Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the (1) restoration, and (2) conservation, of war memorials.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Government supports the restoration and conservation of war memorials through the Memorial Grant Scheme which makes grants towards the VAT incurred by charities and faith groups in the construction, repair and maintenance of public memorial structures, including war memorials. The scheme has a fixed budget of £0.5m per year for this spending period.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of donations made to think tanks to influence government policy and the policy of registered political parties, which are impermissible to be donated to registered political parties under the requirements of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Think tanks which have opted for charitable status must ensure they abide by the rules that apply to all charities under charity law. Charities can undertake political activity but only in pursuit of their charitable purposes, and only to the extent that the political activity remains subsidiary to the charity’s purpose and does not become an end in itself. Charities must not participate in any party-political activity, or support a political party or candidate. The Charity Commission sets this out clearly in its guidance on campaigning and political activity which was published in 2008.
Most charitable think tanks carry out their charitable purpose well. There are many examples where important contributions have been made in a responsible manner and in line with the law. Where charities, including charitable think tanks, do not operate in line with the law, or where they cross the line in terms of political activity, the Charity Commission, as the independent charity regulator and as tasked by Parliament, has the legal responsibility to hold charities to account under charity law and deal with those matters proportionately on behalf of the public.
The Government encourages greater transparency as a matter of good practice, but it is not a legal requirement for charities to publicly disclose the identity of individual donors. Donor anonymity is an important consideration in ensuring people have the confidence to donate to charitable causes they care about.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to require think tanks who seek to influence government policy and the policy of registered political parties to publish the (1) source, and (2) amount, of donations they receive to fund their work.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Think tanks which have opted for charitable status must ensure they abide by the rules that apply to all charities under charity law. Charities can undertake political activity but only in pursuit of their charitable purposes, and only to the extent that the political activity remains subsidiary to the charity’s purpose and does not become an end in itself. Charities must not participate in any party-political activity, or support a political party or candidate. The Charity Commission sets this out clearly in its guidance on campaigning and political activity which was published in 2008.
Most charitable think tanks carry out their charitable purpose well. There are many examples where important contributions have been made in a responsible manner and in line with the law. Where charities, including charitable think tanks, do not operate in line with the law, or where they cross the line in terms of political activity, the Charity Commission, as the independent charity regulator and as tasked by Parliament, has the legal responsibility to hold charities to account under charity law and deal with those matters proportionately on behalf of the public.
The Government encourages greater transparency as a matter of good practice, but it is not a legal requirement for charities to publicly disclose the identity of individual donors. Donor anonymity is an important consideration in ensuring people have the confidence to donate to charitable causes they care about.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the levels of charitable donations.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
DCMS has been working closely with the sector to build a strong understanding of the financial and operational impacts of the pandemic.
We're aware that for some charities income streams, including public fundraising and trading income, have been adversely affected by COVID-19. We will continue to work with the sector to understand these impacts and how we can best support their work during the pandemic and through recovery.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the ability of football clubs in the National League and the leagues below to remain in business during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Football clubs can be the bedrock of our local communities and it is vital they are protected
That is why we have provided unprecedented support to businesses through tax reliefs, cash grants and employee wage support, which many football clubs have benefited from. Sport England’s Community Emergency Fund has also provided £210 million directly to support community sport clubs and exercise centres through this pandemic.
Importantly, under government guidance clubs below the National League North / South are able to admit spectators, whilst adhering to COVID-19 guidance, generating crucial revenue that is vital for their survival.
Government recognises the implications for elite sports clubs of not being able to admit spectators to stadia from 1 October, and are working urgently on what we can do now to support them.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the ability of first class cricket clubs to remain in business during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government’s multi-billion-pound package of business support has enabled many of our sports clubs to survive, but we know that the decision not to reopen stadia to spectators has had economic consequences for sports and clubs across the country who relied on those fans for income, including first class cricket clubs. We have asked sporting organisations, including the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), for detailed financial returns to see what support they need, and we will work at pace with them to understand the issues that organisations in the most challenging circumstances are facing and what support they may require.
The ECB has been a valued partner in both the creation and application of the guidance that has enabled the return of elite sporting competition.They successfully delivered a programme of behind closed doors sport to the highest standards of safety for competitors and support staff, securing broadcast revenue which will benefit the whole game at this challenging time.
I am grateful also to those clubs who have piloted the return of spectators so far. The Government will continue to work closely with the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA) and a whole range of sports to understand the latest thinking that might allow spectators to return. This includes the creation of a new Sports Technology Innovation Working Group of sporting bodies and health experts to analyse new technologies which might support this. Ministers and officials will continue to engage with the ECB as part of this process.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are giving to social enterprises to help with the changed circumstances and increased costs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Government continues to champion social enterprises and the significant and wide ranging contributions they make to our society, and more recently in the response to the pandemic including in health, social care and community support. There is no doubt that social enterprises are facing significant challenges and many have adapted their business models and operations to adjust to the new circumstances.
Social enterprises have access to the support measures that the Government has put in place to support organisations through the pandemic, including loan schemes, business rate reliefs, flexibility around tax payments and grants. A £750m targeted funding package has been made available to support the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise Sector to allow organisations to continue to provide vital services to those affected by COVID-19. This unprecedented funding is in addition to the significant package of support that has been made available across sectors, which social enterprises can access. This includes the Job Retention Scheme, the Business Loan Interruption Scheme, and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund and more recent measures including the Job Support Scheme and the Kickstart scheme. A further £150 million from dormant bank and building society accounts has been unlocked to support urgent work tackling youth unemployment, providing emergency loans for civil society organisations and improving the availability of fair, affordable credit to people in vulnerable circumstances.
Last month the Government announced a social value procurement framework for central government contracts. This presents a real opportunity to grow social enterprises’ involvement in public sector supply chains.
Asked by: Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of contract terms in the new mobile phone market, in particular (1) the fairness of such terms for consumers, and (2) company practices relating to such contracts.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has a statutory duty to further and protect the interests of telecoms consumers.
Ofcom recently undertook a review of the mobile handsets market. As part of that review it identified concerns that some mobile phone customers were not being treated fairly, in particular where they purchase their mobile handset and airtime together in a bundled contract but continue to pay the same price after the end of their minimum contract period (as these ‘out-of-contract’ customers can often save money by moving to a SIM-only deal).
Ofcom has put in place a range of measures to address these concerns, including end-of-contract and annual best tariff notifications which will alert customers when they are out-of-contract and advise them of the best deals available from their provider, including SIM-only deals, as well as a commitment from most of the major mobile providers to apply a discount when customers on bundled deals go out-of-contract.
Alongside these measures, last year Ofcom also secured a set of ‘Fairness for Customers’ commitments from all the major communication providers. These commitments are designed to embed a culture of fairness within the industry. Ofcom will be publishing a report on industry progress against these commitments in Q4 2020/21.