Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley 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 merits of removing the cap on charity lottery sales.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the importance of society lotteries as a fundraising tool for charities and other organisations. Society lotteries are a vital source of funds for these organisations, raising over £400 million a year.
In 2020, we legislated to raise the annual sales limit for large society lotteries from £10 million to £50 million. Each organisation with a society lottery licence is therefore able to sell up to £50 million of tickets per year. Most society lottery operators have sales well within this annual limit, meaning there is plenty of scope for them to continue to grow.
The limits were reviewed 12 months after the reforms implemented in 2020, which concluded it was too soon to reach any firm view on its impact, and that more data on the growth of the sector is needed before considering any further changes.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with Ofcom on tackling the use of sexist and misogynistic language in broadcast news.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code sets out rules to ensure that broadcast material which contains abusive or derogatory treatment of individuals or groups must not be included except where it is justified by the context.
As the UK’s independent regulator, it is for Ofcom to determine whether there has been a breach of the Broadcasting Code, and whether to take action. In making any decision, Ofcom is required by the Communications Act 2003 to strike a balance between ensuring an appropriate level of freedom of expression and adequate protection from harmful material.
Ministers and officials have regular discussions with Ofcom on a range of issues, but it is for Ofcom to determine any breaches of the Broadcasting Code.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 89 of the policy paper entitled A sustainable future - reforming club football governance, what recent discussions her Department has had with stakeholders on the potential merits of conducting (a) trials for alcohol sales in sight of the pitch for clubs in the National League and League Two and (b) a review of the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc.) Act 1985.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We recognise the need to balance the potential commercial benefits of alcohol sales in the lower leagues with concerns around safety and disorder. We will keep this matter under review in conjunction with the Home Office.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Gambling Commission on whether it plans to release the results of its 2021 call for evidence on affordability checks.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Following the Government’s publication of the white paper on gambling earlier this year, the Gambling Commission has been consulting on a series of proposed changes to requirements on gambling businesses, including on financial vulnerability checks and financial risk assessments. We understand that the Gambling Commission will publish information about both the call for evidence and the current consultation as part of their formal consultation response.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to NICE's draft for consultation entitled Harmful gambling: identification, assessment and management, published in October 2023, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on that consultation's draft guidance on GPs asking patients presenting with a mental health issue about their potential gambling habits.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is the government lead for treatment of gambling-related harms and commissioned the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to develop a new clinical guideline on gambling which is currently out for consultation and will close on 15 November. Following the gambling white paper published in April, DCMS has launched a public consultation on the statutory levy charged to gambling operators which proposes clear, ringfenced investment for the NHS to lead the commissioning of treatment services for gambling-related harm.
The Secretary of State has not recently had any such discussions, but DCMS officials will continue to work closely with DHSC to ensure that the latest evidence on the health harms associated with gambling and effective treatment resulting from that consultation is closely considered.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress her Department has made on appointing a new ombudsman to adjudicate complaints and order redress.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is working with the Gambling Commission, gambling industry and others to implement all the measures set out in the gambling white paper as soon as possible. A number of proposals are already complete, at consultation stage, or being trialled ahead of implementation.
We launched the consultation on the details of the statutory levy, including rates for different sectors and governance arrangements, on 17 October. We are also continuing work with the industry and Gambling Commission to scope and design an ombudsman, and remain on track for it to be established next summer.
The cross department group of officials working on informational messaging on the risks associated with gambling has met a number of times since the white paper was published.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on the horserace betting levy.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department is engaging with representatives of the betting and racing industries and other interested parties as part of our review of the Horserace Betting Levy, which we have committed to undertake by April 2024. The engagement with racing has been channelled through the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) in line with racing’s agreed industry strategy and the engagement with betting has been channelled through the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) as the industry body for UK betting and gaming.
In addition to those organisations, I have also met the Horserace Betting Levy Board, the Horse Racing Bettors Forum and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Racing and Bloodstock; and officials have met the UK Tote, the Federation of Racecourse Bookmakers and the British Association of Racecourse Bookmakers in the past six months.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure the future provision of public service content on linear broadcast services.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government recognises the crucial role that linear broadcast services, including digital terrestrial television services, play in the wider UK broadcasting system, in particular in helping ensure that public service content continues to be widely available free-to-air to all audiences.
All of the UK’s public service broadcasters (PSBs) are required by law to operate at least one linear television service and must offer those service(s) to digital terrestrial, satellite and cable television providers.
In addition, the Government’s draft Media Bill, published on 29 March 2023, will amend the public service remit for television to make explicit in law the requirement on our PSBs to make their public service content available to as many members of the public in the United Kingdom as reasonably practicable.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her speech to the Royal Television Society published by her Department on 20 September 2023, whether the findings of the six-month research project on changing viewing habits and technologies will be published.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is in the process of commissioning independent research which will look at a wide range of themes, including changing audience viewing habits and technologies that will impact how shows are brought to our screens, both now, and in the decades to come. The research will inform wider work looking at the future of television distribution.
In accordance with Government Social Research guidelines, the research will be published in due course.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that streaming services that do not have an Ofcom broadcasting licence cannot to (a) buy the rights for a listed event and (b) put them behind a paywall.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The draft Media Bill set out our intention to make qualification for listed events a Public Service Broadcaster-specific benefit.