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 hosting the 2035 women's football world cup on the economy.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

The UK Government is working closely with the Home Nation Football Associations and the Devolved Governments to develop the UK-wide bid for the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup. As the largest single sport women’s event in the world, this tournament has the potential to generate significant socio-economic benefits, impact communities across the UK, and build on our world-leading reputation as a host of major events.

To illustrate, the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023 was estimated to have generated AUS$1.32bn for the economy in Australia and New Zealand. We are working closely with UK Sport, the FAs and Devolved Governments to assess the potential benefits of hosting to inform our collective bid.

Following confirmation that the UK would be the sole bid for 2035, our bid is due to be submitted by the end of November, with a final decision by FIFA expected in April 2026.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of hosting the 2035 women's football world cup on the level of participation by women and girls in sport.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

Hosting the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup has the potential to be a transformational opportunity for the women’s game, and for women’s sport in the UK more generally. Following the 2022 Women’s EUROs, we saw a 140% increase in participation among women and girls with over 519,000 new grassroots opportunities were created specifically for women and girls across England.

Creating a strong legacy, including boosting participation levels, will be a core aim of delivering the tournament. Should the UK’s bid to host the FIFA Women's World Cup in 2035 be successful, planning will begin on developing the legacy programme, drawing inspiration from events such as the recent Women’s Rugby World Cup as we embark on a decade of women’s sporting moments in the UK.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to bring England into line with Scotland by making the Agent of Change a statutory principle in planning.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government is exploring how it can improve the implementation of the ‘agent of change’ principle in the planning system as part of the development of a new suite of national policies for decision-making that we will consult on before the end of this year.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the new higher rate multiplier on the costs faced by sport and recreation premises.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The existing business rates retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief has been repeatedly extended year-on-year as a temporary stopgap measure. We recognise that this creates cliff-edges and uncertainty for businesses, as well as significant fiscal pressure.

Therefore, from April 2026, we are introducing permanently lower business rates multipliers for qualifying RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Government recognises the importance of grassroots sports clubs and recreation and community organisations, with this permanent tax cut ensuring they and other RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

To fund these lower RHL multipliers sustainably, from April 2026, we are also introducing a higher multiplier on properties with RVs of £500,000 and above. The rates for the new multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that we can take into account the revaluation outcomes, as well as the economic and fiscal context. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis on the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support grassroots (a) sports clubs and (b) community organisations will receive to help manage any additional costs they will face as a result of the introduction of new RHL multipliers for properties with a rateable value under £500,000 in April 2026.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The existing business rates retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief has been repeatedly extended year-on-year as a temporary stopgap measure. We recognise that this creates cliff-edges and uncertainty for businesses, as well as significant fiscal pressure.

Therefore, from April 2026, we are introducing permanently lower business rates multipliers for qualifying RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Government recognises the importance of grassroots sports clubs and recreation and community organisations, with this permanent tax cut ensuring they and other RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

To fund these lower RHL multipliers sustainably, from April 2026, we are also introducing a higher multiplier on properties with RVs of £500,000 and above. The rates for the new multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that we can take into account the revaluation outcomes, as well as the economic and fiscal context. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis on the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the retail, hospitality and leisure relief from April 2026 on grassroots sport and recreation.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The existing business rates retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief has been repeatedly extended year-on-year as a temporary stopgap measure. We recognise that this creates cliff-edges and uncertainty for businesses, as well as significant fiscal pressure.

Therefore, from April 2026, we are introducing permanently lower business rates multipliers for qualifying RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Government recognises the importance of grassroots sports clubs and recreation and community organisations, with this permanent tax cut ensuring they and other RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

To fund these lower RHL multipliers sustainably, from April 2026, we are also introducing a higher multiplier on properties with RVs of £500,000 and above. The rates for the new multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that we can take into account the revaluation outcomes, as well as the economic and fiscal context. When the new multipliers are set, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis on the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what an accurate valuation method is for the business rates of grassroots music venues.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

Please see the response to UIN 22711 here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-01-08/22711

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the outcomes from the Shared Outcomes Fund early support hubs will be utilised in the development of the Young Futures Hubs programme; and whether transitional funding will be put in place to keep these early support hubs open.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

Each Young Futures Hub will meet three outcomes of increasing opportunities, improving mental health and wellbeing, and reducing crime.

We are collaborating with DHSC, NHS England, and health partners to ensure Young Futures Hubs meet young people's emerging needs, providing early mental health and wellbeing support. Early Support Hubs built the evidence base for next year's Young Futures Hubs, with evaluation findings directly informing the programme.

The Early Support Hubs were initially funded through the Shared Outcomes Fund in the 2024/25 financial year. The programme has since been extended for a further year to 2025/26.

Cumulative disruption proposals and the right to protest

Buying community energy locally