Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an estimate of the annual cost to her Department of preparing Ministers to respond to Westminster Hall Debates.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
It is not possible to provide an exact cost for preparing Ministers to respond to Westminster Hall Debates. There will be differences in the costs of Civil Service, Special Adviser and Ministerial time depending on the policy matter and length of the debate. Debates can also be cross-cutting and require resources from multiple departments or engage departmental bodies.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has held discussions with Comcast Corporation on the potential acquisition of ITV plc since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Under the Enterprise Act 2002, if a merger meets the necessary thresholds, the Secretary of State has a quasi-judicial role and can intervene on public interest grounds to refer the merger to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). It would not be appropriate to comment on any live discussions regarding a potential media merger.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what role the Department for Education has in delivering the National Youth Strategy.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
‘Youth Matters’ is a ten-year cross Government Strategy to ensure every young person across the country has someone who cares, something to do and somewhere to go.
We are working closely with other Government departments to ensure the successful delivery and accountability of the National Youth Strategy, and the Department for Education is key to supporting the Strategy commitments made across schools and colleges. The Department for Education sits on the Young Futures Hubs Ministerial Board, a cross-government ministerial group established to govern work on the Young Futures Programme.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, who has been appointed to the Expert Advisory Panel for the UK Town of Culture 2028 competition.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Expert Advisory Panel provides critical and objective assessment of bids against published criteria set by DCMS, and makes recommendations to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media, and Sport at each competition stage. The Panel is made up of a range of experts from various disciplines, and is chaired by Sir Phil Redmond. Panel members are listed below.
Sir Phil Redmond (Chair)
Ruth Hollis (Deputy Chair)
Ian Bancroft (Welsh Representative)
Kristel Miller (Northern Irish Representative)
Jim Tough (Scottish Representative)
Ian Warren (English Representative)
Paula Williams
Adipat Virdi
Katy Shaw
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the total cost of the UK Town of Culture 2028 competition, including (a) prize funding, (b) development grants, (c) administration and (d) assessment costs.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
In launching the UK Town of Culture competition, the government announced that each of the shortlisted towns will receive £60,000 to help deliver full bids for competition, the winner will receive a £3 million prize; and two runners up will receive £250,000.
The competition is still underway and so the administration and assessment costs are yet to be determined.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many Expressions of Interest for the UK Town of Culture were deemed ineligible, and for what reasons.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
None of the Expressions of Interest were deemed ineligible.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the geographic distribution of Expressions of Interest received.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS received 398 Expression of Interests representing over 400 places from across the UK. I am delighted that so many towns wanted to celebrate their contribution to our national story and to use culture and creativity to tell their story and why they are proud of their community.
A breakdown by nation of the UK, English region and local authority area is set out below. Please note that the listed local authorities may not be the principal bidding partners; this list illustrates the geographical distribution of Expressions of Interest across local authority areas.
Annex a - Town of Culture EOI by nation of the UK and region of England
Region | Count |
England (East Midlands) | 41 |
England (East of England) | 34 |
England (North East) | 20 |
England (North West) | 39 |
England (South East) | 71 |
England (South West) | 59 |
England (West Midlands) | 35 |
England (Yorkshire and the Humber) | 37 |
Northern Ireland | 5 |
Scotland | 26 |
Wales | 31 |
Annex b - Town of Culture EOI by Local Authority Area
Local Authority | Count |
Kent County Council | 14 |
Lancashire County Council | 14 |
Devon County Council | 12 |
Hertfordshire County Council | 11 |
North Yorkshire Council | 11 |
Cornwall Council | 10 |
Derbyshire County Council | 11 |
Hampshire County Council | 9 |
Oxfordshire County Council | 9 |
Somerset Council | 9 |
Lincolnshire County Council | 8 |
Northumberland County Council | 8 |
Nottinghamshire County Council | 8 |
Warwickshire County Council | 8 |
Wiltshire Council | 8 |
East Sussex County Council | 7 |
Norfolk County Council | 7 |
Powys County Council | 7 |
Shropshire Council | 7 |
Suffolk County Council | 7 |
Dorset Council | 6 |
Durham County Council | 6 |
Essex County Council | 6 |
Gloucestershire County Council | 6 |
Leicestershire County Council | 6 |
Staffordshire County Council | 6 |
West Sussex County Council | 6 |
Westmorland and Furness Council | 6 |
Dumfries and Galloway Council | 5 |
Isle of Wight Council | 5 |
Kirklees Council | 5 |
North Northamptonshire Council | 5 |
Surrey County Council | 5 |
Buckinghamshire Council | 4 |
Cheshire East Council | 4 |
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council | 4 |
East Riding of Yorkshire Council | 4 |
Leeds City Council | 4 |
South Gloucestershire Council | 4 |
Worcestershire County Council | 4 |
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council | 3 |
East Lothian Council | 3 |
Gwynedd Council | 3 |
Herefordshire Council | 3 |
North Somerset Council | 3 |
Cambridgeshire County Council | 2 |
Ceredigion County Council | 2 |
City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council | 2 |
Cumberland Council | 2 |
Flintshire County Council | 2 |
Midlothian Council | 2 |
Milton Keynes City Council | 2 |
