Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 compliance of the BBC’s closure of Asian Network News with its (a) service agreement and (b) Charter duties to reflect diverse communities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) meets regularly with representatives of the BBC on a range of matters, including how it engages and reflects listeners in the UK. However, the BBC is operationally and editorially independent from the Government, and it is solely responsible for all editorial, budgetary and scheduling decisions.
Ofcom as independent regulator, is required to set the regulatory conditions it considers appropriate for requiring the BBC to fulfil its Mission and promote the Public Purposes. It does this through setting an Operating Licence. The BBC is responsible for complying with its Operating Licence requirements, and Ofcom monitors and reports annually on the BBC’s performance and its compliance with its licence conditions.
In October 2024, BBC News announced plans to make changes to some of its services, including closing the Asian Network’s bespoke news service. The BBC did not require Ofcom’s approval to close it because all budgetary and editorial decisions remain the responsibility of the BBC Board. However, in April 2025 the BBC submitted a request to change its news and current affairs quota on BBC Asian Network from 1,224 hours to 675 hours per financial year in the Operating Licence.
On 29 May 2025 Ofcom consulted on this request, and in that consultation Ofcom set out its provisional view that it is minded to approve the change, recognising changing audience habits. Ofcom will announce its final decision in due course.
The Government does not hold information about whether the BBC conducted a race equality impact assessment ahead of closing the Asian Network News Service.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether Ofcom approval was sought before the BBC announced the closure of Asian Network News; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of seeking retrospective approval.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) meets regularly with representatives of the BBC on a range of matters, including how it engages and reflects listeners in the UK. However, the BBC is operationally and editorially independent from the Government, and it is solely responsible for all editorial, budgetary and scheduling decisions.
Ofcom as independent regulator, is required to set the regulatory conditions it considers appropriate for requiring the BBC to fulfil its Mission and promote the Public Purposes. It does this through setting an Operating Licence. The BBC is responsible for complying with its Operating Licence requirements, and Ofcom monitors and reports annually on the BBC’s performance and its compliance with its licence conditions.
In October 2024, BBC News announced plans to make changes to some of its services, including closing the Asian Network’s bespoke news service. The BBC did not require Ofcom’s approval to close it because all budgetary and editorial decisions remain the responsibility of the BBC Board. However, in April 2025 the BBC submitted a request to change its news and current affairs quota on BBC Asian Network from 1,224 hours to 675 hours per financial year in the Operating Licence.
On 29 May 2025 Ofcom consulted on this request, and in that consultation Ofcom set out its provisional view that it is minded to approve the change, recognising changing audience habits. Ofcom will announce its final decision in due course.
The Government does not hold information about whether the BBC conducted a race equality impact assessment ahead of closing the Asian Network News Service.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 whether the BBC conducted a race equality impact assessment prior to the decision to close Asian Network News.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) meets regularly with representatives of the BBC on a range of matters, including how it engages and reflects listeners in the UK. However, the BBC is operationally and editorially independent from the Government, and it is solely responsible for all editorial, budgetary and scheduling decisions.
Ofcom as independent regulator, is required to set the regulatory conditions it considers appropriate for requiring the BBC to fulfil its Mission and promote the Public Purposes. It does this through setting an Operating Licence. The BBC is responsible for complying with its Operating Licence requirements, and Ofcom monitors and reports annually on the BBC’s performance and its compliance with its licence conditions.
In October 2024, BBC News announced plans to make changes to some of its services, including closing the Asian Network’s bespoke news service. The BBC did not require Ofcom’s approval to close it because all budgetary and editorial decisions remain the responsibility of the BBC Board. However, in April 2025 the BBC submitted a request to change its news and current affairs quota on BBC Asian Network from 1,224 hours to 675 hours per financial year in the Operating Licence.
On 29 May 2025 Ofcom consulted on this request, and in that consultation Ofcom set out its provisional view that it is minded to approve the change, recognising changing audience habits. Ofcom will announce its final decision in due course.
The Government does not hold information about whether the BBC conducted a race equality impact assessment ahead of closing the Asian Network News Service.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to discuss the closure of Asian Network News with the BBC Director-General.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) meets regularly with representatives of the BBC on a range of matters, including how it engages and reflects listeners in the UK. However, the BBC is operationally and editorially independent from the Government, and it is solely responsible for all editorial, budgetary and scheduling decisions.
Ofcom as independent regulator, is required to set the regulatory conditions it considers appropriate for requiring the BBC to fulfil its Mission and promote the Public Purposes. It does this through setting an Operating Licence. The BBC is responsible for complying with its Operating Licence requirements, and Ofcom monitors and reports annually on the BBC’s performance and its compliance with its licence conditions.
