Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what mechanisms her Department will put in place to ensure transparent and ongoing accountability for the delivery of the National Youth Strategy, including how progress against its commitments will be reported to Parliament and to the public.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy, will put young people from all backgrounds in the driving seat when it comes to decisions that affect their own lives.
We are committed to being accountable to young people, their parents/carers, sector partners, and the wider public to deliver this strategy.
Every year, our department will invite a diverse group of young people to run a national hearing on the delivery of the strategy. This process will be co-designed with young people. We will also publish an interim delivery progress report in 2027.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when the Government intends to begin the review of the statutory duty on local authorities to provide a sufficient youth offer, and whether this review will consider strengthening statutory protections to ensure equal access to high quality youth services nationwide.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
In September 2023 DCMS published updated statutory guidance to support local authorities’ understanding of the existing duty and how to deliver it. In the longer-term, we will explore reviewing the current local authorities’ statutory duty for youth services to empower them to better deliver on their responsibilities for youth services. The timeline for this review is not yet finalised.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 ensure that young people from constituencies such as Crewe and Nantwich will have direct opportunities to shape, monitor and influence the rollout of the National Youth Strategy.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We will be engaging with local authorities and partners across the country to amplify youth voices through Youth Councils and other mechanisms, so that a diverse range of young people have a role in shaping decisions that affect their lives.
This may look different in every place, and we are eager to work with young people to co-design what this looks like in their local area, including Crewe and Nantwich.
The reporting and governance process across government will allow young people to hold us to account on what we are doing. This will be through a national hearing by young people every year to discuss progress and priorities on the delivery of the strategy.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 to help support male voice choirs.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
His Majesty’s Government has a strong commitment to all forms of music, including choral music. Local choirs are an important part of many people’s lives across the UK, providing a creative outlet and strong sense of community, as well as an accessible, enjoyable cultural experience enjoyed by people of all ages.
The Government supports the arts financially, including choirs and singing, through its arm’s-length body Arts Council England. The Arts Council does not have a specific category for identifying investment in ‘male choirs’, however, for the financial year 2024/25 Arts Council England funded activity with a choral focus or element by nearly £44 million. This funding has supported the development, touring and promotion of choral music throughout England. Organisations supported by this funding include Ex Cathedra, a nationally recognised choir with a repertoire that reaches from the 12th to the 21st centuries.
Within the Music and Dance Scheme, the Department for Education continues to fund bursaries for training choristers through the Choir Schools’ Association.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 provide additional support to prospective Paralympians.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is fully committed to our elite sport system and enabling our Paralympians to achieve their potential and excel on the world stage. UK Sport have committed nearly £75 million to support the LA 2028 Paralympic cycle for new and returning Paralympians. We will soon get to see our Winter Paralympians compete in Milan-Cortina 2026, who have benefited from a nearly £8 million package of support.
The Backing The Best programme, managed by SportsAid for Sport England, also supports para-athletes who would face difficulties progressing through their sport’s talent development system without support.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 reduce the TV licence fee.
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: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has had discussions with British Paralympic Association on the selection process for Paralympians.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government has not had discussions with the British Paralympic Association on the selection process for Paralympians.
ParalympicsGB selections are made by the British Paralympic Association, working in collaboration with the relevant National Governing Bodies (NGBs) who know their athletes best. These processes remain fully independent from the Government.