Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with Historic Royal Palaces on improving the (a) visibility and (b) marketing of categories of discounted tickets.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Accessibility is a key priority for the Secretary of State, and we are committed to ensuring access for everyone, no matter their background or where they come from.
Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) has a range of programmes designed to drive accessibility of the collection. One of their notable schemes is the £1 ticket programme, which allows individuals receiving certain benefits, such as Universal Credit or Pension Credit, to purchase up to six tickets for £1 each per household. Last year, this initiative sold 218,000 tickets. HRP markets its schemes in several ways. Information is available on its website, at ticket offices on site, and through direct communication with community groups, charities, and organisations that support those in receipt of benefits.
DCMS officials meet regularly with HRP to discuss its engagement strategy and other operational matters. As an independent charity, HRP can implement its own marketing plans.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with Historic Royal Palaces on discounted tickets for UK nationals.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Secretary of State has delegated management of historic unoccupied royal palaces to Historic Royal Palaces (HRP). DCMS officials meet regularly with HRP to discuss its engagement strategy and other operational matters. However, as an independent charity and in accordance with the 1998 Royal Charter, HRP can generate its own income and set its own ticket prices.
HRP currently offers a range of discounted tickets such as;
Disabled concession and carer tickets - HRP offers discounted tickets for visitors with a disability and a free ticket for an accompanying carer or companion.
Student and senior discounts - HRP offers concession tickets for full time students (aged 18+) and seniors ages (65+).
Young person and child tickets - HRP has a tiered pricing structure for younger visitors.
Group discounts - HRP offers discounts for pre-booked groups of 15 or more people.
Discounts for local residents - HRP offers residents of Tower Hamlets borough tickets for £1
Discount for benefit recipients - HRP offers £1 tickets to its Palaces H for those in receipt of Universal Credit and other named benefits
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to introduce (a) identity checks and (b) spending limits for crypto betting.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
There are currently no licensed gambling operators in Great Britain which allow payment using cryptocurrencies. If an operator wished to accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment, they would have to satisfy themselves and the Gambling Commission, the regulator for gambling in Great Britain, that they could meet their obligations regarding anti-money laundering before they notify the Gambling Commission of a change to their payment arrangements or obtain a licence. Should a licenced operator accept cryptocurrency payments they would be subject to social responsibility arrangements, like any other operator, these include having robust identity checks, providing tools for customers to set financial limits, and conducting financial risk checks for the most vulnerable customers.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with the BBC on ensuring that the programmes it commissions reflect the views of people from across the UK.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
As a public service broadcaster that matters hugely to public life, the BBC must be responsive to viewers and listeners and tell inclusive stories about the lives of all people, in all parts of the UK. Under the current Charter, the BBC has an obligation to ‘reflect, represent and serve the diverse communities of all of the United Kingdom’s nations and regions’. The BBC is operationally and editorially independent of the Government in determining how it meets that obligation, and it is for the independent regulator Ofcom to hold the BBC to account.
As part of the next Charter Review, the Government will engage with the BBC and others to consider how to ensure the BBC thrives well into the next decade and beyond. This will include discussions on a range of important issues and will start a national conversation to make sure the BBC truly represents and delivers for every person in this country
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with Ofcom on encouraging competition in broadcast news media.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department regularly engages with Ofcom on a range of issues including the importance of a competitive and diverse broadcasting sector.
Ofcom has a statutory duty under the Communication Act 2003 to secure and maintain a sufficient plurality of providers of different TV and radio services. Ofcom also has a duty to review the operation of media ownership rules across TV, radio and press every three years. Ofcom published their latest review on 15 November 2024.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with media production companies on producing more content to promote positive male role models.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the important positive contribution made by our creative industries, including our public service broadcasters, in informing, educating, and entertaining audiences. However, editorial decisions are ultimately a matter for individual production companies.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the implementation of the Broadcasting Code by Ofcom on reducing the sexualisation of children through broadcast advertising.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Advertising Standards Authority co-regulates broadcast advertising under contract with Ofcom and its sister organisation, the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP), sets the advertising codes. The codes require that advertisements must not portray or represent anyone who is, or seems to be, under 18 in a sexual way and care must be taken when scheduling advertisements in or around children's programmes or programmes likely to be seen by significant numbers of children.
The Broadcast Advertising Code has a dedicated section on protecting children, with rules designed to ensure that adverts do not contain anything that is likely to cause children physical, mental or moral harm, and the ASA administers these rules robustly. All broadcast advertising is pre-approved to ensure it is compliant with the BCAP Code before it is aired, through a system known as Clearcast. Clearcast has well established processes to ensure advertising content is thoroughly checked before it appears on television and puts restrictions in place when necessary.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with the (a) Home Office and (b) Football Association on the potential merits of introducing lifetime club bans for people convicted of threats of violence against (i) referees, (ii) players and (iii) family members of referees and players.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Violence has no place in football. As private businesses, football clubs have a right to ban individual supporters from attending matches or accessing club facilities; a power rooted in their responsibility to ensure a safe and enjoyable environment for all fans. These bans are a decision to be taken at club-level.
Convictions may also result in football banning orders (FBOs) which are a court decision to prevent violence or disorder at, or in connection with, regulated football matches. An individual with a banning order is prevented from attending all regulated matches in the UK and can be required to surrender their passport to police before overseas matches and tournaments.
FBOs can be imposed following a conviction for a football-related offence as set out in Schedule 1 of the Football Spectators Act 1989 (which includes offences involving the use or threat of violence), or on application from the police or CPS.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with the Games Rating Authority on the classification of video games; and if she will take steps to reduce the sexualisation of children in video games.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The GRA’s decisions are made independently of the government, which is important to ensure impartiality. The GRA’s age ratings serve to protect the public and empower people to make informed gaming choices, whilst also recognising and respecting adult freedom of choice within the law. The GRA regularly conducts UK research on aspects of the international PEGI classification criteria for video games.
In most cases, the GRA is able to address issues of potential harm by awarding an appropriate age rating or suggesting changes to a developer’s content to make the game acceptable. However, where this is not possible, a classification may be refused.
Even if material is not in breach of a specific UK law, the GRA may also refuse to classify content,
on harm grounds, when content contains:
● Material that promotes criminal activity, including drugs;
● Material that is illegal or has been created by the commission of a criminal offence;
● Portrayals of children in a sexualised or abusive context;
● Material which makes rape, or other non-consensual sexually violent behaviour, or
sadistic violence look appealing.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will discuss with the British Board of Film Classification the classification of (a) films and (b) video games; and if she will take steps to reduce the sexualisation of children through those media.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The classification system has addressed these issues under successive governments, but decisions regarding the classification of films are made by the BBFC and the Games Rating Authority, not the BBFC, is responsible for the classification of video games. The BBFC’s decisions are made independently of the government, which is important to ensure impartiality. The BBFC’s age ratings serve to protect the public and empower people to make informed viewing choices, whilst also recognising and respecting adult freedom of choice within the law.
The standards underpinning the BBFC’s ratings are set out in their published Classification Guidelines, and are based on consultations every 4-5 years with experts and thousands of members of the public.
If the BBFC finds that a film raises issues or concerns that cannot be addressed through their classification system, they may require compulsory cuts or other changes as a condition of classification.