Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department is having with relevant stakeholders to reduce the prevalence of Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) amongst sportspeople.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The safety, wellbeing and welfare of everyone taking part in sport is absolutely paramount. National Governing Bodies are responsible for the regulation of their sports, and for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place to protect participants from harm. The government expects sports to do all they can to protect their players.
I welcome work by sports to provide practical support to former players who develop neurodegenerative conditions. This includes the work of player associations, who play a valuable role in supporting players by providing short and long-term support to those affected by sporting injuries. I have discussed the issue of dementia with the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, specifically the need for the Premier League to make progress on their promise to allocate funding towards a new Football Brain Health Fund for players impacted by dementia. The Brain Health Fund was subsequently announced in September 2023. The fund aims to assist former players and their families who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.
The Government continues to take the issue of head injuries very seriously. In December 2021 DCMS published its Command Paper report on concussion in sport, outlining the steps the Government is undertaking to help reduce risks associated with head injuries by improving understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport. As part of this, in April 2023 the Government announced the first UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport, in conjunction with the Sport and Recreation Alliance. This guidance is intended to be a helpful tool in reducing the risks associated with concussion and marks an important step in making sport safer for thousands of people who enjoy sport at a grassroots level, as well as an aid to professional sports.
Further research on the links between health, dementia and contact sport is needed to better understand the issue. To that end, DCMS established a Sports Concussion Research Forum in July 2022 to identify key research questions that need answering in this important area. The research forum is now formulating a report to identify the priority research questions for the sector that need to be addressed, with the final report expected in 2024.
The Government remains committed to working with sports to build on the positive work that is already taking place to mitigate the causes and effects of concussion in sport.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with professional sports associations on providing support for former professional sportspeople living with chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The safety, wellbeing and welfare of everyone taking part in sport is absolutely paramount. National Governing Bodies are responsible for the regulation of their sports, and for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place to protect participants from harm. The government expects sports to do all they can to protect their players.
I welcome work by sports to provide practical support to former players who develop neurodegenerative conditions. This includes the work of player associations, who play a valuable role in supporting players by providing short and long-term support to those affected by sporting injuries. I have discussed the issue of dementia with the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, specifically the need for the Premier League to make progress on their promise to allocate funding towards a new Football Brain Health Fund for players impacted by dementia. The Brain Health Fund was subsequently announced in September 2023. The fund aims to assist former players and their families who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.
The Government continues to take the issue of head injuries very seriously. In December 2021 DCMS published its Command Paper report on concussion in sport, outlining the steps the Government is undertaking to help reduce risks associated with head injuries by improving understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport. As part of this, in April 2023 the Government announced the first UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport, in conjunction with the Sport and Recreation Alliance. This guidance is intended to be a helpful tool in reducing the risks associated with concussion and marks an important step in making sport safer for thousands of people who enjoy sport at a grassroots level, as well as an aid to professional sports.
Further research on the links between health, dementia and contact sport is needed to better understand the issue. To that end, DCMS established a Sports Concussion Research Forum in July 2022 to identify key research questions that need answering in this important area. The research forum is now formulating a report to identify the priority research questions for the sector that need to be addressed, with the final report expected in 2024.
The Government remains committed to working with sports to build on the positive work that is already taking place to mitigate the causes and effects of concussion in sport.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with sports governing bodies on the prevention of chronic traumatic encephalopathy among professional sportspeople.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The safety, wellbeing and welfare of everyone taking part in sport is absolutely paramount. National Governing Bodies are responsible for the regulation of their sports, and for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place to protect participants from harm. The government expects sports to do all they can to protect their players.
I welcome work by sports to provide practical support to former players who develop neurodegenerative conditions. This includes the work of player associations, who play a valuable role in supporting players by providing short and long-term support to those affected by sporting injuries. I have discussed the issue of dementia with the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, specifically the need for the Premier League to make progress on their promise to allocate funding towards a new Football Brain Health Fund for players impacted by dementia. The Brain Health Fund was subsequently announced in September 2023. The fund aims to assist former players and their families who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.
