Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
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 potential impact of investment in the film and tv industry in Sunderland on (a) industry skills shortages, (b) local employment opportunities and (c) levels of private investment in (i) Sunderland and (ii) the North East.
Answered by John Whittingdale
I am aware of the Crown Works studio proposal in Sunderland and look forward to continuing my engagement with stakeholders to hear more about this project. I regularly engage with Cabinet colleagues on matters related to the creative industries.
The recently published Creative Industries Sector Vision sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the potential of the creative industries. It details our plans to grow these industries by an extra £50bn and create a million extra jobs by 2030, and build a pipeline of talent and opportunity for young people through a Creative Careers Promise. The film and television industries play an important role in the wider creative industries.
My department continues to work closely with its Arm’s Length Body, the British Film Institute (BFI), to ensure a wide range of funding and initiatives are available to support the film industry. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. The BFI produces the Screen Business Report, which assesses the impact of the tax reliefs across all nations and regions of the UK.
The £28.4 million Create Growth Programme (CGP), is supporting creative businesses to attract private investment through a combination of capital, business support and investor capacity building. It currently covers six regions in England, including parts of the North East of England.
The British Film Institute also launched their skills clusters programme in April, committing £8.1m of National Lottery funding over 2023-26 to support the development of six regional skills clusters across the UK. The funding focuses on establishing localised support for skills development and training, building on existing production infrastructure, with the aim to develop local crew bases and create new opportunities for people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in the sector. Screen Yorkshire, Liverpool Film Office, Screen Manchester, and North East Screen have partnered together, under the name ‘Screen Alliance North’, to jointly lead the ‘North of England’ cluster - which has been awarded £2.3m for 2023-26.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
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 potential impact of the planned Crown Works Studios in Sunderland on (a) Sunderland and (b) the North East.
Answered by John Whittingdale
I am aware of the Crown Works studio proposal in Sunderland and look forward to continuing my engagement with stakeholders to hear more about this project. I regularly engage with Cabinet colleagues on matters related to the creative industries.
The recently published Creative Industries Sector Vision sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the potential of the creative industries. It details our plans to grow these industries by an extra £50bn and create a million extra jobs by 2030, and build a pipeline of talent and opportunity for young people through a Creative Careers Promise. The film and television industries play an important role in the wider creative industries.
My department continues to work closely with its Arm’s Length Body, the British Film Institute (BFI), to ensure a wide range of funding and initiatives are available to support the film industry. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. The BFI produces the Screen Business Report, which assesses the impact of the tax reliefs across all nations and regions of the UK.
The £28.4 million Create Growth Programme (CGP), is supporting creative businesses to attract private investment through a combination of capital, business support and investor capacity building. It currently covers six regions in England, including parts of the North East of England.
The British Film Institute also launched their skills clusters programme in April, committing £8.1m of National Lottery funding over 2023-26 to support the development of six regional skills clusters across the UK. The funding focuses on establishing localised support for skills development and training, building on existing production infrastructure, with the aim to develop local crew bases and create new opportunities for people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in the sector. Screen Yorkshire, Liverpool Film Office, Screen Manchester, and North East Screen have partnered together, under the name ‘Screen Alliance North’, to jointly lead the ‘North of England’ cluster - which has been awarded £2.3m for 2023-26.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the Crown Works Studios development in Sunderland.
Answered by John Whittingdale
I am aware of the Crown Works studio proposal in Sunderland and look forward to continuing my engagement with stakeholders to hear more about this project. I regularly engage with Cabinet colleagues on matters related to the creative industries.
The recently published Creative Industries Sector Vision sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the potential of the creative industries. It details our plans to grow these industries by an extra £50bn and create a million extra jobs by 2030, and build a pipeline of talent and opportunity for young people through a Creative Careers Promise. The film and television industries play an important role in the wider creative industries.
My department continues to work closely with its Arm’s Length Body, the British Film Institute (BFI), to ensure a wide range of funding and initiatives are available to support the film industry. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. The BFI produces the Screen Business Report, which assesses the impact of the tax reliefs across all nations and regions of the UK.
The £28.4 million Create Growth Programme (CGP), is supporting creative businesses to attract private investment through a combination of capital, business support and investor capacity building. It currently covers six regions in England, including parts of the North East of England.
The British Film Institute also launched their skills clusters programme in April, committing £8.1m of National Lottery funding over 2023-26 to support the development of six regional skills clusters across the UK. The funding focuses on establishing localised support for skills development and training, building on existing production infrastructure, with the aim to develop local crew bases and create new opportunities for people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in the sector. Screen Yorkshire, Liverpool Film Office, Screen Manchester, and North East Screen have partnered together, under the name ‘Screen Alliance North’, to jointly lead the ‘North of England’ cluster - which has been awarded £2.3m for 2023-26.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the (a) economic contribution of the film and television industries to each region and (b) potential economic benefit of increased investment in that industry in the North East.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The recently published Creative Industries Sector Vision sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the potential of the creative industries. It details our plans to grow these industries by an extra £50bn and create a million extra jobs by 2030, and build a pipeline of talent and opportunity for young people through a Creative Careers Promise. The film and television industries play an important role in the wider creative industries.