Monmouthshire County Council | 2 |
Pembrokeshire County Council | 2 |
Perth and Kinross Council | 2 |
Rutland County Council | 2 |
Scottish Borders Council | 2 |
Torfaen County Borough Council | 2 |
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council | 2 |
Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council | 1 |
Argyll and Bute Council | 1 |
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Bedford Borough Council | 1 |
Birmingham City Council | 1 |
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council | 1 |
Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council | 1 |
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council | 1 |
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Caerphilly County Borough Council | 1 |
Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council | 1 |
Central Bedfordshire Council | 1 |
Cheshire West and Chester Council | 1 |
City of Edinburgh Council | 1 |
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) | 1 |
Denbighshire County Council | 1 |
Derry City and Strabane District Council | 1 |
East Ayrshire Council | 1 |
Fermanagh and Omagh District Council | 1 |
Fife Council | 1 |
Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Halton Borough Council | 1 |
Hartlepool Borough Council | 1 |
Inverclyde Council | 1 |
Isle of Anglesey County Council | 1 |
Isle of Wight Council | 1 |
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Medway Council | 1 |
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council | 1 |
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council | 1 |
Moray Council | 1 |
Neath Port Talbot Council | 1 |
Newport City Council | 1 |
North East Lincolnshire Council | 1 |
North Lanarkshire Council | 1 |
North Lincolnshire Council | 1 |
North Tyneside Council | 1 |
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council | 1 |
Renfrewshire Council | 1 |
Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council | 1 |
Rochdale Borough Council | 1 |
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Shetland Islands Council | 1 |
Slough Borough Council | 1 |
South Ayrshire Council | 1 |
South Tyneside Council | 1 |
Southend-on-Sea City Council | 1 |
St Helens Borough Council | 1 |
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council | 1 |
Stoke-on-Trent City Council | 1 |
Swansea Council | 1 |
Swindon Borough Council | 1 |
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Telford & Wrekin Council | 1 |
Thurrock Council | 1 |
Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Vale of Glamorgan Council | 1 |
Wakefield Metropolitan District Council | 1 |
Warrington Borough Council | 1 |
West Berkshire Council | 1 |
West Lothian Council | 1 |
West Northamptonshire Council | 1 |
Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Wokingham Borough Council | 1 |
Wolverhampton City Council | 1 |
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the National Youth Strategy on levels of youth participation in out-of-school activities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
We’re working closely across government to expand access to meaningful and enriching activities as we know that strong offline connections between young people are essential to supporting their wellbeing and their development.
In December 2025, DCMS published ‘Youth Matters’, a ten-year cross Government Strategy to ensure every young person across the country has someone who cares, something to do and somewhere to go. It includes a clear ambition to half the participation gap in enriching activities between disadvantaged young people and their peers. It is funded by over £500 million from DCMS, which includes funding for youth spaces where young people can come together, enriching opportunities inside and outside of school, as well as for social action projects which young people can deliver in their communities.
We are working closely with Other Government Departments to ensure the successful delivery and accountability of the National Youth Strategy, which will include assessing the impact of our funded programmes.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how the £500 million allocated to the National Youth Strategy will be profiled over the spending period; and what steps she is taking to ensure the funding is spent equitably across regions.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Youth Matters will be focussed on ensuring young people have someone who cares, something to do and somewhere to go. The majority of our funding will be targeted to underserved areas who need it most. We are committed to working with areas of greatest need across the length and breadth of England. Following ongoing feedback and engagement with front line delivery organisations and young people, we are looking to merge our major youth funds and establish a much more straightforward funding system for youth through one interface, focusing on providing opportunities to young people when and where they need them.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the impact of recent swimming pool closures on the delivery of swimming and water safety education; and what steps her Department is taking to support publicly accessible swimming pools to remain open.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring public access to swimming facilities, which are great spaces for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy, and learn the key life skill of water safety. Swimming facilities play an important role within our communities.
The ongoing responsibility for providing access to public leisure facilities lies at local authority level, with funding levels set as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement. The Government encourages local authorities to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. Through schemes such as the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, the Government is providing financial support to public sector buildings, including leisure centres, to make tangible investments to improve sustainability, such as through the installation of air-source heat pumps, upgraded insulation, and smart energy management schemes.
In June last year, we committed £400 million to transform sports facilities, including public leisure, over the next four years, supporting the Government's Plan for Change. We are working closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what communities need, before setting out further plans on how future funding will be allocated.