Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government has plans to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of the 1924 British Empire Exhibition.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS has no plans to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of the 1924 British Empire Exhibition.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding her Department has provided to Girlguiding UK in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The table below sets out the breakdown of funding provided by my department for the last five years (2018 until present day). Please note that this table only includes direct government funding from DCMS and excludes funding from Other Government Departments, arms length bodies, local authorities and any other non-DCMS avenues of funding. Girlguiding may also indirectly benefit from other DCMS funding such as that delivered to other uniformed youth groups through the sharing of facilities with Scouts groups for instance.
Name of DCMS fund: | Breakdown of date and total amount of funding provided in GBP from the past 5 years (broken down by financial years): |
Uniformed Youth Fund 2018-19 | £718,458 (2018/19) |
Tampon Tax Fund | £120,000 (2018/19) £30,000 (2019/20) |
Big Night In Fund | £4,865.26 (2020/21) |
Youth Covid-19 Support Fund | £2,858,000 (2020/21) |
Adventures Away from Home Fund (Phase 1) | £20,560 (2022/23) |
Youth Investment Fund (YIF), Phase 1 | £167,658.00 (2021/22) |
Uniformed Youth New Groups Fund | £201,108 (2022/23) |
Uniformed Youth Fund 2022-25 | £1,907,170 (2022-25) |
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the decision by Girlguiding UK to cease operations in British Overseas Territories; and whether her Department is providing support to those territories as a result of that decision.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to protecting the United Kingdom’s core national interests, ensuring the prosperity of the British people across the Overseas Territories.
As an independent organisation it is for Girlguiding to set its own organisational direction. However, Government recognises the importance of Girlguiding to many girls in Overseas Territories. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, alongside colleagues in the Foreign Commonwealth Development Office and Ministry of Defence, are discussing this with Girlguiding.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department have made an assessment of the viability of the United Kingdom hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The UK is proud to have hosted the Commonwealth Games twice in the past decade. The record-breaking Birmingham Games in 2022 came in under budget and added at least £870 million of Gross Value Added to the UK economy, and hundreds of millions to the local economy in the West Midlands.
We are committed to working with the Commonwealth Games Federation and other Commonwealth countries to support a sustainable future for the Games. It is important that the Games remain a truly global event that gives athletes from around the world the chance to compete, and we continue to encourage the Commonwealth Games Federation to explore all hosting possibilities.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has taken steps to support local authorities to (a) maintain and (b) expand community libraries (i) nationally and (ii) in Romford constituency.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to supporting a sustainable long-term future for public libraries in England.
The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 requires all local authorities in England to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. In considering how best to deliver this statutory duty, each local authority is responsible for determining local needs and delivering a modern and efficient library service that meets the requirements of their communities within available resources. Public libraries are funded by local authorities, not central government, and it is for each local authority to determine the model of delivery for its statutory library service.
The Arts Council England dataset for libraries indicates that as of 31 December 2022 the statutory library service in Havering consisted of 10 static libraries, all of which were local authority run.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
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 promote the English folk music tradition in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HM Government has a strong commitment to all forms of music, including folk traditions from around the UK and beyond. This Department’s support for folk music is delivered primarily through Arts Council England, which has engaged with the development of the English folk music scene over recent years.
The Arts Council’s primary investment in English folk music is via its National Portfolio. This programme supports organisations like Soundroots (£300,000 per annum) which runs the English Folk Expo (the annual showcase for folk, roots and acoustic music in England), and the English Folk Dance and Song Society (£96,748 per annum), which promotes English folk music and folk dance. In addition, one of Arts Council England’s new Investment Principle Support Organisations, Making Music, also supports a range of folk music ensembles.