In October 2024, BBC News announced plans to make changes to some of its services, including closing the Asian Network’s bespoke news service. The BBC did not require Ofcom’s approval to close it because all budgetary and editorial decisions remain the responsibility of the BBC Board. However, in April 2025 the BBC submitted a request to change its news and current affairs quota on BBC Asian Network from 1,224 hours to 675 hours per financial year in the Operating Licence.
On 29 May 2025 Ofcom consulted on this request, and in that consultation Ofcom set out its provisional view that it is minded to approve the change, recognising changing audience habits. Ofcom will announce its final decision in due course.
The Government does not hold information about whether the BBC conducted a race equality impact assessment ahead of closing the Asian Network News Service.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of public libraries on adult education.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Public libraries are an important part of our local communities, providing people with knowledge to help with education, social skills, boosting employment and capturing the imagination of readers of all ages and backgrounds.
The DCMS Participation Survey 2023-24 found that 30% of adults had engaged with public libraries in England in the previous 12 months. This is a 6 percent point increase from the previous year.
Libraries are used as a venue for local authority adult learning provision funded through the Department for Education's Adult Skills Fund. Libraries enable providers to offer courses in local communities which are often targeted at learners with barriers to learning. The Department for Education does not collect data on the use of libraries or other venues for adult learning.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 increase youth participation in (a) civil society and (b) sport.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS is committed to the inclusion of young people in civil society, particularly through youth social action and youth voice. DCMS funds the direct youth participation programme #iwill, which supports young people to engage in social action in their communities. DCMS also encourages participation through other funded programmes such as the Duke of Edinburgh and the Uniformed Youth Fund. We are developing a National Youth Strategy and this is an opportunity to look afresh at youth participation in volunteering and civil society.
The Government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity for every child to access high-quality sport and physical activity, especially those who are less likely to be active. The majority of our funding for grassroots sport is through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year to improve opportunities for local communities to access sport, including children and young people. The Government has also confirmed funding for the School Games Organisers network up to the end of the Financial Year 25/26, which provides over 2 million opportunities for school children to engage in local and inclusive sporting competitions across 40 different sports and activities.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will provide additional funding beyond the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme to support the maintenance of historic places of worship in (a) Leicester East constituency and (b) England.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I note that the honourable member is asking us to spend more money and would be grateful if they could advise me on which other budget should be cut or tax should be commensurately increased. There is a range of funding available via DCMS and the Department’s Arm’s-Length Bodies that supports historic places of worship. These include the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; the National Lottery Heritage Fund, who have committed to investing around £100m between 2023 and 2026 to support places of worship; the Churches Conservation Trust, which funds repairs and maintenance of over 350 churches in the CCT portfolio; and Historic England's Heritage At Risk grants, funding £9 million worth of repairs to buildings on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk register between April 2024 and March 2025.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 potential impact of proposed changes to employer National Insurance contributions on not-for-profit organisations.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
At the recent Budget, the government took a number of difficult but necessary decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to fix the foundations of the public finances, fund public services, and restore economic stability.
DCMS Ministers have met with representatives from the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector to discuss this issue and are aware of their concerns about the impacts of the increase to employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs). The government recognises the need to protect the smallest businesses and charities, which is why we have more than doubled the Employment Allowance to £10,500. This means that more than half of businesses (including charities) with NICs liabilities will either gain or see no change next year.
We are also expanding eligibility of the Employment Allowance by removing the £100,000 eligibility threshold, to simplify and reform employer NICs so that all eligible employers now benefit. Businesses and charities will still be able to claim employer NICs reliefs including those for under 21s and under 25 apprentices, where eligible.
Within the tax system, we provide support to charities through a range of reliefs and exemptions, including reliefs for charitable giving. More than £6 billion in charitable reliefs was provided to charities, Community Amateur Sports Clubs and their donors in 2023 to 2024. The biggest individual reliefs provided are Gift Aid at £1.6 billion and business rates relief at nearly £2.4 billion.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 (a) football and (b) cricket pitches there are in England.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
According to Sport England’s Active Places database, there are 53,665 grass football pitches in England. This encompasses adult football, junior football 11 a-side, junior football 9 a-side, mini soccer 7 a-side and mini soccer 5 a-side pitches. Furthermore there are also 3,013 artificial full-size grass pitches and 4,419 small-sided artificial grass pitches in England.
There are 9,057 grass cricket pitches in England.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
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 on the potential impact of reductions in funding for sports on (a) access to physical activity for children and young people and (b) public health.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government’s new mission-led objectives puts health and children and young people at the heart of our priorities. The Government aims to provide opportunities for all children to access high-quality sport and physical activity, especially those who are less likely to be active. We must capitalise on the important role that being active can have in preventing, and helping to treat and manage, a wide range of health conditions.
The Government is acting to support more people to get active wherever they live through the delivery of £123 million UK-wide through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in 2024/25. Further spending decisions will be made at the Spending Review later this month.