Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what meetings he has had on the proposed purchase of Newcastle United Football Club by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund; what the outcome was of those meetings; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
There have been no formal discussions on the potential sale of Newcastle United Football Club. Any such sale is a matter for the parties concerned, and for the Premier League to assess under its Owners’ and Directors’ Test.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent meetings he has had with representatives of e-sports; and what the outcomes of those meetings were.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The government recognises the value of esports which has the potential to develop as an area of real national strength in the UK, building on our world-class video games, entertainment and sports sectors. Esports has also come to the fore during the Covid-19 lockdown, offering entertainment and a way to connect with others.
Ministers have met frequently with the creative industries, including meetings with the Creative Industries Council and weekly roundtable meetings during the current Covid-19 crisis which were attended by organisations such as UKIE that represent businesses in the esports sector. There has also been frequent discussion recently between officials and individual esports businesses and organisations.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport, what recent meetings he has had with representatives of motorsport; and what the outcomes of those meetings were.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
I am having regular discussions with sector and industry bodies to understand the full impact of COVID-19 on sport and how the government can best provide support. This includes a fortnightly meeting with sporting organisations, at which motorsport is represented.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport, what assessment he has made of the value of esports to the UK economy (a) during the covid-19 outbreak and (b) at other times; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Esports has the potential to develop as an area of real national strength in the UK, building on our world-class video games, entertainment and sports sectors. The government continues to consider ways to further support the growth of esports in the UK, and officials have been in regular contact with esports companies to assess the impact of covid-19.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport, what recent meetings he has had with representatives of snooker; and what the outcomes of those meetings were.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
I am having regular discussions with sector and industry bodies to understand the full impact of COVID-19 on sport and how the government can best provide support. This includes a fortnightly meeting with sporting organisations.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to protect the UK's cultural heritage.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Government is committed to protecting our nation's cultural heritage and does so in a number of ways. These include statutory designation of heritage assets, recognition and management of UK World Heritage Sites, export licensing systems, grant-in-aid support to sixteen museums and galleries as well as a wide range of other government and public funding.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department has taken to prepare for the UK to leave the EU since 23 June 2016; and what further such steps her Department plans to take in the remainder of 2016.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The Department for Exiting the European Union has responsibility for overseeing preparations for the withdrawal of the UK from the EU and conducting these withdrawal negotiations in support of the Prime Minister. In doing this it is working very closely with other government departments, including DCMS, and a wide range of other interested parties.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of recent trends in (a) the level of and (b) regional variations in the level of domestic tourism.
Answered by David Evennett
The number of overnight trips in England in 2015 was up 11% on 2014, with associated spend reaching a new record of £19.6bn. In 2015, five English regions (East Midlands, West Midlands, South West, Yorkshire and the Humber and London) saw double digit growth in domestic overnight trips on the previous year.
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the value to the economy of the technology sector.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Digital is one of the fastest-growing and most innovative sectors. It currently supports 1.4 million jobs in the UK and according to the DCMS Digital Sector Economic Estimates, published in January 2016, contributed £118.3 billion to the UK economy in 2014 - up 7.2% on the previous year - accounting for 7.3% of the UK economy. Total UK digital exports came to £43 billion in 2013, equalling 8.2 per cent of all UK exports (goods and services).
Asked by: Karl McCartney (Conservative - Lincoln)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government is taking to support culture and the arts.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government is committed to supporting the arts, to provide culture for all, ensuring the economic, social and intrinsic benefits are available to everyone. During the life of this Parliament, almost £3bn will be provided to Arts Council England by the Government in grant-in aid and National Lottery money. The Government recently launched a Theatre Tax Relief which will support strong growth in the theatre sector right across the country and a National Plan for Music Education with the Department of Education which is investing £246 million into music education.