Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered question first ministerially corrected answering member label previous answer version answering member constituency answering member printed answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1227041

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Arts: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make extended financial support available for freelancers in the arts sector when the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme end to respond to venues not being (a) permitted to open as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased and (b) able to offer contracts of employment to freelancers in that sector.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, West Derby
tabling member printed	Ian Byrne
uin	77843
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2020 answer text <p><del class="ministerial">On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.</del></p><p><del class="ministerial">This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.</del></p><p><del class="ministerial">We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.</del></p><p><ins class="ministerial">&quot;DCMS recognise that these are extremely challenging times for freelancers, and understand the crucial role they play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. We are working hard to ensure that we help to provide financial support to freelancers during this period.</ins></p><p> </p><p><ins class="ministerial">On 5 July, DCMS announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, including performing arts and theatres, museums and galleries, heritage sites, live music venues and independent cinema.</ins></p><p> </p><p><ins class="ministerial">As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers. Each organisation that receives money will know what best they can do to support their workforce, including their freelance workforce. </ins></p><p> </p><p><ins class="ministerial">The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme has also been extended with applications opening in August for a second and final grant. The grant will operate in the same way as the existing scheme with self-employed workers eligible for a single payment covering three months, at a level of 70% of average monthly earnings up to a maximum of £6,570 (i.e. down from 80% and a maximum of £7,500).</ins></p><p> </p><p><ins class="ministerial">Alongside this funding, ACE have announced £95m of additional support for individuals, which can include freelancers. This involves things such as an additional £75m in project grants. These will be focused on applications that maximise employment opportunities and those from under-represented groups and freelancers are eligible to apply to this directly. National Portfolio Organisations can also apply to create new work with bids that create employment opportunities prioritised. A further round of the ACE programme ‘Discover Your Creative Practice’ will also open in the autumn, which will make approximately £18m available for individuals looking to develop new creative skills that will help them to further develop their career. ACE will also be adding £2m into relevant benevolent funds to support those less well supported by the programmes outlined above, including stage managers and technicians</ins></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 07/09/2020 13:44:21 question first ministerially corrected 08/09/2020 15:50:10 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage previous answer version 44674 answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4831 label Biography information for Ian Byrne

1226752

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	ICT: China
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July to Question 74572, and with reference to the National Cyber Security Centre's guidance entitled, Huawei advice: what you need to know, if he will make an assessment of the risk to (a) national security and (b) individual privacy of the use of (i) consumer devices manufactured by high risk vendors and (ii) Chinese applications and platforms.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	77603
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/09/2020 answer text <p>High Risk Vendor (HRV) is a term applied to vendors in the UK telecoms network whose presence may increase security risks for operators – at the present time only Huawei and ZTE have been assessed as HRVs for this purpose.</p><p>Following further changes to the US sanctions on Huawei, announced in August 2020, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is assessing the impact to owners of Huawei and Honor-branded devices in the UK. The change in sanctions may mean that services used by Huawei devices and software updates may, for some products, cease. Devices which can no longer be supported with updates, or access services and app stores, are at increased risk of becoming compromised by criminals if a security vulnerability is discovered. Owners of these devices are encouraged to follow advice which can be found on the NCSC website: <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ncsc.gov.uk%2Finformation%2Fhuawei-advice-what-you-need-to-know&amp;data=02%7C01%7Cncscparliament%40ncsc.gov.uk%7C65ab42768f5b44bc133c08d84b66b19a%7C14aa5744ece1474ea2d734f46dda64a1%7C0%7C0%7C637342251723920851&amp;sdata=FZ0m35k7rBk5iUq2eebhCQ6B%2FMENB8R6uK4gssm5tFk%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Huawei advice: what you need to know</a>, and organisations where employees use personal Huawei devices to access business data and applications, such as email, instant messaging, and office applications, should refer to the NCSC <a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ncsc.gov.uk%2Fcollection%2Fmobile-device-guidance%2Fbring-your-own-device%23section_3&amp;data=02%7C01%7Cncscparliament%40ncsc.gov.uk%7C65ab42768f5b44bc133c08d84b66b19a%7C14aa5744ece1474ea2d734f46dda64a1%7C0%7C0%7C637342251723920851&amp;sdata=WLlVPHpGnbMMYp6zO1Uyxp7uH6N%2BD83VbnUSADOWXkM%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">guidance on BYOD</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The NCSC regularly updates its advice and guidance for individuals, families and businesses on a range of cyber security related topics. DCMS and NCSC have, in partnership, worked to protect consumers and the wider economy from the range of harms that can arise from vulnerable consumer connected devices. A proposal to mandate basic security principles via regulation is currently open for a Call for Views, with the ambition to introduce legislation as soon as parliamentary time becomes available.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Boston and Skegness answering member printed Matt Warman question first answered 01/09/2020 11:06:53 answering member 4361 label Biography information for Matt Warman
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1226832

