Previous Committee inquiry: British film & high-end tv

The new inquiry will build on the successes of the last. It will continue to examine the attractiveness of the UK as a global destination for production and what more could be done  to ensure it has the skilled workforce it needs. It will also look at the ethical use of artificial intelligence in film-making and probe the work of the BFI and the Government’s vision for the sector.

The World Service broadcasts in 42 languages, including English, reaching an estimated 320 million people globally each week. Most of the World Service’s global audience access the World Service in its local language. BBC World Service is funded primarily from the UK licence fee alongside additional funding from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The recent Budget announcement included extra funds for the World Service, from the FCDO budget, but only for the financial year 2025-26. BBC Director General Tim Davie has argued that funding for the World Service should be the responsibility of central Government, as it used to be before 2014.

The Committee’s inquiry will look at the services the World Service provides, how it is paid for, the challenges it faces operating around the world, and the pressures funding the World Service from the licence fee places on other BBC services.

The inquiry will run parallel to another inquiry on the World Service from the Foreign Affairs Committee.

The inquiry will look at the funding available for sport in the community, how volunteers can be better supported and how to open up grassroots sport to under-represented groups. It will also look at the role of schools in delivering sporting opportunities both in and outside of school hours and how children can be supported to develop a positive life-long relationship with physical activity.

The Committee will additionally investigate the ways in which national and local government, clubs, sports organisations and sports governing bodies can work together to improve the delivery of school and grassroots sport.

The inquiry will examine issues with funding and whether current finance models are suitable and accessible.  It will also engage with how the Government can tackle practical and regulatory challenges, such as the availability of skilled practitioners, the managed decline of assets on publicly-owned land, and policy issues arising from net zero targets and planning policy.

Alongside this, MPs will highlight the importance of built heritage for economic regeneration and to community identities, as well as how those communities can be empowered to manage their local built heritage assets.

State of Play inquiry is a chance for everyone – from those in the UK creative industries through to people involved in emerging media, and sports that often go under the radar -  to send in their ideas on what the Culture, Media and Sport Committee should be examining.

We want to hear what a difference could the Committee make to your work?. We will be considering:

• Whether this is a topic that falls wholly or mainly within the responsibility of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

• Whether the Committee, Government or other relevant body has recently undertaken work on this topic

• What impact the Committee and Government can have in dealing with the issues being raised

• The breadth of support from the relevant sector(s)

• The urgency of any potential action

• Whether the proposal can be considered effectively in a single evidence session

Please take part in our short survey here: State of Play: We want to hear from you

You can complete the submission form until 23:59 on Friday 19 February.  It will reopen later in 2025 in order to give you further opportunities to submit your views to the Committee.