Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 review by the hon. Member for Devizes on the role of the voluntary and charitable sector in the UK's recovery from the covid-19 outbreak, commissioned by the Prime Minister.
Answered by John Whittingdale
This is an independent piece of work requested by the Prime Minister of my hon. Friend, the Member for Devizes (Danny Kruger). Mr Kruger and his office led the consultation process and I understand he met with a wide range of stakeholders to inform his recommendations. The Minister for Civil Society met with Mr Kruger bi-weekly to provide feedback on areas relating to the Department’s remit. The report will be published in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what resources his Department has made available to the hon. Member for Devizes to support his work commissioned by the Prime Minister on the role of the voluntary and charitable sector in the UK's recovery from the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by John Whittingdale
This is an independent piece of work requested by the Prime Minister of my hon. Friend, the Member for Devizes (Danny Kruger). Mr Kruger and his office led the consultation process and I understand he met with a wide range of stakeholders to inform his recommendations. The Minister for Civil Society met with Mr Kruger bi-weekly to provide feedback on areas relating to the Department’s remit. The report will be published in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what meetings the hon. Member for Devizes has had with the charitable and voluntary sector since being commissioned by the Prime Minister to review that sector's role in the UK's recovery from the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by John Whittingdale
This is an independent piece of work requested by the Prime Minister of my hon. Friend, the Member for Devizes (Danny Kruger). Mr Kruger and his office led the consultation process and I understand he met with a wide range of stakeholders to inform his recommendations. The Minister for Civil Society met with Mr Kruger bi-weekly to provide feedback on areas relating to the Department’s remit. The report will be published in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when the Government plans to permit the resumption of amateur sporting activities as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased; and what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the safety of those participants.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Sports and physical activity facilities play a crucial role in supporting adults and children to be active. As announced on 9 July, from 25 July indoor gyms, leisure centres (including tennis courts) and swimming pools in England should be able to reopen. These facilities will be able to offer on-site services to customers, provided they are COVID-secure and follow Government guidance.
The updated guidance can be found at the GOV.UK website and includes advice for providers of pool, gym and leisure facilities on cleaning, social distancing, and protection for staff to help venues get back up and running safely.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will publish the eligibility criteria for music venues applying for the £1.57 billion arts sector support funding.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On Sunday 5 July 2020, the Secretary of State announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of cultural and creative sectors.
We are working closely with DCMS’ Arm’s Length Bodies to develop detailed guidance indicating who can apply for the different elements of this funding. We will publish this guidance as soon as possible in July.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether nightclubs will be eligible for funding from the £1.57 billion arts sector support package.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
We appreciate that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to the night time industries. On Sunday 5 July 2020, the Secretary of State announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of cultural and creative sectors including some businesses operating in the night time economy. We will publish detailed guidance on eligibility as soon as possible in July.
Whilst the Cultural Package is extensive, it cannot support every organisation. There are a number of financial packages available to support nightclubs, including business rates relief, grants, and the Bounceback Loan Scheme. Furthermore, on rent liabilities, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced on 19 June 2020 the introduction of a new code of practice for commercial property, and an extension to temporary tenant protections until 30 September 2020.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture Media and Sport what assessment the Department has made of the proportion of (a) people and (b) businesses in the creative sector that do not qualify for any of the Government's covid-19 support measures.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
No such assessment has been made. However, we appreciate that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to many of DCMS’ sectors including the Creative Industries which is why the government has announced unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency.
To ensure we are assisting the sectors as effectively as possible, regular ministerially-chaired roundtables are held with business representative organisations as well as trade associations from across the Creative Industries. In addition, officials are in regular contact with stakeholders from these sectors, and we continue to speak with HM Treasury colleagues to ensure that the full spectrum of government support reaches the UK's world-leading media and Creative Industries.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of businesses in the creative sector with a turnover of less than £6.5 million that do not qualify for the (a) Small Business Grant, (b) Retailers, Hospitality and Leisure Grant and (c) Business Rate holiday.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
No such estimate has been made. However, we appreciate that the Covid-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to many of DCMS’ sectors including the Creative Industries which is why the government has announced unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency. This includes new discretionary business grants worth £600m, in addition to any surplus from previous grants that councils have left over, which councils can allocate to businesses that may not have been able to qualify for the initial round of grants.
To ensure we are assisting the sectors as effectively as possible, regular ministerially-chaired roundtables are held with business representative organisations as well as trade associations from across the Creative Industries. In addition, officials are in regular contact with stakeholders from these sectors, and we continue to speak with HM Treasury colleagues to ensure that the full spectrum of government support reaches the UK's world-leading media and Creative Industries.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress she has made on implementing the recommendations of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s Special Report on Disinformation and Fake News set out in the online harms white paper.
Answered by Matt Warman
Following our formal response to the Select Committee report on ‘Fake News’ and Disinformation in May 2019, we continue to reflect on the Committee’s recommendations in our ongoing work to counter disinformation in all its forms. Disinformation is one of the harms which was proposed to be in scope of the new regulatory framework announced in the Online Harms White Paper. We are currently analysing the responses to the White Paper’s public consultation, and considering the issues raised.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his officials have had with officials in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the potential effect on (a) the economic sustainability of and (b) employment rights of people working in the entertainment industry of that Department’s plans to align employment status frameworks for the purposes of employment rights and tax.
Answered by Margot James
Officials regularly discuss a range of matters with their counterparts at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. As set out in the Good Work Plan published in December 2018, Government is working on detailed proposals on how these frameworks could be aligned which will include their impact on a range of sectors.