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Civil Society: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the financial sustainability of (a) civil society organisations and (b) charities in (i) Wolverhampton South West and (ii) England during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Wolverhampton South West
tabling member printed	Stuart Anderson
uin	77805
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2020 answer text <p>The Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak.</p><p>£200 million of this money is being distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund through the Coronavirus Community Support Fund which is mainly targeting smaller and local VCSE organisations. Under the Coronavirus Community Support Fund, a total of 518 awards valued at £12.36 million has been allocated to organisations in the West Midlands, as at 28th August 2020.</p><p>£360 million has been allocated by central government departments with £200 million of this directly supporting hospices across the country. From this money, a total of 40 awards to the value of £3.1 million have been allocated to organisations in the West Midlands, as at 28th August 2020.</p><p>A further £4.8 million will be distributed to the Voluntary and Community Sector Emergencies Partnership - a group that comes together to improve national and local coordination before, during and after emergencies - to help strengthen the voluntary sector’s response to coronavirus and future emergencies.</p><p>To support the BBC’s 'Big Night In', the Government matched the generous donations of the public across the country with grants to the National Emergencies Trust working in Partnership with the UK Community Foundations (£20million) and to the remaining £17million being shared by Comic Relief and Children in Need. £1.14 million from the National Emergencies Trust grant was allocated to the Heart of England Community Foundation. Under the National Emergencies Trust, Comic Relief and Children in Need grants, a total of 125 awards valued at £723,029 have been made to organisations in the West Midlands as at 28th August 2020.</p><p>The ‘Community Match Challenge’ which is matching funds raised by philanthropists, foundations and grant making organisations will further support small to medium sized organisations from across the country working with those who are most vulnerable and have been hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak. This Fund closed for bids on 2nd August and the outcome will be announced shortly.</p><p>In addition to the £750million, a further £150m has been unlocked from dormant bank and building society accounts which will be directed to charities, social enterprises and individuals.</p><p>Finally, civil society organisations and charities can access additional business support measures including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loans.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 07/09/2020 10:21:59 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4742 label Biography information for Stuart Anderson

1226843

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Performing Arts: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the press release entitled, £1.57 billion investment to protect Britain’s world-class cultural, arts and heritage institutions, what the process is for freelancer (a) performers, (b) musicians and (c) third party providers to access that funding; and what the timeframe is for freelancers to apply for that funding.
tabling member constituency	Newbury
tabling member printed	Laura Farris
uin	77834
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2020 answer text <p>On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.</p><p> </p><p>This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.</p><p> </p><p>We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.</p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 07/09/2020 14:10:47 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	4826 label Biography information for Laura Farris

1226960

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Children's Centres: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether covid-19 social distancing guidelines for the indoor play sector need to be signed off by the (a) Health and Safety Executive and (b) Public Health England before the indoor play sector can reopen.
tabling member constituency	Cambridge
tabling member printed	Daniel Zeichner
uin	77661
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2020 answer text <p>Yes, guidance for the indoor play sector needs to be signed off by Public Health England and Health and Safety Executive. We will be working closely with both organisations to develop guidance for this sector.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Mid Worcestershire answering member printed Nigel Huddleston question first answered 03/09/2020 12:37:05 answering member 4407 label Biography information for Nigel Huddleston
tabling member	4382 label Biography information for Daniel Zeichner