The Government continues to take the issue of head injuries very seriously. In December 2021 DCMS published its Command Paper report on concussion in sport, outlining the steps the Government is undertaking to help reduce risks associated with head injuries by improving understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport. As part of this, in April 2023 the Government announced the first UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport, in conjunction with the Sport and Recreation Alliance. This guidance is intended to be a helpful tool in reducing the risks associated with concussion and marks an important step in making sport safer for thousands of people who enjoy sport at a grassroots level, as well as an aid to professional sports.
Further research on the links between health, dementia and contact sport is needed to better understand the issue. To that end, DCMS established a Sports Concussion Research Forum in July 2022 to identify key research questions that need answering in this important area. The research forum is now formulating a report to identify the priority research questions for the sector that need to be addressed, with the final report expected in 2024.
The Government remains committed to working with sports to build on the positive work that is already taking place to mitigate the causes and effects of concussion in sport.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether independent guidance will be issued to sports governing bodies on prevention of chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The safety, wellbeing and welfare of everyone taking part in sport is absolutely paramount. National Governing Bodies are responsible for the regulation of their sports, and for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place to protect participants from harm. The government expects sports to do all they can to protect their players.
I welcome work by sports to provide practical support to former players who develop neurodegenerative conditions. This includes the work of player associations, who play a valuable role in supporting players by providing short and long-term support to those affected by sporting injuries. I have discussed the issue of dementia with the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, specifically the need for the Premier League to make progress on their promise to allocate funding towards a new Football Brain Health Fund for players impacted by dementia. The Brain Health Fund was subsequently announced in September 2023. The fund aims to assist former players and their families who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.
The Government continues to take the issue of head injuries very seriously. In December 2021 DCMS published its Command Paper report on concussion in sport, outlining the steps the Government is undertaking to help reduce risks associated with head injuries by improving understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport. As part of this, in April 2023 the Government announced the first UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport, in conjunction with the Sport and Recreation Alliance. This guidance is intended to be a helpful tool in reducing the risks associated with concussion and marks an important step in making sport safer for thousands of people who enjoy sport at a grassroots level, as well as an aid to professional sports.
Further research on the links between health, dementia and contact sport is needed to better understand the issue. To that end, DCMS established a Sports Concussion Research Forum in July 2022 to identify key research questions that need answering in this important area. The research forum is now formulating a report to identify the priority research questions for the sector that need to be addressed, with the final report expected in 2024.
The Government remains committed to working with sports to build on the positive work that is already taking place to mitigate the causes and effects of concussion in sport.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 with Cabinet colleagues to help improve the quality of sports fields in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to delivering top class sports facilities across the country, so that everyone can take part in sport and physical activity. As part of this commitment, the Government is delivering an historic level of direct investment to build or upgrade thousands of grassroots sport facilities across the UK.
Between 2021 and 2025, the UK Government is delivering investment of over £400 million to build or upgrade thousands of grassroots facilities across the UK, including multi-sport pitches, tennis courts, and swimming pools and leisure centres.
Since 2021, South Holland and the Deepings has received investment of £600,149 from the Football Foundation across four projects, including a new artificial grass pitch at Holbeach United Community Sports Academy. All projects can be viewed here on gov.uk.
South Holland and the Deepings has also received £102,251 from the Park Tennis Court Renovation Programme (co-funded by the Government and the Lawn Tennis Association) for Ayscoughfee Gardens and £29,651 from our Swimming Pool Support Fund for Castle Sports Centre and Swimming Pool.
