Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of cricket participation rates among state school pupils.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Sport England’s Active Lives Children and Young People Survey for Academic Year 2023-24 shows that 252,500 (6.6%) children in academy schools have participated in cricket at least once a week or more, and 253,000 (7.3%) children in maintained schools have participated in cricket at least once a week or more.
The Government is committed to protecting time for physical education in schools. The Prime Minister recently announced a new School Sport Partnerships approach and a new Enrichment Framework for schools to ensure all young people have equal access to high-quality sport and extracurricular activity. The ongoing independent expert-led review of the curriculum will ensure that all children can engage with a broad range of subjects, including PE and sport.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the National Governing Body for cricket, has committed to making the sport as inclusive as possible for children and young people through their new strategy and state school action plan. I have also seen the work of their charitable arm, Chance to Shine, to encourage more children to take up cricket, at the Mill Academy in Worsbrough last year.
We provide the majority of support for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million of National Lottery and government money. The ECB receives £10.2 million funding from Sport England across up to five years to help deliver strategic objectives, including tackling inequalities and improving access to sport.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
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 implications for her policies of (a) the long-term viability, (b) the financial position and (c) levels of participation in cricket clubs in cities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to ensuring everyone, no matter their age, background or ability, should be able to play sport and be active.
The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding.
This includes long term investment to the England and Wales Cricket Board, the National Governing Body for cricket, which receives up to £11.6 million for five years to invest in community cricket initiatives. This includes programmes that will benefit everyone, including people who live in cities, as set out in their “Inspiring Generations” strategy for 2025-2028.
On 20 June 2025, the Culture Secretary announced at least £400 million is going to be invested into new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities in communities right across the UK following the Spending Review, supporting the Government's Plan for Change. We will work closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what each community needs and then set out further plans.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with the England and Wales Cricket Board on increasing levels of access to cricket in cities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This Government is committed to ensuring everyone, no matter their age, background or ability, should be able to play sport and be active.
The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding.
This includes long term investment to the England and Wales Cricket Board, the National Governing Body for cricket, which receives up to £11.6 million for five years to invest in community cricket initiatives. This includes programmes that will benefit everyone, including people who live in cities, as set out in their “Inspiring Generations” strategy for 2025-2028.
On 20 June 2025, the Culture Secretary announced at least £400 million is going to be invested into new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities in communities right across the UK following the Spending Review, supporting the Government's Plan for Change. We will work closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what each community needs and then set out further plans.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had discussions with the (a) Premier League and (b) English Football League on the cost of football tickets; and if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of recent trends in the cost of football tickets on supporters.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Football is nothing without its fans and the Government is keen to see as many people as possible benefit from and enjoy the spectacle of live sport.
The matter of ticket prices is a commercial decision for individual clubs and leagues to take. However, the Government remains in conversation with stakeholders to ensure that fans are engaged properly.
This is also why the Government has introduced legislation to establish an Independent Football Regulator to protect and promote the sustainability of English football in the interests of fans and the local communities football clubs serve.
As a result of changes made by this Government, the Football Governance Bill will now explicitly require clubs to consult their supporters on ticket prices making sure their voice is heard on this key issue.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that growth in the British film industry is shared across the UK.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government is firmly committed to supporting the growth of the film industry across every nation and region. Through our UK-wide funding programmes, investment in infrastructure, tax reliefs and support for independent British content, we want the UK to be the best place in the world to make films.
We fund the British Film Institute (BFI) to support the film sector through nationwide funding and initiatives. The BFI’s ten year strategy, Screen Culture 2033, sets out its core principle to reach across the full breadth of our nation. The BFI have sought to devolve funding, share power, and support networks across regions, in particular through their Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) which is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film Hub North covers Liverpool.
The BFI is also tackling skills shortages in the sector to underpin growth across the UK. Under the BFI’s National Lottery Skills Clusters Fund, £8.1 million has been awarded to enable six Skills Clusters across the UK to identify skills gaps, coordinate local skills training, and develop clearer pathways to long-term employment in the sector. This programme includes £2.3m awarded to Screen Alliance North - created by the Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire - over 2023-2026.
