Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
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 31 March 2025 to Question 122861 on Business Rates, Gyms and Leisure Centres, whether she hold discussions with the leisure centre and gym sector on the impact of business rate costs on levels of service provision to promote health and wellbeing in communities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring public access to gyms and leisure facilities, which are great spaces for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy, and play an important role within communities.
We regularly engage with the leisure sector on a broad range of issues, including the impact of business rates.
DCMS engaged extensively with HM Treasury in the run up to the Autumn Budget 2025 and provided evidence to HM Treasury on the anticipated impact to the sport and leisure sector. The Government has announced a support package worth £4.3 billion to protect against ratepayers seeing large overnight increases in their business rates bills because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down, next year. This also means most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
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 effectiveness of the Urgent Works and Repair Notice process to ensure that the structures of Grade II listed rural public houses are maintained to a robust standard.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
No such assessment has been made.
Local planning authorities have powers to take action where a designated heritage asset has deteriorated to the extent that its preservation may be at risk. It is for Local Planning Authorities to determine use of their urgent works powers where appropriate. Historic England provides guidance and expert advice to local authorities to support them in using these statutory tools effectively to protect heritage assets at risk.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with local councils and building owners on steps to maintain Grade II listed to a robust standard.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The primary responsibility for the upkeep of a listed building rests with its owner. Where an owner fails to maintain a heritage asset, Local Planning Authorities have robust statutory powers to intervene.
Our arms length body and statutory advisor for heritage, Historic England, has been in discussion with the Local Government Association regarding undertaking research that looks at both the barriers and opportunities surrounding the use of local authority powers to take action to secure the repair of Listed Buildings when they are being allowed to deteriorate. They also provide advice and guidance to help local authorities and owners with the care of listed buildings.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
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 the [i] FA and [ii] other football bodies the use of [a] schools and [b] multi-use sports facilities by local youth football clubs for training and playing matches.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, including children and young people, have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.
In 2026/27, we will invest £85m across the UK via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities (MSGF) Programme, building on the £98m being invested through the programme in 2025/26. This supports communities, including children and young people, to get active through funding artificial grass pitches, floodlights, changing pavilions and other facility improvements.
Last year, the Government announced a new PE and School Sport Partnerships model and a new Enrichment Framework for schools to ensure all young people have equal access to high-quality sport and extracurricular activity. A national network will be developed to build strong partnerships between schools, local clubs and National Governing Bodies to identify and break down barriers to sport for children who are less active. I recently met with colleagues in the Department for Education and the Department for Health and Social Care to discuss this, as we move towards introducing this new approach.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with Formula One bodies on further support for Formula One in the UK.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Formula One is a British success story and this government is proud to champion and support the sport. My Department frequently engages with Formula One and wider stakeholders across the motorsport industry to champion the sport and identify shared opportunities including recently at the Motorsport UK Night of Champions and at the iconic British Grand Prix in July.
The Government recognises manufacturing, engineering and other STEM advances generated in our domestic motorsport sector are a vibrant part of regional growth in Motorsport Valley and beyond.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
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 10 September 2025 to Question 74384 on Rugby, what assessment her Department has made of the long-term financial sustainability of professional rugby union; and whether she plans to discuss the financial challenges facing professional rugby union with Premiership Rugby.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The governance of rugby union is a matter for the Rugby Football Union (the national governing body for rugby union), which is independent of government.
DCMS continues to work with the RFU, representatives of Prem and Champ clubs as well as the Tier Two Board, and the wider sport sector to support the ongoing sustainability of elite and community level rugby union.
I have met with Prem Rugby previously to discuss the long-term financial sustainability of professional rugby union, and my officials regularly engage with Prem Rugby on this issue.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she last met the (a) Rugby Football Union and (b) Premiership Rugby; and what issues were discussed.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I met with senior RFU figures while supporting England at the opening fixture of the Women's Rugby World Cup. There I discussed the delivery of the tournament as well as other policy issues, including the demand for women’s sport, government support for women’s sport and the RFU’s legacy programme for the tournament: Impact 25. The Secretary of State and I also attended the Women’s Rugby World Cup 100 ‘Days to go’ launch event in May 2025, where we discussed tournament delivery with senior RFU figures and other stakeholders.
I met with Premiership Rugby in November 2024 to discuss the long-term financial sustainability of professional rugby union. Since then, my officials have engaged with Premiership Rugby regularly.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
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 the grassroots ticket levy on the long term financial sustainability of small independent music festivals.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government supports the live music industry’s work to introduce a voluntary levy on tickets for stadium and arena shows. This will compliment the significant increase in government funding for the grassroots sector through our new Music Growth Package, of up to £30m over the next 3 years. This package will deliver concrete benefits for venues and emerging artists with touring, performance, mentoring and export opportunities.
Funding from the grassroots ticket levy will be distributed by the LIVE Trust to existing industry-led initiatives that will support grassroots festivals, as well as artists, promoters and venues. This targeted support will not only benefit current small festivals, but also help secure the pipeline of talent to safeguard their future and create the right conditions for future growth.
The Government is encouraged to see sector reporting showing that 44% of 2025 tickets on sale since July now include the levy, and 1.9 million levied tickets have been sold since January. Autumn ticket sales and the establishment of the LIVE Trust should mean even greater uptake by Winter. We want to see a voluntary levy be in place for as many concerts as possible in 2025 and 2026, and we will continue to convene the live music industry to drive progress. We would encourage all artists, promoters and venues to promote the levy.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to formulate the National Youth Strategy.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We are co-producing the National Youth Strategy with young people and cross-sector experts.
We have already conducted Ministerial roundtables with young people as well as in-person and online focus groups. We have also launched a national survey to ask young people about their worries and hopes for the future, and created an engagement toolkit so organisations or MPs can run their own workshops and discussions with young people.
In addition, we have set up a Youth Advisory Group and an Expert Advisory Group to work alongside us throughout the development of the Strategy. We are also working closely with other Government Departments to ensure the Strategy is cross-cutting and better coordinates youth policy.
We will be publishing an interim report this spring and the Strategy will be published this summer.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what (a) statutory and (b) non-statutory bodies her Department has consulted on opportunities for grassroots music collaboration as part of the national youth strategy.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We are developing a new National Youth Strategy with young people and cross-sector experts, and have set up a Youth Advisory Group and Expert Advisory Group as part of this engagement. Members of our Expert Advisory Group have a range of different professional and academic expertise related to young people and work in different fields including: youth work, music, creative skills industries, funding, policy development and sport. We are also in contact with a wide range of other stakeholders working with young people across relevant sectors.