Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what central government agencies are based in Merseyside.
Answered by Ben Gummer
Based on data published in Public Bodies Directory in December 2015, agencies with a principal office in Merseyside are:
a) Executive Agency: Crown Commercial Service, in Liverpool.
b) Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs): Charity Commission for England and Wales, Health and Safety Executive, both in Bootle; Disclosure and Barring Service and National Museums Liverpool, in Liverpool.
In addition, the Government Property Unit’s Electronic Property Information Mapping Service, published on data.gov.uk, shows the following public bodies have a presence in the North West of England as of June 2016:
Arts Council England
Big Lottery Fund
British Council
Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency
Education Funding Agency
Environment Agency
Equality and Human Rights Commission
Forestry Commission
Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service
High Speed 2
Historic England
HM Land Registry
HM Revenue and Customs
Homes and Communities Agency
Imperial War Museum
Information Commissioners Office
Insolvency Service
Maritime and Coastguard Agency
National Heritage Memorial Fund
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
National Offender Management Service
Natural England
Natural Environment Research Council
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority
Office for National Statistics
Ordnance Survey
Public Health England
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Science Museum Group
The Met Office
Valuation Office Agency
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to commemorate the First World War in 2016.
Answered by David Evennett
Since the Prime Minister set out plans for the Centenary in October 2012 the Government has delivered highly successful commemorative events for the start of the First World War and the Gallipoli Campaign.
In May 2016, commemorative events will be held for the Battle of Jutland, and in July 2016, we will mark the centenary of the Battle of the Somme by holding national events at the Thiepval Memorial in France, at Manchester Cathedral, and at Heaton Park. In addition, a national vigil will be held in June at Westminster Abbey, and there will also be vigils in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Season Two of the 14-18 NOW culture programme has been announced and this - together with Centenary Partnership events, Heritage Lottery funded projects and local commemorative activity - will ensure people right across the UK have the opportunity to participate in commemorative events.
Other centenary activities such as the UK Tour of the “poppies” and the national repair and conservation of War memorials also continue, more details can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/first-world-war-centenary
Asked by: Danny Kinahan (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of his Department's £13.9 million First World War commemoration funding will be provided to projects in Northern Ireland; and to which such projects that funding will be provided.
Answered by David Evennett
The Heritage Lottery fund have allocated £13.9m to 58 projects in Northern Ireland to commemorate the First World War. The projects are spread across Northern Ireland and two are in South Antrim. I have asked the HLF to write to you with details of all the projects.
Asked by: Danny Kinahan (Ulster Unionist Party - South Antrim)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of the £50 million fund established for First World War commemorations has been allocated to or spent in Northern Ireland.
Answered by David Evennett
The Heritage Lottery Fund has committed £13.9m of Lottery funding to 58 projects across Northern Ireland and continues to welcome applications for First World War projects of any size. One of these projects is the restoration and display of HMS Caroline - the only surviving ship from the 1916 Battle of Jutland – in Belfast's historic maritime quarter.
Asked by: David Mackintosh (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what further steps his Department is taking to commemorate the First World War centenary leading up to 2018.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
A national commemorative event will be held on 31 May 2016 to mark the Battle of Jutland and the wider war at sea.
There will be a national commemorative event to mark the centenary of the Battle of the Somme at the Thiepval Memorial in Northern France on 1 July 2016. The Government is working with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission on a £1.6m refurbishment of the Monument to ensure that it endures for future generations and on a lighting installation that will see the Monument lit from 1 July 2016. In addition we are working with partners to encourage Somme commemorative activity across the UK.
There will also be national events to commemorate the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele) in 2017 and the end of the conflict in 2018.
In addition Government will continue with established programmes for the conservation, repair and protection of War Memorials; the Cathedral Repairs Fund; Schools Battlefield Tours; and the laying of commemorative paving stones and the restoration of graves of Victoria Cross recipients buried in the UK.
The poppies sculptures 'Wave' and 'Weeping Window' will go to locations throughout the UK starting with the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Woodhorn Museum and Northumberland Archives, and St George's Hall, Liverpool.
There will be a series of school debates beginning next year to look at the causes, conduct and consequences of the War.
We encourage local communities to get involved in commemorating First World War events. Heritage Lottery Fund has recently made available an extra £4m for communities to explore, conserve and share local heritage of the First World War to ensure that these projects can continue throughout the centenary period.
Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to raise at (a) the UN and (b) UNESCO (i) the threat of destruction to the city of Palmyra in Syria from ISIS and (ii) ways in which the international community can intervene to protect valuable historical sites.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We are deeply concerned about the destruction of cultural heritage in Syria and Iraq, including the specific threat to Palmyra. The United Kingdom co-sponsored both UN Security Council Resolution 2199 (2015), which condemns the destruction of cultural heritage and requires member states to take measures to prevent the trade in looted antiquities, and UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/69/281 (28 May 2015), which expresses the outrage of the global community at attacks on cultural heritage as a tactic of war to spread terror and hatred. My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr Hammond) discussed the protection of cultural heritage with his counterparts at the meeting of the Global Anti-ISIL Coalition Small Group in Paris on 2 June, at which UNESCO Director-General Ms Irina Bokova was present. Ultimately the only way of safeguarding these valuable historic sites is by defeating ISIL and establishing a lasting peace in both Syria and Iraq.
