Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has provided to Irish cultural heritage groups in the last 12 months.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport recognises the importance of Irish Heritage, with funding administered through Arms-Length Bodies.
Since November 2024, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded three grants totaling £290,074 to projects exploring the history and experiences of the Irish diaspora in Britain.
A grant of £138,758 was awarded to the project St. Brigid’s Arms: Voices of Womxn of Irish Heritage in the North of England in Trafford in Greater Manchester from Emerald LENS CIC, which is exploring the stories and experience of womxn of Irish heritage in the north of England. A grant of £57,210 was awarded to Liverpool Irish Festival Resolve. This project will continue the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail heritage work by bringing compelling stories to audiences through innovative, accessible approaches as we approach the 180th anniversary of An Gorta Mór. A grant of £94,106 was awarded to the project Mix’n’Mortar: Plugging into Camden. This will go towards local audience development and co-programming for the world's first Museum of Youth Culture opening Spring 2026, which includes experiences of the Irish diaspora.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a news publishers co-operative to levy online platforms who use and commercialise content produced by the news industry to support local and investigative journalism.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Sustainability of local and investigative journalism across the country is an area of particular concern for this Government, including in Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton. The Government understands the important work that local news does across the UK, including outlets such as the Oldham Times and the Manchester Evening News. We are developing a Local Media Strategy, in recognition of the importance of this vital sector.
As part of the Strategy, we plan to help the industry adapt to changing online audience habits, including by fostering a collaborative and complementary relationship between local media and the online platforms that have the most influence over citizens’ news diets. Our work will build on relevant legislation including the digital markets regime introduced by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Act. The digital markets regime will boost competition in digital markets and help rebalance the relationship between online platforms and the businesses which rely on their services, including local news publishers. In October, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) designated Google with Strategic Market Status (SMS) for their position in search, and Apple and Google for their positions in mobile ecosystems. The CMA set-out possible remedies for these markets in a roadmap based on fair dealing, open choices, and increasing trust and transparency. Some of these remedies are aimed at addressing news publishers’ concerns about the imbalanced commercial relationship they have in the market. The CMA will consult on the first set of remedies soon.
We recognise that further action may be needed to support local media in adapting to changing audience habits online, guaranteeing continued public access to high quality, trustworthy public interest local journalism, and ensuring a level playing field with big tech firms as AI and other new technologies continue to disrupt the market. We are still considering what specific actions would be suitable and feasible for the Government to take in this space, and will update within the context of the Local Media Strategy in the coming months.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate has been made of the number of (1) grass and (2) artificial football pitches in (a) England (b) Greater Manchester and (c) Oldham for each year since 2015.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
According to Sport England’s Active Places database, as of December 2025 there are 59,794 grass football pitches and 6,634 artificial grass pitches in England. In Greater Manchester, there are 1,796 grass football pitches and 380 artificial grass pitches. In Oldham, there are 113 grass football pitches and 30 artificial grass pitches.
The Government is investing £98m in grassroots facilities across the UK through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in 2025/26, funding projects such as new artificial grass pitches, grass pitch improvements and pitch maintenance equipment.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what support has government provided to grass roots rugby in encouraging the participation of young people.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, including children and young people, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.
The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year. Sport England’s work focuses on increasing participation in grassroots sport, including rugby, providing more opportunities for young people to be active.
Sport England provides long term investment to the Rugby Football Union (£13.9 million from 2022-27) and Rugby Football League (£11.9 million from 2022-25), the National Governing Bodies for rugby to support grassroots participation.
Since last summer, the Government has also provided £6.7 million into the Women’s Rugby World Cup Legacy Programme Impact 25 which has benefited 850 clubs across the country. These clubs have received investment which goes towards supporting girls of all ages to get involved in rugby.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
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 social and educational value of uniformed youth groups such as cubs, scouts and cadet units; and what are the trends in membership since 2015.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport commissioned an independent provider (Ipsos) to conduct an evaluation covering the Uniformed Youth Fund from 2022 to 2025, which was published on 11th September 2025.
The research found uniformed youth organisations (UYOs) contribute to the social and emotional development of young people by providing them with structured activities and supportive environments, enhancing young people’s cooperation skills, communication, and confidence. UYOs also enhance education and career opportunities for young people by providing them with valuable skills for life and work and supporting their academic attainment through diverse activities. The evaluation also found that UYOs provide supportive and inclusive environments where young people feel safe, a sense of belonging for young people through their uniforms, and fostering trusted relationships with peers and adult leaders.
The Department does not hold data on membership numbers of specific uniformed youth organisations.
The Youth Participation Pilot Survey, commissioned by DCMS, found that around one in ten (11%) of respondents had participated in a uniformed youth group in the past 12 months.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
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 trends in cinema usage since 2015; and what steps she has taken to support the industry.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government recognises the hugely important role that cinemas play in the UK's film industry, in our local communities, and in driving economic growth. While we have seen some positive signs in the UK’s box office figures in recent years, we recognise that it has been a difficult time in the sector with box office returns remaining around 70% of pre-pandemic levels.
As part of our support for the cinema sector, we are introducing new permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. Through our Independent Film Tax Credit we are also bolstering the slate of films entering cinemas. Furthermore, the British Film Institute, as an Arm’s Length Body of government, supports cinemas and audiences across the UK, including through its Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) and the use of National Lottery funding. This includes research into changing audience habits, such as with their Wider World of Film (2024) report. We continue to engage with the British Film Institute and other sector bodies on how to ensure a strong and successful future for the cinema sector.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
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 BBC on the potential impact of its proposed budget savings on its (a) television, (b) radio, (c) streamed content and (d) website content.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Prime Minister and Secretary of State believe public service broadcasting, and the BBC in particular, are vital British assets that contribute to our national life, and help to shape and define our nation. The Secretary State meets with the BBC leadership regularly to discuss a range of issues.
It is important that the licence fee is used efficiently and the BBC must ensure it is delivering value for audiences. However, as an independent organisation, the BBC’s spending decisions are a matter for the BBC. The Government recognises the BBC faces funding pressures, and we will consider how we fund the BBC sustainably as part of the Charter Review.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
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 number of visitors to live events she expects to benefit from the cap on ticket resales at face value.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The measures we have announced relating to ticket resales will protect consumers and improve fans’ access to live events, while ensuring that people have a safe and secure means to resell tickets. They will also ensure that revenue flows back into the live events sector, supporting our world-leading Creative Industries as set out in our Industrial Strategy.
The impact on those attending live events will be set out in an impact assessment to be published alongside the legislation to introduce these measures. We will legislate when parliamentary time allows.