Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 potential effect on the continuation to the UK economy by (a) West End theatres, (b) the UK theatre industry and (c) the Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) sector of a loss of access by the PMSE sector to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Ofcom published a consultation on the future use of the 700 MHz band on 28 May 2014. This consultation assesses the impact any loss of access to the 700 MHz band would have on the PMSE community. Ofcom will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community are taken into account when making any final decisions on the use of the band. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom’s website:
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700MHz/
Ofcom is working with the PMSE community of users and manufacturers to mitigate the impact of any change of use of the 700 MHz band; and discussing with the regulatory authorities in other countries their approach to this issue. A key focus of their work in this area is seeking to identify and make available alternative spectrum for the PMSE community.
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 economic contribution to the UK economy of (a) West End theatres, (b) the UK theatre industry and (c) the Programme Making and Special Events sector in each year since 2004; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Independent sector bodies have carried out assessments of the economic contribution of the arts to the UK economy. A report by the Society of London Theatre in 2013 showed that London Theatres grossed £0.53bn in sales generating VAT receipts of £88m.
DCMS’s Creative Industries Economic Estimates, based on data from the Office of National Statistics available on a consistent basis since 2008, show the following contribution to the UK economy from Music & Visual and Performing Arts (including theatre) in Gross Value Added (GVA) terms:
Year | GVA £m |
2008 | 3,740 |
2009 | 3,779 |
2010 | 3,434 |
2011 | 4,039 |
2012 | 4,574 |
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 potential effect on (a) places of worship and (b) community centres of loss of access by wireless microphone users to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
PMSE users currently have dedicated access to spectrum in channel 38 (between 606MHz and 614MHz) as well as access to interleaved spectrum for which no new equipment is required. Ofcom published a consultation on 24 April 2013 on the future use of the 700MHz band, and will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community and any other wireless microphone users are taken into account when advising on any decision. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom’s website: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700mhz-cfi/ There are also currently discussions in Europe on future spectrum provision for PMSE users and the potential requirement for further dedicated spectrum for these purposes.Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 potential effect on the (a) film industry and (b) television production industry of a loss of access by wireless microphone users to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
PMSE users currently have dedicated access to spectrum in channel 38 (between 606MHz and 614MHz) as well as access to interleaved spectrum for which no new equipment is required. Ofcom published a consultation on 24 April 2013 on the future use of the 700MHz band, and will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community and any other wireless microphone users are taken into account when advising on any decision. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom’s website: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700mhz-cfi/ There are also currently discussions in Europe on future spectrum provision for PMSE users and the potential requirement for further dedicated spectrum for these purposes.Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what his policy is on the development by ISPs and copyright owners of Creative Content UK, a programme of education about legal entertainment services, and alerts to subscribers found to have been uploading content illegally online; and what effects he expects the development to have on the implementation of the Digital Economy Act 2010.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government warmly welcomed the initiative by copyright owners and ISPs of setting up Creative Content UK, and has pledged £3.5 million over three years to support the educational campaign that will complement the process. An industry-led solution has always been our preferred approach, and so Government will not progress the relevant provisions within the Digital Economy Act 2010 at this time. However, they will remain available if a legislative solution becomes necessary.Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 potential effect on the programme making and special events (PMSE) sector of a loss of access by PMSE users to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Ofcom published a consultation on the future use of the 700 MHz band on 28 May 2014. This consultation assesses the impact any loss of access to the 700 MHz band would have on the PMSE community. Ofcom will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community are taken into account when making any final decisions on the use of the band. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom’s website:
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700MHz/
Ofcom is working with the PMSE community of users and manufacturers to mitigate the impact of any change of use of the 700 MHz band; and discussing with the regulatory authorities in other countries their approach to this issue. A key focus of their work in this area is seeking to identify and make available alternative spectrum for the PMSE community.
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
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 potential effect on the UK's ability to host future major sporting or cultural events of a loss of access by programme making and special events users to the 700 MHz band of radio spectrum; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
PMSE users currently have dedicated access to spectrum in channel 38 (between 606MHz and 614MHz) as well as access to interleaved spectrum for which no new equipment is required. Ofcom published a consultation on 24 April 2013 on the future use of the 700MHz band, and will ensure the views and spectrum requirements of the PMSE community and any other wireless microphone users are taken into account when advising on any decision. The consultation document and responses can be found on Ofcom’s website: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/700mhz-cfi/ There are also currently discussions in Europe on future spectrum provision for PMSE users and the potential requirement for further dedicated spectrum for these purposes.Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if his Department will take steps to ensure that revenue created by shops in publicly-funded museums and galleries will be safeguarded following the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Government is keen to support the revenue-generating activities of publicly-funded museums and galleries wherever possible. For most artistic works, copyright owners already need to provide permission before publicly-funded museums and galleries are able to make copies. The change in law will mean that permission from copyright holders will need to be sought for all artistic works.
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if his Department will take steps to ensure that publicly-funded museums do not breach new rules regarding the commercial exploitation of designs whose owners have had their rights revived following the repeal of section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has an arm's length relationship with its sponsored bodies such as museums and galleries and does not intervene in day-to-day operational matters. It would be for these museums and galleries to act in compliance with the law, including intellectual property law.