Asked by: Pamela Nash (Labour - Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many staff in his Department and its executive agencies and associated bodies were engaged off-payroll in each of the last five years up to the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by Helen Grant - Shadow Solicitor General
New tighter rules governing ‘off-payroll’ appointments in central government were established in May 2012 when the Chief Secretary to the Treasury published the Review of the Tax Arrangements of Public Sector Appointees.
The recommendations of the Review mean that the most senior staff must go on the payroll, and departments are now able to seek assurance in relation to the tax arrangements of their long-term, high paid contractors.
The Treasury has carried out two evaluations of compliance with the rules which were published on 11 March 2014 and 5 March 2015. The most recent review revealed that the large majority of central government departments are operating the rules effectively.
Off-payroll engagements for more than £220 per day and that last for longer than six months:
Department /ALB | 2013-14 | 2012-13 |
DCMS | 28 | 24 |
Ofcom | 25 | 1 |
Olympic Delivery Authority | 13 | 38 |
British Library | 7 | 9 |
Equality & Human Rights Commission | 7 | 15 |
Visit Britain | 6 | 0 |
British Museum | 5 | 0 |
British Film Institute | 3 | 0 |
Tate | 2 | 0 |
UK Sport | 2 | 0 |
V&A | 1 | 0 |
Arts Council England | 0 | 2 |
National Gallery | 0 | 3 |
Natural History Museum | 0 | 5 |
Sport England | 0 | 1 |
Data Source: DCMS Annual Reports 2012-13 and 2013-14
The following Arm’s Length bodies have not used off-payroll engagements for more than £220 per day and that last for longer than six months:
· Churches Conservation Trust |
· English Heritage |
· Gambling Commission |
· Geffrye Museum |
· Horniman |
· Horse race Betting Levy Board |
· Imperial War Museum |
· National Heritage Memorial Fund /Heritage Lottery Fund |
· National Museums Liverpool |
· National Portrait Gallery |
· Royal Armouries |
· Royal Museums Greenwich |
· Science Museum Group |
· Sir John Soane’s Museum |
· Sports Ground Safety Authority |
· The Royal Parks |
· Wallace |
For appointments prior to this and below this threshold, the cost to provide the numbers would be disproportionate.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda and Ogmore)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to accede to the Hague Convention on Protection of Cultural Property in Time of War before 7 May 2015.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The legislative priorities for this session were set out in the Queen’s Speech in June. The Government remains committed to protecting cultural heritage and the Hague convention and its protocols already informs the Armed Forces’ law of armed conflict doctrine and training policy, particularly with regard to respect for cultural property, precautions in attack and recognition of the protective emblem.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda and Ogmore)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government plans to accede to the Hague Commission on Protection of Cultural Property in Time of War before 7 May 2015.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The legislative priorities for this session were set out in the Queen’s Speech in June. The Government remains committed to protecting cultural heritage and the Hague convention and its protocols already informs the Armed Forces’ law of armed conflict doctrine and training policy, particularly with regard to respect for cultural property, precautions in attack and recognition of the protective emblem.
Asked by: David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress his Department has made on refurbishment projects and national events announced in 2012 to mark the centenary of the First World War.
Answered by Helen Grant - Shadow Solicitor General
The DCMS leads the Government’s programme to mark the centenary of the First World War. We organised three major events on 4 August 2014: the Service for the Commonwealth at Glasgow Cathedral; an Act of Reconciliation at St Symphorien Military Cemetery in Mons, Belgium and a Service of Commemoration at Westminster Abbey.
We have recently announced our plans to mark the centenary of the Gallipoli Campaign on 24/25 April 2015. We are planning a further 4 national events to commemorate anniversaries: 31 May/1 June 2016 Battle of Jutland; 1 July 1916 Battle of the Somme; Summer 2017 Passchendaele and the end of the conflict.
In addition Government has:
· Helped fund the refurbishment of the Imperial War Museum London which opened its iconic new First World War Galleries in July 2014;
· Made funding available to restore the graves of Victoria Cross recipients buried in the UK and funding for restoration and repair of First World War Memorials and graves;
· Provided £1.6m for the restoration and enhancement of the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme;
· Established a £20m First World War Centenary Cathedral Repairs Fund to ensure that these buildings are in good repair to play their significant role in the First World War Centenary commemorations;
· Developed a programme to lay Commemorative Paving Stones in the home localities of Victoria Cross recipients;
· Established 14-18 NOW, a three year cultural programme which will deliver UK wide events that has so far included Dazzle Ships and Lights Out on the 4 August 2014;
· Developed with the football authorities the Football Remembers education programme to commemorate the 1914 Christmas Truce;
· Created a £5.3m educational programme to send two pupils and a teacher from every maintained school in England to the battlefields of the Western Front; and
· Facilitated the British Muslim, Hindu and Sikh communities to run a programme of activities to honour the contribution of troops from the Indian subcontinent, focusing on the centenary of the Battle of Neuve Chapelle.
In addition, The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) awarded a £12.2m grant to conserve and interpret HMS Caroline, Britain’s last surviving warship that saw service at Jutland. This will be opened in time for the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Jutland in 2016. Since April 2010 HLF has also awarded over £60 million to more than 1000 projects to enable communities to mark the Centenary.