Overall, Lincolnshire has received £1,258,322 from the Football Foundation. Lincolnshire has also received £169,027 from the Park Tennis Court Renovation Programme and £492,261 from the Swimming Pool Support Fund.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
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 help (a) continue the operation of the UK Youth Parliament and (b) ensure all regions receive adequate (i) financial and (ii) operational support to facilitate the Parliament.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to the British Youth Council in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UK Youth Parliament delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of the British Youth Council’s closure. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. A preferred candidate has been identified and we are currently undertaking final due diligence checks and negotiating terms and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
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 (a) enable partnership working and (b) increase collaboration between schools, youth organisations and sport providers.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the importance of encouraging partnership working between schools, youth organisations, and sports providers to provide opportunities for young people. Our current Enrichment Partnerships pilot, which was a joint bid with the Department for Education, is working closely with schools, youth organisations, councils and enrichment and sports providers to test whether greater coordination locally can enhance school enrichment offers and remove barriers to participation, create efficiencies (reducing the burden on school staff resources) and unlock existing funding and provision.
The Government-funded network of 450 School Games Organisers (SGO) works directly with local schools and sports providers to coordinate inclusive sport competitions across 40 different sports and activities. In the 2022/23 academic year, the SGO network provided over 2.2 million opportunities for children to take part in local, inclusive sport and physical activity.
Our updated statutory guidance and peer review programme for Local Authorities aims to encourage best practice of local youth provision and advice on how to create a sufficient and unified approach to out of school provision for young people. We also are providing £320,000 to Regional Youth Work Units across England (RYWUs) over the next two years, to build upon their current practices and ensure a consistent minimum level of regional leadership. The funding will support RYWUs to influence youth policy, develop partnerships, support and grow the youth workforce, ensure young people's voices are heard, and improve collaboration across the regions.
Working with the Young People Foundation Trust, DCMS also encourages and supports local youth partnerships through the Local Partnerships Fund. The fund is designed to encourage productive connections between youth services and councils, schools, local sporting and smaller community based organisations, as well as local businesses and funders so they can provide a more holistic experience for young people.
Asked by: Mark Eastwood (Conservative - Dewsbury)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with (a) FIFA and (b) UEFA on (i) the compatibility of the Football Governance Bill with their own regulations and (ii) ensuring that the enforcement of the Bill will not lead to (A) financial and (B) sporting sanctions being placed on football clubs.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport have met with FIFA and UEFA at Ministerial and Official level on an on-going basis as part of the engagement with industry in relation to the Football Governance Bill, which received its First Reading on 19 March 2024. During these engagements, discussions have included the compatibility of the ` Independent Football Regulator’s regulatory regime with FIFA’s and UEFA’s own regulations. We are confident that the Bill is compatible with FIFA and UEFA rules and will not lead to financial and sporting sanctions being placed on football clubs by FIFA or UEFA. We will continue to engage FIFA and UEFA as the Bill moves through parliament.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much VisitBritain spent on the promotion of tourism to London under its GREAT-funded international campaigns in financial years (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23, and (c) 2023-24.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As VisitBritain’s GREAT-marketing campaigns cover the whole of Britain, they do not break down spend by specific regions.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she has taken to publicly advertise application opportunities to the BBC funding model review panel.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The BBC Funding Review is looking at how alternative funding models could help secure the broadcaster’s long-term sustainability amid an evolving media landscape, increased competition and changing audience behaviour, while reducing the burden on licence fee payers. It is a government-led review, supported by an expert panel that incorporates a broad range of views from across the sector, providing advice and external challenge on the issues set out in the review’s Terms of Reference, which are available on gov.uk..
The Panel does not have any decision making powers, and is one aspect of the Government’s BBC Funding Model Review.
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport appointed Panel members based on their expertise across relevant sectors, including television, radio, news and international relations. The experts were selected in consultation with industry stakeholders based on their experience and knowledge of wide ranging issues at the heart of the UK media sector such as the role of Public Service Broadcasters, press sustainability and content for children and young adults. Panel membership is voluntary. The Expert Panel has no legal status and was therefore not set up under the Cabinet Office guidelines for public appointments.