Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support local libraries.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
On 12 March HM Government announced an investment of £5 million in 25 library services through the Libraries Improvement Fund (LIF) to upgrade their buildings and technology, and to enable them to be resilient and equipped to meet the needs of local communities. Details of the successful projects are published on the Arts Council England website.
Through the Cultural Investment Fund the Government will invest up to a further £128.4 million of capital investment in innovative cultural and creative projects, libraries, and museums across the country over the Spending Review period (22/23 - 24/25).
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what fiscal steps his Department is taking to support charities during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Matt Warman
The Government made a £750 million package of support available, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This ensured that charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, could continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak. To date, over 15,000 charities have received funding. This includes household names such as St John Ambulance, NSPCC, Age UK, Barnardo’s and the British Red Cross as well as over 8,000 small organisations.
On top of this, the Government continues to make an unprecedented multi-billion-pound package of support available across the economy to enable organisations to get through the months ahead. Charities continue to access these schemes, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, grants for organisations that have been required to close, including retail and leisure facilities, deferral of VAT bills to the end of June, and government backed loan schemes.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to help the return of fans at live sports events during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The Government is keen to see the safe return of spectators to live sports events. A programme of pilot events is being carried out to allow venues and operators to test their covid-secure arrangements in line with the Government's guidance on the return of fans to elite sports events. The latest list of events was announced on 26 August 2020 and includes football, horse racing and rugby union.
The events have been selected to test a range of different event styles across the country’s major men’s and women’s spectator sports. A number of successful pilots have already been completed, including snooker at the Crucible, cricket at Edgbaston and the Oval, and football at Brighton & Hove Albion.
Subject to public health conditions, the pilots will build up throughout September with a view to a full reopening for fans under covid-secure conditions from 1 October.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that superfast broadband is available throughout the UK.
Answered by Matt Warman
The government has invested significant amounts in digital infrastructure over the last decade, with the BDUK Superfast programme investing over £1.8 billion of public money to ensure over 96% of UK premises have access to superfast broadband. In addition to this, nearly £900 million has been allocated to stimulate the market to start building gigabit-capable infrastructure and full fibre connectivity.
For those premises that are still struggling with slow speeds, there are a number of options available to them. DCMS runs a voucher scheme that can be used by rural communities across the UK to reduce the cost of installing gigabit-capable connectivity. This provides a voucher worth up to £3,500 for eligible small businesses and vouchers worth up to £1,500 for residents. ‘Top-up’ schemes run by Local Authorities, who provide their own funding on top of DCMS’s, are also operating across the UK.
The government also introduced the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) on 20 March 2020. The USO gives eligible premises in the UK the right to request a decent and affordable connection. The government has defined decent broadband as a service that can provide a download speed of 10Mbps and an upload speed of 1Mbps.
Furthermore the government has pledged a further £5 billion to invest in the hardest to reach areas of the UK. Supplier engagement has taken place over the summer, and their feedback will be used to refine and finalise the delivery vehicle of the programme which will launch the first wave of procurements in early 2021.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many people participated in the National Citizen Service in each local authority area in Surrey in each of the last three years.
Answered by Baroness Morgan of Cotes
NCS participants by Surrey Local Authority District | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
Elmbridge | 118 | 145 | 134 | 114 |
Epson and Ewell | 142 | 142 | 169 | 119 |
Guildford | 194 | 205 | 235 | 191 |
Mole Valley | 91 | 105 | 102 | 101 |
Reigate and Banstead | 179 | 147 | 139 | 189 |
Runnymede | 63 | 93 | 90 | 57 |
Spelthorne | 113 | 161 | 136 | 80 |
Surrey Heath | 85 | 135 | 112 | 159 |
Tandridge | 96 | 64 | 81 | 127 |
Waverley | 115 | 115 | 141 | 151 |
Woking | 56 | 125 | 147 | 113 |
Participation numbers for Summer 2019 are undergoing compliance checks and are not yet available.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many people have participated in the National Citizen Service in each local authority area in Surrey in each of the last three years.
Answered by Baroness Morgan of Cotes
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to reduce problem gambling.
Answered by Rebecca Pow
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.