Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has to publish a timetable outlining the steps required to secure secondary legislation in order that analogue FM and AM commercial radio licences simulcasting on DAB will be uninterrupted before they are due to expire.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The government supports a strong and vibrant radio sector and we fully recognise the important role that both national and local commercial stations broadcasting on analogue (FM and AM) frequencies and on DAB play in providing the widest possible choice for listeners.
The first of the analogue commercial radio licences renewed by Ofcom under the Legislative Reform (Further Renewal of Radio Licences) Order 2015 will start to expire in early 2022. We plan to consult on the options of a further renewal of these licences as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that employers in the screen industry use more of the apprenticeship levy funding they receive.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
We are working closely with the screen industry so that it can benefit from apprenticeships.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education are working with the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education to support the development of apprenticeship standards. Currently there are 48 approved standards available for delivery in the creative and digital sectors.
From discussions with the screen sector, we recognise that it faces some challenges in spending available levy funds due to the dominance of project-based working in the sector. To overcome these challenges, we are working with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and ScreenSkills on an innovative Film and TV Apprenticeships pilot which will enable around 20 apprentices to benefit from hands-on experience on the sets of major films and TV shows. Launching in 2020, it will explore a new model for how high-quality apprenticeships can be used to deliver multiple placements on film and TV productions, as well as addressing skills shortages.
In addition, we have increased the transfer cap from 10% to 25% enabling levy-paying employers to transfer funds to smaller employers or charities in order to support the development of skills in their supply chains or respond to skills shortages in their sectors.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his oral statement of 1 July 2019, Official Report, columns 929-930, what recent assessment he has made of whether recruitment of (a) 400 clinical endoscopists and (b) 300 reporting radiographers is sufficient deliver on the ambitions of the NHS Long-Term Plan.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
No overall assessment has been made.
Health Education England’s (HEE) statutory responsibility is to ensure that an effective education and training system is in place for the National Health Service, which includes funding the training of pre and post registered professions based on current and future needs of patients. Funding for training and recruitment of endoscopists and radiographers will come out of the HEE yearly core funding.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, further to his oral statement of 1 July 2019 on the Implementation of the NHS Long-Term Plan, how the training and recruitment of (a) 400 more clinical endoscopists and (b) 300 more reporting radiographers will be funded.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
No overall assessment has been made.
Health Education England’s (HEE) statutory responsibility is to ensure that an effective education and training system is in place for the National Health Service, which includes funding the training of pre and post registered professions based on current and future needs of patients. Funding for training and recruitment of endoscopists and radiographers will come out of the HEE yearly core funding.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government plans to increase the Minimum Income Guarantee.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The financial allowances including the minimum income guarantee rates are reviewed annually.
Social care funding for future years will be settled in the spending review, where the overall approach to funding local government will be considered in the round.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the ScreenSkills campaign entitled, Find your future in film and TV.
Answered by Margot James
The Government recognises the importance of a strong and diverse talent pipeline to the continuing success of film and HETV in the UK and pleased to see ScreenSkills leading the way with its new campaign. Having been launched on 23rd May, DCMS looks forward to seeing the results of its mix of cinema, social media and online promotion in the coming months and years.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what start-up funding the Government has allocated to new National Spectrum Centre in Aberystwyth to (a) enable UK wireless technology innovation and (b) create highly skilled job opportunities in Wales.
Answered by Alun Cairns
The UK Government has put research and innovation at the heart of its Industrial Strategy, setting an ambition for the UK to become the most innovative country in the world and increase its total R&D expenditure to 2.4% of GDP by 2027.
The new National Spectrum Centre in Aberystwyth will be a part of this ecosystem of innovation across the UK and will have opportunities to access funds dedicated to supporting research in areas that are vital to our future economy. I visited Aberystwyth in September to discuss this project with key stakeholders and was hugely impressed with its ambitions.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress he has made on establishing a new National Spectrum Centre in Aberystwyth to enable UK businesses to (a) develop and (b) test wireless technology in a suitable environment.
Answered by Margot James
Government is not directly involved in this initiative. We welcome industry-led research to develop innovative and efficient uses of spectrum.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of opening up access to the 5G spectrum to new users on the speed of deployment of 5G to rural communities.
Answered by Margot James
In the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review, the Government supports the introduction of flexible, shared spectrum models - such as dynamic spectrum access - and the release of additional public sector spectrum as strategic priorities. Government believes that spectrum sharing would enable new players, alongside existing mobile operators, to access and invest in new business models whilst enabling innovative solutions to connectivity challenges, such as in rural areas.
Today, we have the tools and technologies needed to allocate spectrum on a dynamic basis. Government will continue to work with Ofcom and industry to support innovation and investment and deliver improvements in coverage. We believe that the market expansion model will aid these objectives and encourage competition. The Government recently consulted on these ambitions in the Statement of Strategic Priorities. Ofcom, as the national regulatory authority, will have regard to these when carrying out the management of spectrum and other relevant functions.
Asked by: Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential competition benefits of a dynamic spectrum access model for the next 5G auction to open up underemployed 5G spectrum to new providers.
Answered by Margot James
In the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review, the Government supports the introduction of flexible, shared spectrum models - such as dynamic spectrum access - and the release of additional public sector spectrum as strategic priorities. Government believes that spectrum sharing would enable new players, alongside existing mobile operators, to access and invest in new business models whilst enabling innovative solutions to connectivity challenges, such as in rural areas.
Today, we have the tools and technologies needed to allocate spectrum on a dynamic basis. Government will continue to work with Ofcom and industry to support innovation and investment and deliver improvements in coverage. We believe that the market expansion model will aid these objectives and encourage competition. The Government recently consulted on these ambitions in the Statement of Strategic Priorities. Ofcom, as the national regulatory authority, will have regard to these when carrying out the management of spectrum and other relevant functions.