Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the complaint made to the Charity Commission about GambleAware by the Good Law Project.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Charity Commission is an independent, non-ministerial government department. As such, it is not appropriate for the government to comment on the Commission’s approach to handling complaints it receives in its regulatory capacity.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to protect television production in the UK.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has set out a clear plan to grow the creative industries by a further £50 billion and add another 1 million jobs by 2030. That includes supporting the growth of television and film production.
Since 2010, the Government has introduced a range of tax reliefs across the creative industries, including expanded relief for film and high-end television. Our screen sector tax relief alone is estimated to be worth more than £13 billion in GVA to the UK economy. The Government’s support for the independent television production sector continues to be underpinned by the hugely successful terms of trade regime. The Media Bill, currently before Parliament, therefore protects and updates the regime, as well as public service broadcasters’ independent production quotas, to reflect changes in technology and the way viewers are watching content.
We have also taken a number of additional steps to ensure that British film and television companies are able to invest in production, expand their businesses and offer opportunities for cast and crew across the UK. This is why in the Spring Budget we have announced a number of generous tax reliefs for the sector, including a 40% relief on business rates for eligible studio spaces in England until 2034 and a 5% increase in tax relief for visual effects costs, which will not be subject to the 80% cap in the High End TV Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit. This will incentivise high-end television productions to remain in the UK for both filming and their visual effects. The Government will continue our wider support for the sector by investing in studio infrastructure, supporting innovation, and promoting independent content through the UK Global Screen Fund.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to include anti-racism teaching in the objectives of the independent regulator for English football.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Regulator’s primary strategic purpose will be to ensure that English football is financially sustainable for the benefit of fans and the local communities football clubs serve. This approach was set out in the football governance white paper, the Government’s subsequent consultation response, and the Government’s response to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee’s report on football governance. As such, the Regulator will focus on the financial sustainability of clubs, the financial resilience of the football pyramid, and safeguarding club heritage. Industry is therefore best placed to lead on such issues, and I continue to engage closely with football authorities on these important topics.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the levels of racial bias in football; and what estimate she has made of the number of off-pitch roles for former black male footballers.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government's aim is to increase diversity among sporting organisations and to help the sport sector be more inclusive and welcoming to its spectators, participants and people in its workforce. In August 2023 we published our sport strategy “Get Active” which has diversity and inclusion embedded throughout.
It is for football organisations to assess levels of diversity in the sport and the number of off-pitch roles for former black footballers, and to decide on the appropriate initiatives to increase diversity in their organisations. The Football Association recently announced they will be evolving their Leadership Diversity Code to be mandatory for all professional clubs. I hope this will provide the data needed to assess any work that may need to be done to help football become as diverse as the community it represents.
I will continue to engage with football authorities on such issues.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the Football Leadership Diversity Code.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government's aim is to increase diversity among sporting organisations and to help the sport sector be more inclusive and welcoming to its spectators, participants and people in its workforce.
It is for The Football Association (FA) to assess the impact of their Football Leadership Diversity Code. I recently met with The FA to discuss the Code, including changes to make the reporting of diversity data mandatory for all professional clubs in the English Leagues from the 2024/2025 football season - as well as new requirements for workforce data on LGBT+ and disability. I will continue to monitor the progress of the Code and hope it contributes to a positive impact on diversity in the sport.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance her Department provides on financial support available from (a) her Department and (b) national heritage organisations for unlisted places of worship.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not hold the responsibility for funding support or guidance for non-listed places of worship. Successive Governments have followed the principle that it is for faith communities themselves to be responsible for the management and upkeep of their places of worship. However, some resources and alternative sources of guidance are available.
Historic England’s Repair Grants for Heritage at Risk can allocate grants to unlisted structures possessing notable historic or architectural significance within conservation areas or London boroughs. The Heritage Funding Directory, maintained by The Heritage Alliance and the Architectural Heritage Fund, provides an extensive list of available funding sources for heritage assets that might not hold listed status.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund also offers support to places of worship through its funding programmes, with the goal of bolstering the resilience of places of worship, building engagement with the local community and cultivating sustainability. The Heritage Fund does not require built environment assets to be designated and applications are assessed on their own merits and in competition with other applications.
Unfortunately, some places of worship are vulnerable to hate crime. The Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme is overseen by the Home Office and provides funding for places of worship and associated faith community centres that are vulnerable to hate crime. A separate scheme for synagogues is run by the Community Security Trust.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending VAT relief on building works for all listed places of worship.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme offers financial grants to cover VAT expenses incurred for the repair and upkeep of the country's listed places of worship. This scheme is accessible to all places of worship, irrespective of their denomination, provided they are listed and meet the specific eligibility requirements. Currently, there is no intention to expand the grant scheme further.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what percentage of the National Heritage Lottery Fund’s grants have been awarded to local churches, chapels and meeting houses open for worship in each of the last ten years.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Over the past decade, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has allocated 11% of its grants to support local churches, chapels, and meeting houses.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
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 provide financial support to arts and cultural organisations.
Answered by John Whittingdale
HM Government recognises the great value of the UK’s world-leading arts and cultural sectors, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has a strong record of support for organisations in this space.
Arts Council England are spending £444 million annually on a record 985 organisations in their National Portfolio, which was enabled by a total increase of over £43 million in Arts Council Funding across the most recent Spending Review period.
We are also investing more than £200 million through the Cultural Investment Fund over this Spending Review period, and the £1.57 billion Cultural Recovery Fund supported around 5,000 organisations. The extension to the higher rate of cultural tax reliefs secured at Spring Budget 2023 is estimated to be worth £350 million over the five year forecast period.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) parliamentary scrutiny is upheld and (b) personal data and personal health data is protected.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill was introduced into the House of Commons on Monday 18 July 2022. Following the election of the new leader of the Conservative Party, business managers have agreed that the government will not move the Second Reading and other motions relating to the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill to allow ministers to further consider the Bill. Once resumed, Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise it fully as per parliamentary procedure.
The Bill will maintain high standards of protection for personal data, including sensitive healthcare data. At the same time, it will reform the most complex and burdensome parts of the data protection legislation which can impede responsible data use.