My department continues to work closely with its Arm’s Length Body, the British Film Institute (BFI), to ensure a wide range of funding and initiatives are available to support the film industry. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. The BFI produces the Screen Business Report, which assesses the impact of the tax reliefs across all nations and regions of the UK.
The £28.4 million Create Growth Programme (CGP) is supporting creative businesses to attract private investment through a combination of capital, business support and investor capacity building. It currently covers six regions in England, including parts of the North East of England.
The British Film Institute also launched their skills clusters programme in April, committing £8.1m of National Lottery funding over 2023-26 to support the development of six regional skills clusters across the UK. The funding focuses on establishing localised support for skills development and training, building on existing production infrastructure, with the aim to develop local crew bases and create new opportunities for people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in the sector. Screen Yorkshire, Liverpool Film Office, Screen Manchester, and North East Screen have partnered together, under the name ‘Screen Alliance North’, to jointly lead the ‘North of England’ cluster - which has been awarded £2.3m for 2023-26.
I am aware of the Crown Works studio proposal in Sunderland and I look forward to continuing my engagement with stakeholders to hear more about this project.
Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with (a) internal and (b) external stakeholders on the Crown Works Studio project in Sunderland.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The recently published Creative Industries Sector Vision sets out the Government’s ambition to maximise the potential of the creative industries. It details our plans to grow these industries by an extra £50bn and create a million extra jobs by 2030, and build a pipeline of talent and opportunity for young people through a Creative Careers Promise. The film and television industries play an important role in the wider creative industries.
My department continues to work closely with its Arm’s Length Body, the British Film Institute (BFI), to ensure a wide range of funding and initiatives are available to support the film industry. This is in addition to the UK-wide screen sector tax reliefs, and the UK Global Screen Fund which will invest £28 million in the international growth of independent screen companies across the UK. The BFI produces the Screen Business Report, which assesses the impact of the tax reliefs across all nations and regions of the UK.
The £28.4 million Create Growth Programme (CGP) is supporting creative businesses to attract private investment through a combination of capital, business support and investor capacity building. It currently covers six regions in England, including parts of the North East of England.
The British Film Institute also launched their skills clusters programme in April, committing £8.1m of National Lottery funding over 2023-26 to support the development of six regional skills clusters across the UK. The funding focuses on establishing localised support for skills development and training, building on existing production infrastructure, with the aim to develop local crew bases and create new opportunities for people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in the sector. Screen Yorkshire, Liverpool Film Office, Screen Manchester, and North East Screen have partnered together, under the name ‘Screen Alliance North’, to jointly lead the ‘North of England’ cluster - which has been awarded £2.3m for 2023-26.
I am aware of the Crown Works studio proposal in Sunderland and I look forward to continuing my engagement with stakeholders to hear more about this project.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has in place to support the entertainment industry in a (a) national emergency and (b) pandemic.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Responses to national emergencies and pandemics are led by the Cabinet Office, and the UK has well-developed contingency plans to respond to a wide range of scenarios.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) co-ordinated unprecedented levels of support for the cultural and creative sectors during the COVID-19 pandemic, including but not limited to the Live Events Reinsurance Scheme, the Film and TV Production Restart Scheme, and the Culture Recovery Fund. Evaluations and lessons learned from these schemes will allow the UK to respond effectively to any future scenario where similar initiatives may be required.
Following our experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, DCMS has established a small, permanent incident response team which will coordinate across the Department and with the central response team in the event of a national emergency.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
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 support British (a) film and (b) television (i) production and (ii) screening.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to ensuring that British film and television industries are able to deliver for audiences, expand their businesses, attract investment, and offer opportunities for employment across the UK.
Our generous tax reliefs play a significant role in boosting competitiveness, incentivising film and television production in the UK, and contributing to the industry’s - and the nation’s - economic growth. At Spring Budget 2023, the Government announced our continued commitment to upholding and expanding the creative industry tax reliefs, with film, high-end TV, children’s TV and animation tax reliefs to be reformed into a single Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit, which will provide a greater benefit than the current tax reliefs.
In recent years, the Government has also taken specific action to support the film and TV sectors to bounce back from the pandemic, with production now stronger than ever. This includes the £500 million Film and TV Production Restart Scheme, supporting over 100,000 jobs and productions worth more than £3 billion. In addition, the Culture Recovery Fund supported over 200 independent cinemas to ensure that films could continue to be screened following the pandemic.
To support independent screen content, including film, to grow internationally the Government launched the UK Global Screen Fund in April 2021 with initial funding of £7 million. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has committed a further £21 million to this Fund over 2022 - 2025 to develop, distribute and promote independent UK screen content in international markets.
