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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 October 2017 to Question 109191, on Big Ben: iron and steel, whether the Government plans to extend the provisions of the Social Value Act 2012 to ensure that central government contracts have an area of interest defined as the UK.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
The Office for Civil Society is responsible for Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012. Currently there are no plans to extend the reach of the act, but we are taking steps to encourage uptake and will invite input on the topic of social value as part of the Civil Society Strategy announced last week.
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with representatives from (a) Twitter and (b) Facebook on controlling troll and fake accounts used to influence the democratic process in the UK.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Officials in my Department have had a number of meetings with representatives of Twitter and Facebook to discuss a wide range of issues.
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of apprenticeships currently offered by the BBC by region.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The government does not hold this information.
However, the BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2016/17 published on 19 July 2017 shows that the BBC employed over 230 apprentices in the last year. The BBC has also announced a voluntary target to significantly upscale apprenticeship opportunities from 1% of its total workforce to 2.3% by the end of 2018, with opportunities being planned across the UK, including the BBC's regional television and local radio network
Further information should be obtained directly from the BBC who would be happy to discuss this matter with you.`
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of apprenticeships currently offered by Channel 4 by region.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The government does not hold this information.
However, Channel 4 has informed us that it currently employs 11 apprentices, with 9 based in its London office, and 1 in each of its Manchester and Glasgow offices. In 2017/18 the number of apprenticeships will increase to a total of 16, of which 13 will be based in London, 2 in Manchester and 1 in Glasgow.
In additional to formal apprenticeships, Channel 4's Production Training Scheme also provides entry-level, 12 month placements within Channel 4's production company suppliers. In 2016/17 there were a total of 12 trainees, 9 of whom are based in London, in additional to 1 In Birmingham and, 1 in Belfast and 1 in Newry.
Further information should be obtained directly from Channel 4 who would be happy to discuss this matter with you.
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many members of staff in her Department are paid more than (a) £80,000, (b) £100,000 and (c) £150,000.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Of the staff on DCMS’ payroll, 23 members of staff are paid more than £80,000. Of these:
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of reductions in local government funding for sporting facilities on the UK's future prospects for achieving international sporting success.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Local Authorities continue to be the biggest investors in community sport in England, investing £1.1bn in 2015/16, delivering both community and health benefits and opportunities for talented athletes.
Sport England works closely with the Local Government sector, investing £258m in community sports facilities over the last five years, attracting an additional £1.2bn investment from other sources spread across more than 2,800 projects.
Sport England launched a £15m Community Asset Fund in January 2017 to support local sports infrastructure, and will also invest up to £40m to support the development of large scale facilities.
In partnership with UK Sport, Sport England has invested over £8m in elite facilities since 2013 to ensure that world class training environments meet the needs of the World Class Programmes and add value to the local community. In addition, a number of the London 2012 Olympic Venues, such as the Aquatics Centre and the Velodrome, are providing a long-term benefit to both community and elite sport.
UK Sport is investing £345m in Olympic and Paralympic success in the 4-year period leading up to and including the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, including the funding of talent pathways which identify talented young athletes and prepare them for elite competition.
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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will list the number of staff employed by her Department by region in each of the least five years.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Based on the staff on DCMS’ payroll, the number of staff by UK region in each of the last four years is as follows:
31 March 2014
Region | Number of Staff |
London | 394 |
31 March 2015
Region | Number of Staff |
London | 475 |
31 March 2016
Region | Number of Staff |
London | 519 |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 7 |
Wales | 1 |
31 March 2017
Region | Number of Staff |
East of England | 3 |
East Midlands | 1 |
London | 642 |
North East | 1 |
North West | 1 |
South East | 1 |
South West | 1 |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 6 |
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 Facebook on regulation of fake news on social media.
Answered by Matt Hancock
My officials have regular discussions with stakeholders on a range of policy issues.
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 her Department's cyber security department investigated the recent hacking of Yahoo in order to inform its policies; and whether the Government plans to introduce a mandatory reporting requirement for breaches of that type.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The cyber security of the UK is a top priority for the Government, which is why we are investing £1.9bn in our five year National Cyber Security Strategy. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is the Government's centre of expertise in cyber security, providing a unified source of advice, guidance and support, including the management of cyber security incidents. When a significant cyber security incident occurs, the NCSC works collaboratively with Government agencies, departments and industry to assist the victim and ensure any lessons learned from serious incidents are actively communicated to the sector affected and fed into policymaking. A full investigation into the Yahoo security breach is taking place in the US, UK and Ireland.
The forthcoming General Data Protection Regulation will introduce a system of mandatory breach reporting. The Government is working with the Information Commissioner's Office and industry on how best to implement these changes.