Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent progress her Department has made on its review of the Gambling Act 2005.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The Government is working at pace with the Gambling Commission, industry and others to deliver the white paper.
The Government recently confirmed plans for the introduction of stake limits for online slots games, and last week published our plans for reforms to the land-based sector.
The Gambling Commission have also confirmed proposals for a range of measures, including financial risk checks and strengthened protections on direct marketing.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the number of fixed-odds betting terminals there were in Midlothian constituency in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Fixed-odds betting terminals refer to Category B2 gaming machines. In April 2019, the maximum stakes on these machines were reduced from £100 to £2. Following this reduction in maximum stakes there has been a dramatic decrease in the number of physical B2 machines in operation. The Gambling Commission’s industry statistics indicate that from April 2020 to March 2023 there were zero Category B2 gaming machines in operation across Great Britain.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on the level of gambling addiction in Midlothian constituency in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
DCMS does not hold data on the level of gambling-related harm for individual constituencies.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing free TV licences for those suffering from dementia.
Answered by Julia Lopez
TV Licence concessions are available to people who are registered blind or severely sight impaired, people living in qualifying residential care who are disabled or over 60 years old, and people aged 75 and over in receipt of Pension Credit. There are no further concessions available for people with disabilities or other health conditions. The licence fee settlement covers the period until 31 March 2028.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with representatives of the games industry on tackling harms from loot boxes.
Answered by Julia Lopez
The Government undertook a call for evidence from September to November 2020 to examine concerns around loot boxes in video games. We are continuing to consider the evidence from more than 30,000 responses that we received, along with an independent Rapid Evidence Assessment commissioned from the InGAME research and innovation centre.
We have continued a dialogue with the games industry to address issues identified from the loot box call for evidence. We will publish the government’s response to the call for evidence in the coming months.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when her Department plans to publish its response to the Loot Boxes in Video Games consultation.
Answered by Julia Lopez
The Government undertook a call for evidence from September to November 2020 to examine concerns around loot boxes in video games. We are continuing to consider the evidence from more than 30,000 responses that we received, along with an independent Rapid Evidence Assessment commissioned from the InGAME research and innovation centre.
We have continued a dialogue with the games industry to address issues identified from the loot box call for evidence. We will publish the government’s response to the call for evidence in the coming months.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if her Department will undertake an impact assessment of postponing the Gambling Review White Paper.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Gambling Act Review is wide-ranging and aims to ensure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. The objective of the Review is to get the appropriate balance between respecting consumer freedom and preventing harm, with effective and proportionate protections. We will publish a white paper setting out our vision for the sector and next steps in the coming months.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department plans to publish the Gambling Review White Paper before summer recess 2022.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Gambling Act Review is wide-ranging and aims to ensure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. The objective of the Review is to get the appropriate balance between respecting consumer freedom and preventing harm, with effective and proportionate protections. We will publish a white paper setting out our vision for the sector and next steps in the coming months.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her announcement on 17 January 2022 that BBC funding will be frozen for the next two years, whether she will take steps to protect funding for programming in the UK's minority languages.
Answered by Julia Lopez
The UK Government has a strong record of demonstrating its commitment to minority language broadcasting to ensure that our broadcasting sector services all audiences of the UK nations and regions.
The BBC’s Royal Charter is an important way of delivering on this. One of the BBC's Public Purposes is to "reflect, represent and serve the diverse communities of all of the United Kingdom’s nations and regions and, in doing so, support the creative economy across the United Kingdom". The BBC also has a general duty under Diversity to "support the regional and minority languages of the United Kingdom through its output and services and through partnerships with other organisations".
I recognise the incredibly valuable contribution that our minority language broadcasters make, and the licence fee settlement will continue to support these contributions by providing the BBC with billions in annual public funding, allowing it to deliver its mission and public purposes and to continue doing what it does best.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate the Government has made of the loss of income within the live events industry as a result of covid-19 related cancellations.
Answered by Julia Lopez
The pandemic has been a unique challenge to the live events industry. The government is committed to supporting the live events industry and continues to work with the sector to understand losses and recovery.
To assist with recovery, from 22 September 2021, the UK Live Events Reinsurance Scheme has given events the confidence they need to plan through to Summer 2022. The Scheme will support live events across the country - such as concerts and festivals, conferences and business events - that are at risk of being cancelled or delayed due to an inability to obtain Covid-19 cancellation insurance; it will enable the sector to plan future events with greater confidence.
The scheme is in addition to the extensive support already given to the cultural sector throughout the pandemic, including the nearly £2 billion Culture Recovery Fund and the £500 million Film and TV Production Restart scheme.