1226989

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Broadband: Religious Buildings
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what representations he has received from (a) churches and (b) faith groups on the barriers to broadband access for places of worship that do not have a postcode.
tabling member constituency	Barking
tabling member printed	Dame Margaret Hodge
uin	77482
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/09/2020 answer text <p>We understand the importance for broadband access in places of worship to help improve connectivity for local communities, as well as practical benefits for such premises, including streaming services, security, and accepting contactless donations or administration.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Government has been in discussion with representatives from the Church of England, in particular, regarding the issue of broadband access where places of worship do not have postcodes, or are otherwise missing from telecom provider databases. In some cases this leads to issues in identifying and providing service to such locations.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Over 31,000 premises are listed in relevant databases accessible to the Government as being used as places of worship. Of these, approximately 86% of premises used for religious purposes in Great Britain can access Superfast broadband speeds or better on fixed networks, compared to the UK average of 95%. Approximately 4% of premises used for religious purposes in Great Britain cannot access ‘decent broadband’ speeds of 10 Megabit/s on Fixed networks, compared to the UK average of 2%, largely due to their rurality. However, 4G data services are also widely available, and this reduces the number of such listed places of worship with no potential service to less than 0.2% of the total.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We are working with relevant stakeholders, including telecom operators and Ofcom, to ascertain the extent of this problem, and how many religious premises are still facing barriers. Part of this is about ensuring data used by operators is up to date and consistent with the data available to the Government. But it is also about identifying appropriate solutions, including ensuring all broadband technology solutions that are available to places of worship are considered.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Boston and Skegness answering member printed Matt Warman question first answered 01/09/2020 08:29:35 answering member 4361 label Biography information for Matt Warman
tabling member	140 label Biography information for Dame Margaret Hodge

1226994

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Dormant Assets Scheme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate he has made of the value of dormant (a) stocks, (b) shares, (c) bonds and (d) insurance policies available for transfer to the Dormant Assets Distribution Fund.
tabling member constituency	Bradford South
tabling member printed	Judith Cummins
uin	77672
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/09/2020 answer text <p>Currently, the dormant assets scheme only accepts bank and building society accounts. A consultation on expanding the scheme to include a wider range of dormant financial assets, such as shares and insurance policies, closed in mid-July. The government response to this consultation will be published this Autumn. We are working with industry stakeholders to estimate the value of the assets in scope for inclusion as part of this.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 02/09/2020 13:11:27 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4391 label Biography information for Judith Cummins

1226996

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Dormant Assets Scheme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the value of the dormant assets that are planned to be transferred to the Dormant Assets Distribution Fund from dormant bank accounts in (a) financial year 2020-21 and (b) the next four financial years.
tabling member constituency	Bradford South
tabling member printed	Judith Cummins
uin	77673
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2020 answer text <p>The dormant assets scheme is managed by Reclaim Fund Ltd (RFL), who estimate that £68m of new assets will be received by them in 2020, followed by £83m in 2021 and £54m in 2022. Estimates are not made beyond this point, but RFL anticipates that ongoing levels will remain broadly similar in 2023. It should be noted that the dormant asset scheme is voluntary and so estimates can vary over time.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 03/09/2020 15:57:33 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4391 label Biography information for Judith Cummins

1226997

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Dormant Assets Scheme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the current value is of un-allocated funds in the Dormant Assets Distribution Fund.
tabling member constituency	Bradford South
tabling member printed	Judith Cummins
uin	77674
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2020 answer text <p>Reclaim Fund Ltd annually receives dormant assets and reserves the amount required to meet customer reclaims. The remainder is allocated to The National Lottery Community Fund for distribution. In an unprecedented move to respond to the Covid-19 crisis, all money available for distribution this financial year was allocated in May 2020 as part of the government’s announcement of £150m of dormant assets funding. This money is supporting charities, social enterprises, and vulnerable communities to respond to and recover from the pandemic. There are therefore no unallocated funds available for England at this time.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Maldon answering member printed Mr John Whittingdale question first answered 03/09/2020 15:59:49 answering member 39 label Biography information for Sir John Whittingdale
tabling member	4391 label Biography information for Judith Cummins

1227003

registered interest
date	21/07/2020
answering body	Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	10
answering dept short name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Theatres: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to announce how theatres can apply for the Government support package for the arts in response to the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Barking
tabling member printed	Dame Margaret Hodge
uin	77483
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2020 answer text <p>On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.</p><p> </p><p>This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.</p><p> </p><p>We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Gosport answering member printed Caroline Dinenage question first answered 07/09/2020 14:33:42 answering member 4008 label Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage
tabling member	140 label Biography information for Dame Margaret Hodge