In addition, DCMS has funded the British Film Commission (BFC) with £5 million over four years. The BFC’s role is to maximise and support the production of film and TV in the UK and to strengthen and promote the UK’s film and TV infrastructure. With DCMS funding, the BFC is supporting the growth of the UK’s seven geographic production hubs to ensure that the combination of infrastructure, stage space and crew in those locations is set up to attract and accommodate even more major inward investment.
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, with reference to paragraph 3.4 of the White Paper entitled, Up next - the government’s vision for the broadcasting sector, published in April 2022, when she plans to publish the evaluation of the Young Audience Content Fund contestable funding pilot.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the unique societal, educational and economic importance of British children’s television and we are taking direct action to support and encourage broadcasters to provide children’s television content to UK audiences.
At the Budget, we announced reform and an increase in the rate of tax relief for animation and children’s TV, which will directly boost the level of financial support for children’s production companies. These reliefs have historically already supported 845 programmes, with a total investment of £1.26 billion.
Through the Media Bill we will introduce a new remit for public service television, which includes the provision of public service children’s programming. This sends a clear signal about the importance the Government places on high value children's programming being available to families across the UK on a free-to-air basis.
We welcome Ofcom’s recent commitment in their Plan of Work 2023/24 to take an in-depth look at how the market is serving the interests of children. This is facilitated by powers we introduced in 2017 for Ofcom to monitor and set criteria for the provision of children’s television. The independent regulator will give us an invaluable insight into the challenges faced by the children’s television industry right now and this will be key in helping us and industry consider where further work is needed.
Children’s television was also chosen to pilot contestable funding, which has supported more than 280 hours of new content with a direct investment of £44.1 million. The British Film Institute published an independent evaluation of the Young Audiences Content Fund in December 2022. The Government is conducting an assessment of the contestable funding model to consider its impact and the long-term sustainability of this kind of funding. The potential for further investment will be considered against that assessment and future public service broadcasting needs.
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 she is taking to help (a) support and (b) encourage broadcasters to provide children’s television content.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises the unique societal, educational and economic importance of British children’s television and we are taking direct action to support and encourage broadcasters to provide children’s television content to UK audiences.
At the Budget, we announced reform and an increase in the rate of tax relief for animation and children’s TV, which will directly boost the level of financial support for children’s production companies. These reliefs have historically already supported 845 programmes, with a total investment of £1.26 billion.
Through the Media Bill we will introduce a new remit for public service television, which includes the provision of public service children’s programming. This sends a clear signal about the importance the Government places on high value children's programming being available to families across the UK on a free-to-air basis.
We welcome Ofcom’s recent commitment in their Plan of Work 2023/24 to take an in-depth look at how the market is serving the interests of children. This is facilitated by powers we introduced in 2017 for Ofcom to monitor and set criteria for the provision of children’s television. The independent regulator will give us an invaluable insight into the challenges faced by the children’s television industry right now and this will be key in helping us and industry consider where further work is needed.
Children’s television was also chosen to pilot contestable funding, which has supported more than 280 hours of new content with a direct investment of £44.1 million. The British Film Institute published an independent evaluation of the Young Audiences Content Fund in December 2022. The Government is conducting an assessment of the contestable funding model to consider its impact and the long-term sustainability of this kind of funding. The potential for further investment will be considered against that assessment and future public service broadcasting needs.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department are taking steps to encourage British television productions to film in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
With world-class facilities and access to a highly-skilled talent pool, Northern Ireland enjoys global recognition as an important production centre for film and television.
Northern Ireland Screen is the national screen agency for Northern Ireland. Funded by the Department for the Economy and the Department for Communities, Northern Ireland Screen’s production credits include the Academy Award nominated film Belfast.
The British Film Institute NETWORK works to support, develop and champion new and emerging filmmakers across the UK. The BFI will continue to delegate funding to Northern Ireland Screen to lead BFI NETWORK in Northern Ireland, with an award of £480,000 across the three years.
To support independent screen content following the pandemic, including film, to grow internationally the government launched the UK Global Screen Fund in April 2021. DCMS has committed a further £21 million to develop, distribute and promote independent UK screen content in international markets. All three strands of the UK Global Screen Fund offer support for Northern Irish companies and projects and several significant awards to Northern Ireland-based companies have been made to date.
DCMS has funded the British Film Commission (BFC) with £4.8 million over three years to support the growth of seven geographic production hubs across the UK nations. Through this, the BFC has provided ongoing support for Northern Ireland’s expanding studio infrastructure initiative, including design support and general guidance to four key studios: Belfast Harbour, Titanic, Loop and Silverwood.
The BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have also all commissioned critically acclaimed television programmes set and produced in Northern Ireland. This includes Bloodlands, The Secret and Derry Girls.
At Spring Budget 2023, the government went further to support and boost the competitiveness of the TV industry across the UK, through the creative industry tax reliefs. The government announced that the film, high end TV, children’s TV and animation tax reliefs will be reformed to a single Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit, which will provide a greater benefit than the current reliefs.