Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the expenditure on TV licence reminder letters was in each year since 2020.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Under the Communications Act 2003, the BBC is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee, not the Government. The BBC’s role in enforcing the Licence Fee is set out in the Royal Charter. The BBC carries this out under the trading name TV Licensing.
Data on the cost of licence fee collection for TV Licensing is contained in their published annual reviews. The cost of collection data does contain partial disaggregation into different cost categories, however exact data on the cost of administering TV licence reminder letters is unavailable.
Further information on costs and administering the licence fee can be found directly on the TV Licensing website: https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/about/our-performance-AB6
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what her planned timetable is to respond to her Department's consultation on Measures relating to the land-based gambling sector.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department’s consultation on measures relating to the land-based gambling sector sought further views on a number of key policy proposals within the Gambling Act Review white paper. A response detailing the government’s position across each area will be published in due course.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people over the age of 75 have been subject to court action for the non-payment of TV Licence in each of the last five years.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Collecting and enforcing the Licence Fee is the responsibility of the BBC. The BBC has recently confirmed that no enforcement action has been taken against over-75s for TV licence evasion at this stage.
The Government has been clear that the BBC must ensure that it supports those affected by its decision on the over-75s concession, and we expect them to do so with the utmost sensitivity.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the data on Ministerial travel for her Department, January to March 2023, last updated on 27 July 2023, how much was spent for the visit by the Minister of State for Media, Tourism and Creative Industries to Barcelona from 27 February to 1 March on (a) flights and (b) accommodation.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Minister Lopez travelled to Barcelona to attend Mobile World Congress. The return flight cost £334.46 and her accommodation cost £928.54.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
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 implement the policies in the white paper entitled High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age, published on 27 April 2023.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Our white paper set out a range of proportionate measures to tackle practices and products which can drive harm and ensure that people who are at risk of gambling harm and addiction are protected. These include new player protection checks, a stake limit for online slots games, improvements to consumer redress and a statutory levy on operators to fund research, education and treatment.
We are working with the Gambling Commission and other stakeholders to bring these measures into force as soon as possible, subject to further consultation where appropriate. The Government will publish a number of targeted consultations this summer, with the Commission also consulting on a number of priority areas.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will publish the guidance her Department uses for diversity network events which require checks on external speakers prior to inviting them to participate in Civil Service events.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport follows guidance provided by the Civil Service HR Inclusive Practice team at the Cabinet Office. It is imperative that we retain impartiality across the Civil Service, avoiding any politicised events or groups impacting on the working life of civil servants.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many over 75's have been subject to court action for the non-payment of TV Licence.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Collecting and enforcing the Licence Fee is the responsibility of the BBC. The BBC has recently confirmed that no enforcement action has been taken against over-75s for TV licence evasion at this stage.
The Government has been clear that the BBC must ensure that it supports those affected by its decision on the over-75s concession, and we expect them to do so with the utmost sensitivity.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2023 to Question 155151 on the Minimum Wage, if he will publish the name of the company which received that contract.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In the last 3 years, the Department has awarded contracts to Hays Specialist Recruitment for the supply of specialist workers, through regulated government frameworks.
In line with government transparency policy, the Department has published details of contracts awarded to Hays Specialist Recruitment to Contracts Finder. This information is therefore in the public domain.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many over 75's have been subject to court action for the non-payment of TV Licence in each of the last three years for which data is available.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Collecting and enforcing the Licence Fee is the responsibility of the BBC. The BBC has recently confirmed that no enforcement action has been taken against over-75s for TV licence evasion at this stage.
The Government has been clear that the BBC must ensure that it supports those affected by its decision on the over-75s concession, and we expect them to do so with the utmost sensitivity.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the timetable is for the publication of the gambling review White Paper.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Gambling Act Review is an extensive evidence-led review, which aims to ensure regulation is fit for the digital age. We will publish a White Paper setting out our vision and next steps in the coming weeks.