Arts Council England has also invested £47,803 in music in Romford since 2018 through its National Lottery Project Grants. There have been no successful applications for Arts Council investment in Romford from organisations focused on English folk music, but there is an active folk scene including Haverfolk and the Romford Folk Club as well as the Romford and Brentford Folk Dance group. As these groups meet at public houses in Romford, the venues would be eligible, should they wish, to apply for funding via Arts Council England’s DCMS-supported ‘Supporting Grassroots Music’ programme. These groups could also apply for support via National Lottery Project Grants.
HM Government has also announced the intention to ratify the UNESCO 2003 Convention for Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which could help promote folk music traditions across the UK. A public consultation on the first stage of implementation is running until 29 February.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has plans for a national celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the wedding of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
There are no government plans for a national celebration to mark the twentieth anniversary of the wedding of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
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 promote English baroque musical tradition in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by John Whittingdale
England is home to some of the world’s most respected performers of baroque music, from the Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists to the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. At this time of year in particular, performances of extracts from Handel’s Messiah and Bach’s Christmas Oratorio will be heard and enjoyed around the country.
Performance of baroque music in England, along with other individual musical genres, receives support from a wide variety of sources, including public funding via Arts Council England. There are a number of National Portfolio Organisations and other Arts Council-funded organisations which deliver activity in England relating to baroque music. For example, Britten Pears Arts (which receives over £1.4 million per annum through Arts Council England) operates a baroque orchestra training scheme for younger players and provides residencies and performance platforms for small ensembles including those specialising in period instrument performance.
Many National Portfolio Organisations regularly perform or engage with baroque music in England. This includes specialist organisations such as the National Centre for Early Music in York (which receives over £275,000 per annum), and organisations which perform a broader range of music, such as the Royal Opera House (which receives more than £22 million per annum), which has recently staged Handel’s oratorio Jeptha.
Arts Council England’s open programmes (such as National Lottery Project Grants, and Develop Your Creative Practice) have also supported individuals and organisations delivering baroque music. This support is open to organisations and individuals across the country, including to those in Romford.
Many performances of baroque music in England will be by orchestras, which may be eligible for the Orchestras Tax Relief. At the Spring Budget this year, HM Government announced a two-year extension to the higher rates of Theatre and Orchestra Tax Relief.
Romford and Havering are home to an amateur choir, as well as an orchestra, and the Havering Singers’ past concerts have included a performance of Handel’s Messiah.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
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 the potential merits of allocating financial support to the Romford Film Festival.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government recognises the significant cultural and economic value of cinemas, and the important role that festivals play in bringing communities and filmmakers together. Public support for UK film festivals is provided through a number of funding mechanisms, including the British Film Institute, the Government’s lead body for film and the moving image, and Local Authorities. For this reason, we have not made our own assessment of the potential merits of allocating financial support to the Romford Film Festival.
The BFI National Lottery Audience Projects Fund provides support to ambitious, audience-facing independent UK and international film and broader screen activity of national scale. The fund supports film exhibitors, distributors, and other organisations delivering audience development activity with multi-year and short-term projects as well as research and development. Applications to the fund are accepted all year round but must be received 16 weeks before the activity is due to start. Information including the funds eligibility criteria can be found on the BFI’s website:
The organisers of Romford Film Festival may also wish to engage with Film Hub London to understand what relevant support is available. Film Hub London is part of the BFI Film Audience Network (BFI FAN), a nationwide network of exhibitors taking cultural cinema to their communities. The Network is aimed at boosting film audiences across the UK, particularly for specialised and independent British film.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will provide additional funding for the remediation of buildings on the Historic England Heritage at Risk Register in the London Borough of Havering.
Answered by John Whittingdale
While HM Government has no plans to provide direct funding for buildings on the Heritage at Risk Register in the London Borough of Havering, funding is generally available for historic buildings at risk. Historic England itself offers public funding for sites which are most in need of repair and which, without additional investment, would be at risk of deterioration. The National Lottery Heritage Fund will also factor the Heritage at Risk Register into its assessments of applications for its National Lottery Grants for Heritage.