Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate he has made of the value of dormant (a) stocks, (b) shares, (c) bonds and (d) insurance policies available for transfer to the Dormant Assets Distribution Fund.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Currently, the dormant assets scheme only accepts bank and building society accounts. A consultation on expanding the scheme to include a wider range of dormant financial assets, such as shares and insurance policies, closed in mid-July. The government response to this consultation will be published this Autumn. We are working with industry stakeholders to estimate the value of the assets in scope for inclusion as part of this.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much his Department spent on (a) opinion polling and (b) focus groups in each month since January 2019.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The information requested is not held centrally and therefore can only be provided at disproportionate costs.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Bradford South of 30 November 2018 requesting a meeting in relation to Channel 4 and Bradford.
Answered by Jeremy Wright
I congratulate the city of Leeds on being named as the location for Channel 4’s new National Headquarters. This will stimulate growth and creativity across the broader region, including Bradford, for years to come. The Department will respond formally to the letter from the Hon Member for Bradford South and other Members across the region shortly.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what Government funding schemes are available to member trusts for restoration of cultural venues in Yorkshire.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Various grant schemes are available for the restoration of cultural venues in Yorkshire. The Heritage Lottery Fund have several schemes which can be used for restoring cultural venues, including their Heritage Grants, Sharing Heritage, and Townscape Heritage, amongst others. From the Arts Council, these include Grants For The Arts, Small Capital Grants, and Large Capital Grants. Historic England also give grants to properties on the Heritage at Risk Register, and these can be used for the restoration of cultural venues.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what per head funding is allocated to restoring historic cultural buildings in each region and constituent part of the UK.
Answered by Matt Hancock
This data is not held centrally.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he plans to take to reduce disparities in spending on culture and the arts between London and cities in the North of England.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Arts and culture has a hugely positive impact on people's lives and we are committed to broadening access to the arts across the whole country.
Arts Council England are increasing the percentage of Lottery funding distributed outside London from 70 per cent to 75 per cent including over £30 million from their Ambition for Excellence fund that will be spent outside of the capital.
Our Culture White Paper - the first strategy for the sector in more than 50 years - sets out how we will increase access across the country and ensure arts and culture are open to all.