.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Ofcom reported in its Strategic Review of Digital Communications in July 2015 that Superfast broadband is available to over 83 per cent of homes and businesses in the UK. The UK Government aims to increase this to 95 per cent of UK homes and businesses by 2017. Ofcom has not published data for Merseyside or at constituency level, however data for the five Local Authorities constituting Merseyside: Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, St. Helens and Knowsley is published here:http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/infrastructure/2014/Fixed_local_authority.csv.Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the time taken to (a) implement broadband roll-out and (b) tackle non-spots on people and businesses in (i) St Helens North constituency, (ii) Merseyside and (iii) the UK.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government is committed to achieving the availability of superfast broadband to 95% of UK premises by December 2017. In May 2015 superfast coverage had reached 83% of UK premises.Of the 44,815 premises in the St Helens North constituency we estimate that 94% will have superfast broadband available to them through planned commercial rollout. The Connected Merseyside project will add a further 4% to that total.
Telefonica (O2) have agreed a licence obligation to deliver indoor 4G coverage to 98% of premises in the UK by 2017; other Mobile Network Operators have indicated that they will also match this commitment.