Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps with the Fundraising Regulator to help ensure compliance by social fundraising platforms with its guidance on the prominence of a zero fee or tip option.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Fundraising platforms are commercial organisations that provide an important service to charities and donors. Most platforms are registered with the Fundraising Regulator, which is the independent, non-statutory regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. DCMS meets with the Fundraising Regulator regularly to discuss a range of issues, including fundraising platforms.
The Fundraising Regulator’s new Code of Fundraising Practice, which will come into force on 1 November 2025, includes requirements for fundraising platforms to include information for donors about how fees, including any voluntary tips, are calculated. The information must be easy to find, and include details on how voluntary tips can be amended or removed altogether in a straightforward way. The Fundraising Regulator will engage with fundraising platforms to ensure they are clear on the new transparency requirements for fees and tipping sliders before the new Code comes into effect.
The government has no current plans to bring forward legislation on fundraising platforms. DCMS will continue working with the Fundraising Regulator, charities, and online giving platforms to support best practice across all forms of charitable fundraising.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to require that tipping sliders on online fundraising platforms can be dragged to zero.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Fundraising platforms are commercial organisations that provide an important service to charities and donors. Most platforms are registered with the Fundraising Regulator, which is the independent, non-statutory regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. DCMS meets with the Fundraising Regulator regularly to discuss a range of issues, including fundraising platforms.
The Fundraising Regulator’s new Code of Fundraising Practice, which will come into force on 1 November 2025, includes requirements for fundraising platforms to include information for donors about how fees, including any voluntary tips, are calculated. The information must be easy to find, and include details on how voluntary tips can be amended or removed altogether in a straightforward way. The Fundraising Regulator will engage with fundraising platforms to ensure they are clear on the new transparency requirements for fees and tipping sliders before the new Code comes into effect.
The government has no current plans to bring forward legislation on fundraising platforms. DCMS will continue working with the Fundraising Regulator, charities, and online giving platforms to support best practice across all forms of charitable fundraising.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with the Fundraising Regulator on the transparency of tipping sliders on online fundraising platforms.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Fundraising platforms are commercial organisations that provide an important service to charities and donors. Most platforms are registered with the Fundraising Regulator, which is the independent, non-statutory regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. DCMS meets with the Fundraising Regulator regularly to discuss a range of issues, including fundraising platforms.
The Fundraising Regulator’s new Code of Fundraising Practice, which will come into force on 1 November 2025, includes requirements for fundraising platforms to include information for donors about how fees, including any voluntary tips, are calculated. The information must be easy to find, and include details on how voluntary tips can be amended or removed altogether in a straightforward way. The Fundraising Regulator will engage with fundraising platforms to ensure they are clear on the new transparency requirements for fees and tipping sliders before the new Code comes into effect.
The government has no current plans to bring forward legislation on fundraising platforms. DCMS will continue working with the Fundraising Regulator, charities, and online giving platforms to support best practice across all forms of charitable fundraising.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to bring forward secondary legislation to regulate large-scale commercial prize draws.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Large scale commercial prize draws are a significant and growing market. Whilst not regulated as a gambling product under the Gambling Act, we want people who participate in large scale commercial prize draws to be confident that proportionate protections are in place. Independent research was commissioned in 2023, looking at possible gambling harm and assessing the impact of potential regulation, and will inform our policy considerations. The department is grateful for the voluntary action taken so far by the sector to act transparently and apply player protection measures. We want to ensure high standards in this area and the Minister for Gambling will be meeting the sector to discuss this work.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age, published on 27 April 2023, when she plans to introduce consumer protections for players of large-scale commercial prize draws.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Large scale commercial prize draws are a significant and growing market. Whilst not regulated as a gambling product under the Gambling Act, we want people who participate in large scale commercial prize draws to be confident that proportionate protections are in place. Independent research was commissioned in 2023, looking at possible gambling harm and assessing the impact of potential regulation, and will inform our policy considerations. The department is grateful for the voluntary action taken so far by the sector to act transparently and apply player protection measures. We want to ensure high standards in this area and the Minister for Gambling will be meeting the sector to discuss this work.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to limit the value of prizes offered by large-scale commercial Prize Draws.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Large scale commercial prize draws are a significant and growing market. Whilst not regulated as a gambling product under the Gambling Act, we want people who participate in large scale commercial prize draws to be confident that proportionate protections are in place. Independent research was commissioned in 2023, looking at possible gambling harm and assessing the impact of potential regulation, and will inform our policy considerations. The department is grateful for the voluntary action taken so far by the sector to act transparently and apply player protection measures. We want to ensure high standards in this area and the Minister for Gambling will be meeting the sector to discuss this work.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to publish the research that her Department has commissioned London Economics to undertake on the online prize draws and competitions market.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department is still considering the findings of the independent research, which looked at the size and nature of the prize draw market, as well as possible gambling harm associated with these products. This research is informing our policy considerations, as whilst not regulated as a gambling product under the Gambling Act, we want people who participate in large scale commercial prize draws to be confident that proportionate protections are in place. We will update Parliament further in due course.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
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 the Secretary of State for the Home Department on non-UK (a) artists, (b) sponsors and (c) creatives and the UK border.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We have had no such recent meetings, but there are already several routes that provide opportunities for artists and creatives to come to the UK. The UK’s domestic rules allow musicians, entertainers, artists, and their technical staff, from non-visa national countries (such as EU/EEA nationals) to perform in the UK for up to 6 months without requiring a visa, as long as they are not receiving payment from a UK source other than prize money or expenses. Musicians, entertainers and artists from visa-national countries are likewise able to perform in the UK via the Standard Visitor route, and/or if performing at a festival detailed on the Permit Free Festivals list.
Additionally, the Creative Worker visa allows a professional artist, model, entertainer or musician (applicable to all nationalities) to carry out activity directly relating to their profession, if they have a Sponsor who is licensed by the Home Office and has assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship to the
individual.
We are committed to continuing to work closely with stakeholders to better understand their needs and challenges within the immigration system. This includes exploring ways to better streamline the processes within existing frameworks, to ensure the UK remains an attractive destination for global creative talent.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has made an assessment of whether the current Health Lottery licence holder meets the fit and proper person test.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The oversight of both operating and personal management licences for society lotteries, including assessing an applicant’s suitability to hold a licence, is a matter for the Gambling Commission.
More information about the Gambling Commission’s principles for licensing and regulation and licensing, compliance and enforcement under the Gambling Act 2005 can be found on the Commission’s website here and here.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of revenue the Health Lottery has given to charity in each year since 2019.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
All society lotteries, including the Health Lottery, are required to publish information on their websites about the proportion of revenue they return to good causes. This data is available on the Health Lottery’s website. The Department does not hold data on individual society lottery operators.