Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding provided by Arts Council England for cultural activities in the North West.

His Majesty’s Government is deeply committed to supporting access to high-quality arts and culture across the country, including through public funding to organisations in the North West of England via Arts Council England.

Through Arts Council England’s 2023–26 National Portfolio, public funding is being provided to 120 organisations (up from 97 in the 2018–22 portfolio) in the North West across theatre, dance, museums, visual arts, literature and libraries.The total investment in the North West through the national portfolio is currently £49.7 million per year – an increase of more than £7.5 million per year compared to the last portfolio.

Between 2020/21 and 2023/24, Arts Council England will have invested over £428 million in arts and cultural organisations in the North West of England. This includes £13,651,486 of public funding through the Government’s Cultural Development Fund, Libraries Improvement Fund and Museum Estate and Development Fund, administered by Arts Council England. Arts and cultural organisations in the North West of England also benefited from over £120 million through the Culture Recovery Fund during the COVID-19 pandemic.