We support the British Film Commission (BFC) work, with £6 million in funding, to support the growth of seven geographic production hubs across the UK, by investing in infrastructure and attracting global film productions that bring inward investment into the local and national economy. This includes support for Liverpool, most recently supporting and advising on the Liverpool Littlewoods film studio development.
We also want to support independent British content, to ensure stories from across the UK are told on screen. We recently brought in the Independent Film Tax Credit to support homegrown talent, and we support indie content to grow internationally through the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF). Daliland and The Almond and The Seahorse, both of which were shot in Liverpool, received international distribution awards from UKGSF.
In addition, to boost the contribution of film tourism to local economies, DCMS Arm’s-Length Body VisitBritain uses high profile filming locations as part of its international tourism marketing activity.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support the growth of the film industry in Liverpool.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government is firmly committed to supporting the growth of the film industry across every nation and region. Through our UK-wide funding programmes, investment in infrastructure, tax reliefs and support for independent British content, we want the UK to be the best place in the world to make films.
We fund the British Film Institute (BFI) to support the film sector through nationwide funding and initiatives. The BFI’s ten year strategy, Screen Culture 2033, sets out its core principle to reach across the full breadth of our nation. The BFI have sought to devolve funding, share power, and support networks across regions, in particular through their Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) which is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film Hub North covers Liverpool.
The BFI is also tackling skills shortages in the sector to underpin growth across the UK. Under the BFI’s National Lottery Skills Clusters Fund, £8.1 million has been awarded to enable six Skills Clusters across the UK to identify skills gaps, coordinate local skills training, and develop clearer pathways to long-term employment in the sector. This programme includes £2.3m awarded to Screen Alliance North - created by the Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire - over 2023-2026.
We support the British Film Commission (BFC) work, with £6 million in funding, to support the growth of seven geographic production hubs across the UK, by investing in infrastructure and attracting global film productions that bring inward investment into the local and national economy. This includes support for Liverpool, most recently supporting and advising on the Liverpool Littlewoods film studio development.
We also want to support independent British content, to ensure stories from across the UK are told on screen. We recently brought in the Independent Film Tax Credit to support homegrown talent, and we support indie content to grow internationally through the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF). Daliland and The Almond and The Seahorse, both of which were shot in Liverpool, received international distribution awards from UKGSF.
In addition, to boost the contribution of film tourism to local economies, DCMS Arm’s-Length Body VisitBritain uses high profile filming locations as part of its international tourism marketing activity.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure children from deprived backgrounds can participate in sport.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government believes that every child - no matter their background or ability - should have the opportunity to play sport and be physically active.
We provide the majority of our funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year. The expansion of Sport England’s Place Partnerships will invest up to £250 million of National Lottery and Exchequer funding and enhance engagement in areas of greatest need to tackle inactivity levels through community-led solutions.
The Government has also committed to continued funding for grassroots facilities which will ensure that children and young people have access to high-quality, inclusive facilities, no matter where they live.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to use the (a) expertise and (b) capacity of the voluntary and community sector to help (i) develop and (ii) deliver the Government's policy objectives.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to resetting the relationship with civil society and treating them as an equal, expert partner who will be integral to delivery of the Government’s vision for national renewal.
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has policy responsibility for civil society. Ministers and senior officials are engaging regularly with a range of civil society leaders to discuss the contribution that civil society can make to Government priorities.
Work is currently underway across Government to shape and define the five core missions and DCMS is working closely with lead departments to ensure that civil society is appropriately involved in delivery of these missions.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans her Department has to engage with civil society on the delivery of the Government's programme.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to resetting the relationship with civil society and treating them as an equal, expert partner who will be integral to delivery of the Government’s vision for national renewal.
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has policy responsibility for civil society. Ministers and senior officials are engaging regularly with a range of civil society leaders to discuss the contribution that civil society can make to Government priorities.
Work is currently underway across Government to shape and define the five core missions and DCMS is working closely with lead departments to ensure that civil society is appropriately involved in delivery of these missions.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding her Department provides to support the growth of grassroots rugby league.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.
The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. Since 2019, Sport England has provided over £34 million of support to programmes which facilitate participation in grassroots rugby league.
The Rugby Football Union (RFL) is the National Governing Body for rugby league and receives £11 million of funding from Sport England across up to five years to help deliver strategic objectives, including tackling inequalities and improving access to sport.