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 steps her Department is taking to help football clubs prepare for the introduction of the Independent Football Regulator.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Following Royal Assent of the Football Governance Act, every effort is being made to ensure that the Independent Football Regulator is up and running as soon as possible.
Consistent and extensive engagement has been maintained with football clubs and competition owners throughout the passage of the Football Governance Act. The Department will continue to meet with key stakeholders as the focus transitions to the implementation of the new regime.
The Regulator itself is helping prepare the industry for the implementation of the Act. It has started consulting on how the new regime will work and undertaken its first conference to explain how the Regulator will operate, where all clubs from the Premier League to the National League were invited.
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 criteria she plans to use to determine funding under the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund is open to bids from accredited museums, museum services and galleries in England that either hold at least one designated collection, or are current Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs).
Bids submitted for consideration must meet at least one of the following criteria:
Material improvements to the display and interpretation of collections, in permanent galleries, exhibition spaces and public spaces, to enhance visitor experience.
Improvements to access and/or interpretation for visitors with disabilities, for children and young people, and/or underrepresented audiences.
Improvements to environmental controls, collections storage and conservation facilities to enhance the care of collections.
Further balancing criteria and an outline of the assessment process can be found in the application guidance here.
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 the list of designated days for the flying of the Union Flag is kept under regular review; and when the last review took place.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The list of designated days for the flying of the Union Flag is reviewed annually in consultation with No 10 and the Royal Household. The most recent review was completed on 14th March 2025 when the 2025 Designated Days list was published on GOV.UK.
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 steps she has taken to ensure that all government buildings (a) are aware of and (b) comply with the guidance on designated days for flying the Union Flag.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Each year, DCMS publishes an annually-reviewed list of the designated days for flying the Union Flag on gov.uk. Government departments are also regularly reminded of flag-flying requirements on occasions such as this year’s VE and VJ Day anniversaries, alongside the encouragement to fly the Union Flag every other day if possible.
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 Million Hours Fund on organisations in (a) Fylde and (b) Lancashire.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Million Hours Fund provides youth organisations with funding to deliver over a million additional hours of positive activities for young people in areas where they may be at risk of anti-social behaviour.
DCMS and The National Lottery Community Fund launched Phase 3 of the Million Hours Fund on 30th July 2025. This is a £19 million joint investment (£12 million from DCMS and £7 million from The National Lottery Community Fund). The Fund will run until 31 March 2027 and is now closed to applications. The list of wards eligible for funding in Fylde and Lancashire can be found here: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/funding-programmes/million-hours-fund-2025-to-2027/eligible-ward-areas.
Nine organisations based in the constituencies of Fylde and Lancashire are receiving up to £406,541 worth of funding as part of previous phases of the Million Hours Fund.
An evaluation of the Million Hours Fund is being conducted, which will assess the impact of the Fund on organisations and young people.
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 plans to review the future funding model of the BBC.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
To ensure the BBC is on a stable financial footing, the Government has committed to the current licence fee model for the remainder of the current Charter period.
The licence fee will increase annually in line with CPI inflation until the end of this Charter period, as required by the Licence Fee Settlement agreed by the last Government in 2022.
Looking ahead, the Secretary of State is a strong supporter of the BBC and has been clear that it must be funded by a model that is sustainable. The Government is keeping an open mind about the future of the licence fee, and the forthcoming Charter Review will provide an opportunity to consider the best possible funding model to set the BBC up for success long into the future.
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 steps she is taking to support councils to improve the availability of activities for young people during (a) evenings, (b) weekends and (c) school holidays.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
In 2025/26, DCMS is investing £28 million to increase young people’s access to more and better enriching activities. This includes programmes such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Uniformed Youth Fund. As part of the Uniformed Youth Fund, DCMS funded the Volunteer Police Cadets to increase its capacity and reach a greater number of young people in Fylde.
DCMS is also investing £8 million to support local authorities through the Local Youth Transformation Pilot, which aims to rebuild a high-quality offer for young people across England.
Additionally, the Department for Education has confirmed over £600 million for the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme for the next three financial years (from 2026/27), delivered by local authorities to provide healthy meals, enriching activities, and free childcare places to children from low-income families during school holiday periods.
In Autumn, we will publish the National Youth Strategy, which we have co-produced with young people and the sector. The Strategy will outline a long-term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.
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 steps she is taking to improve the availability of activities for young people during (a) evenings, (b) weekends and (c) school holidays.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
In 2025/26, DCMS is investing £28 million to increase young people’s access to more and better enriching activities. This includes programmes such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Uniformed Youth Fund. As part of the Uniformed Youth Fund, DCMS funded the Volunteer Police Cadets to increase its capacity and reach a greater number of young people in Fylde.
DCMS is also investing £8 million to support local authorities through the Local Youth Transformation Pilot, which aims to rebuild a high-quality offer for young people across England.
Additionally, the Department for Education has confirmed over £600 million for the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme for the next three financial years (from 2026/27), delivered by local authorities to provide healthy meals, enriching activities, and free childcare places to children from low-income families during school holiday periods.
In Autumn, we will publish the National Youth Strategy, which we have co-produced with young people and the sector. The Strategy will outline a long-term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.
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 the Independent Football Regulator will be required to publish an annual report detailing the number of (a) individuals and (b) entities it assessed under the ownership and directorship tests.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Section 14 of the Football Governance Act requires the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) to publish an annual report, to include a summary of activities undertaken that year. The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport can direct the IFR to include specific information.
Details of the exact content of the IFR’s annual report are being considered by the organisation and are not yet finalised.
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 the Independent Football Regulator will have the power to retrospectively investigate incumbent owners or directors in instances where new information comes to light after their appointment.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Independent Football Regulator (IFR) will have the ability to test incumbent owners and officers where it has grounds for concern over their suitability. If an incumbent owner or officer is found to be unsuitable, the IFR has a strong suite of powers to remove them. This approach reduces unnecessary burdens on suitable owners and proportionately targets testing where there is a risk of harm to clubs.