Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the Charity Commission on the time taken to conduct investigations into charities.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Officials in my department have regular conversations with the Charity Commission.
In serious cases of abuse of and within charities, the Commission may open a statutory inquiry and will use its powers to robustly tackle abuse and misconduct. In 2017-2018, the Commission exercised its powers 1,136 times.
There is no fixed duration for an inquiry, but the Commission’s aim is to conclude investigations as soon as is practicable. The time an inquiry can take will depend on many factors, including: the nature and complexity of the issues being investigated; the responsiveness of trustees and third parties; and whether other agencies are involved. The majority of the Commission’s inquiries are complex and must be conducted thoroughly and comprehensively, in line with public expectations of the regulator.
Furthermore, where the Commission is investigating issues alongside other regulators and law enforcement agencies, those investigations may take priority so as to avoid prejudicing the outcome of their work or impact on the length of an inquiry in some other way.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2016 to Question 56474, if she will provide the answer sought in that Question on what discussions she has had with Ministers of HM Treasury on the potential effect on freelance creative workers of HM Revenue and Customs proposals that self-employed workers update their tax quarterly; and what steps she plans to take to address the concerns of those workers.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The Government's formal response will be published shortly.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with Ministers of HM Treasury on the potential effect on freelance creative workers of HM Revenue and Customs proposals that self-employed workers update their tax quarterly.
Answered by Matt Hancock
Ministers regularly discuss with colleagues how policies effect sectors for which they are responisble.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will provide an update on the mission-led business review.
Answered by Rob Wilson
The mission-led business review is in progress. We are reviewing the evidence gathered through the call for evidence and regional events and working with the advisory panel in order to publish findings in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assistance his Department is providing to protect the wildlife and habitats of Gough Island from invasive non-native species; and what support his Department plans to give to Tristan da Cunha Council's proposal to eradicate those species.
Answered by David Evennett
The Government is aware of the threat to the seabirds of Gough Island posed by invasive mice and plants. Research and scoping work has concluded that it should be possible to eradicate both the mice and the invasive groundcover which present the two main threats to the island’s biodiversity. Together with colleagues across government, we are currently reviewing the options for addressing the problem and the necessary action to ensure the protection of these rare and endangered species and to protect the World Heritage Site status of Gough Island.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 the implications for his Department's policies of Attitude is Everything's Charter of Best Practice for live music events.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Attitude is Everything's Charter of Best Practice is a positive contribution to improving deaf and disabled people’s access to, and enjoyment of, live music. It is essential that cultural events are accessible to everyone, so it is encouraging to hear that over 90 venues have signed up to the Charter.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Privacy and Electronic Communication Regulations; and when consultation on those proposals will begin.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government is currently considering whether to amend the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 (PECR) in order to implement measures to further tackle nuisance calls. There are legal and policy implications in progressing such measures, which we will carefully consider before issuing a consultation or determining the means by which they could be implemented. We remain committed to tackling nuisance calls and intend to build on the effective policies introduced over recent years to protect consumers, such as changes made to PECR earlier this year to enable the Information Commissioner's Office to take enforcement action more easily. We will advance any further measures as quickly as possible and consult in the usual way.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress his Department has made on funding new call blocking technology to protect vulnerable consumers from nuisance communications; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The government is continuing to work to ensure protection of vulnerable consumers from nuisance calls, including considering options for funding call blocking technology. The Ministers will update the House when the final decision has been reached.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on trends in the number of low-paid and unpaid jobs in the entertainment industry.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
My Right Hon. Friend the Secretary of State shares a commitment with his counterpart in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to supporting the creative industries, and the two Departments regularly discuss issues of concern to the sector. National Minimum Wage underpins wage levels for those at work and applies equally in the creative sector as elsewhere. Creative SkillSet has published guidelines and a toolkit for employers to promote best practice and legal responsibilities for work placements in the sector.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the oral Answer of the Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy of 15 January 2015, Official Report, column 989, what discussions his Department has had with HM Revenue and Customs on resolving difficulties faced by musicians and other creative professionals in complying with changes to the way VAT is charged on digital services.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
DCMS officials are in contact with their counterparts in HM Revenue and Customs in relation to the support and guidance given to small businesses, including those in the creative industries, on this issue.