Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many heritage railways have received grants or financial assistance from the Government since 1999; and how much each of those which have been given support has received.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Since 1999, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded £70,562,212 to the UK’s heritage railways.
Within that amount, DCMS funded over 60 heritage steam organisations through the Culture Recovery Fund (2020 - 2021) providing nearly £15 million in support for the heritage rail sector. This has included multiple awards supporting the infrastructure of iconic heritage railways such as Ffestiniog, Bluebell and Severn Valley, as well as the restoration of individual locomotives and elements of rolling stock, including the world-famous Flying Scotsman.
Since 1999, Historic England (previously English Heritage) has awarded £280,396 to the UK’s heritage railways. This included sites such as Bowes Railway Company in the North East which received seven grants since 2002 totalling £515,834. In addition, Bowes Railway Company received £36,241 (July 2020 to March 2021) through a Covid-19 Emergency Grant. Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Community Interest Company received £3,374 (June 2020 to September 2020) through a Covid-19 Emergency Grant. A £49k repair grant was provided towards the cost of the restoration of a Grade II* listed turntable in St Blazey, Cornwall in 2021. The turntable has been restored to operational condition by a social enterprise company, and allows main line steam engines to run into Cornwall on railtours bringing tourists to the Duchy, and be turned ready for their return journey. Historic England has also been supporting the Railway 200 celebrations in many ways including research, outreach and listing sites with links to heritage rail.
We do not hold information on grants given from parts of Government that are not DCMS and its arms length bodies.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to charge non-UK nationals to visit free museums.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
No.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding is available from the Arts Council for schemes in Basildon and Billericay constituency; how much funding has been awarded to those schemes; whether the Arts Council has sponsored any events in Basildon and Billericay constituency; and what is the criteria for sponsoring events.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Arts Council England’s £100 million programme, National Lottery Project Grants, is open for applications to organisations and individuals from across England, from north to south and east to west, including in Basildon and Billericay. The criteria for applying are available on the Arts Council's website.
Grants awarded from the Arts Council’s main funding streams within the last 5 financial years (2023/2024 inclusive) are published online and provide details of all organisations that receive funding.They are available in the following locations:
Since 2019, Arts Council England has provided over £5.8 million of funding to organisations in the Basildon and Billericay constituency.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how investigations into the collapse of football index are progressing; when she expect those investigations to conclude; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Damian Collins
In March 2021, the Gambling Commission launched an investigation into BetIndex, the operator of Football Index. This has now concluded and resulted in the revocation of BetIndex’s licence to operate.
Following information received from the administrators and the Gambling Commission, the Insolvency Service has confirmed that the conduct of Betindex Limited’s directors is currently being investigated by them. The progress and outcome of the investigation will depend on the evidence obtained. It will not be possible for the Insolvency Service to comment on the investigation while it is ongoing.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing support with fuel costs to (a) mountain rescue teams, (b) the RNLI and (c) other voluntary organisations and their volunteers who provide vital public services as charities.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Financial Secretary (Treasury)
We recognise this is a worrying time for many organisations, including charities, that are facing pressures due to the significant increases in global gas prices.
In the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, the government announced a temporary 12 month cut to duty on petrol and diesel of 5p per litre. This is the biggest cut, in cash terms, that has ever been applied across all fuel duty rates at once.
We will continue to monitor the impact of fuel costs on volunteers and voluntary sector organisations. More information on volunteers’ pay and expenses is available on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the timescale is for the (a) procurement and (b) connections for the regional supplier procurements for Durham and Northumberland.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
As highlighted in our Project Gigabit Autumn Update, Durham, Tyneside and Teesside areas and Northumberland (Lots 4 and 34) are included in Phase 1a of Project Gigabit. These particular Lots will see procurement start as early as December 2021 before an estimated contract commencement date of November 2022.
Furthermore, in North Northumberland and Teesdale in County Durham, we have incorporated two of the most challenging rural areas into Local Supplier procurements, designed to be attractive to rural specialists active in the area. These Local Supplier procurements have an estimated start date of December 2021 before an estimated contract commencement date of June 2022.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has assessed the available data on gambling and gambling harm; and if she will bring forward proposals to fund the collection and assessment of those data through a statutory levy.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of Terms of Reference and a Call for Evidence. The Review is wide-ranging and aims to ensure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. The Call for Evidence included questions on the need for changes to the system of consumer redress, the appropriate mechanism for recouping the societal and regulatory costs of gambling and on barriers to high quality research. We will publish a white paper setting out our conclusions and vision for the sector in due course, and this will include an indication of how any changes will be implemented, whether by legislation or other means.
Public Health England’s review will be a valuable contribution to our Gambling Act Review and we are considering it carefully. Alongside the Review, we will work with the Department of Health and Social Care and key stakeholders to address the knowledge gaps identified in the evidence review and improve data collection more broadly.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether a gambling ombudsman could be established without primary legislation; and what plans she has for establishing such an ombudsman.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The government launched its Review of the Gambling Act 2005 on 8 December with the publication of Terms of Reference and a Call for Evidence. The Review is wide-ranging and aims to ensure that the regulation of gambling is fit for the digital age. The Call for Evidence included questions on the need for changes to the system of consumer redress, the appropriate mechanism for recouping the societal and regulatory costs of gambling and on barriers to high quality research. We will publish a white paper setting out our conclusions and vision for the sector in due course, and this will include an indication of how any changes will be implemented, whether by legislation or other means.
Public Health England’s review will be a valuable contribution to our Gambling Act Review and we are considering it carefully. Alongside the Review, we will work with the Department of Health and Social Care and key stakeholders to address the knowledge gaps identified in the evidence review and improve data collection more broadly.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with the Gambling Commission on the Fourth National Lottery licence in relation to harm prevention and better protecting customers.
Answered by John Whittingdale - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
The competition for the fourth National Lottery licence is being run by the Gambling Commission. I have regular conversations with the Commission on their responsibilities in relation to the National Lottery including progress on the fourth licence competition.
The Licensee will be held fully accountable for protecting players. The successful applicant will have demonstrated high standards of player protection, including prevention of underage or excessive play, and the Commission will hold them accountable for their commitments during the licence period. The Commission will retain strong enforcement powers and, where necessary, will not hesitate to use them.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring regular data reporting from the licensee as part of the Fourth National Lottery licence agreement.
Answered by John Whittingdale - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
The competition for the fourth National Lottery licence is being run by the Gambling Commission. The next licence will see changes to how the National Lottery is licensed and regulated.
The licensee will be required to provide a range of information to the Commission as part of its licence requirements, which will be used to hold them accountable for their performance during the licence period. The Commission will have the right to request additional information should this be necessary, including in relation to compliance risks or issues.