Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he plans to take to support the (a) Victoria and Albert Museum and (b) wider heritage sector.
We have supported the Victoria and Albert Museum (“V&A”), an arms’ length body, since the very start of the pandemic and will continue to do so. The V&A has benefited considerably from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, it received tailored revenue support from the Government last year, and is eligible for additional investment this year. Furthermore, we are investing in the V&A’s estate to help with the maintenance of its unique heritage interiors.
Likewise, the Government has provided unprecedented support to the arts, heritage and museums sectors through the Cultural Recovery Fund which has distributed over £1.2 billion, reaching over 5000 individual organisations and sites. This includes £53 million to specifically support construction and conservation projects at heritage sites across England. This fund has supported over 1000 projects directly and is estimated to have safeguarded between 744 and 1137 heritage construction and conservation jobs.