Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government plans to take to (a) ensure the democratic accountability of football club owners to fans and supporters (I) at AGMs and (ii) more widely, (b) improve processes of due diligence of prospective owners of football clubs and (c) enhance the local ownership of football clubs throughout the UK.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Football clubs are the heart of local communities, they have unique social value and many with a great history. It is vital they are protected.
The Government’s Expert Working Group on football supporter ownership and engagement in 2016 set out a number of recommendations to encourage greater engagement between supporters and those that run their club, while also helping to remove barriers to supporter ownership. The Premier League and English Football League now require clubs to meet with supporters at least twice a year to discuss strategic issues, giving fans the opportunity to shape the direction of the club.
The Government has also committed to undertaking a fan led review of football governance, which will include consideration of the Owners’ and Directors’ test. We are currently deciding the scope and structure of the review.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) Wolverhampton Wanderers and (b) other UK football supporters are able to access football matches during the period when they cannot watch in person as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government was pleased to see both the Premier League and English Football League announcements on widening broadcasting coverage for upcoming games.
All Premier League matches in September will be broadcast live, while the EFL announced that, while stadiums remain closed, every EFL game that has not been selected for live coverage will be streamed on club websites.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what funding his Department makes available to communities to promote exercise and fitness.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Sports and physical activity facilities play a crucial role in supporting adults and children to be active. It is important that exercise facilities remain accessible for people from all backgrounds as we make efforts to return to normality after the Covid lockdown period.
Once lockdown was announced, Sport England launched a successful online campaign ‘Join the Movement’ specifically aimed at promoting exercise and fitness in and around the home.
Sport England has announced a £210 million package of financial support to help community sports and exercise clubs through this crisis.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the financial sustainability of (a) civil society organisations and (b) charities in (i) Wolverhampton South West and (ii) England during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak.
£200 million of this money is being distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund through the Coronavirus Community Support Fund which is mainly targeting smaller and local VCSE organisations. Under the Coronavirus Community Support Fund, a total of 518 awards valued at £12.36 million has been allocated to organisations in the West Midlands, as at 28th August 2020.
£360 million has been allocated by central government departments with £200 million of this directly supporting hospices across the country. From this money, a total of 40 awards to the value of £3.1 million have been allocated to organisations in the West Midlands, as at 28th August 2020.
A further £4.8 million will be distributed to the Voluntary and Community Sector Emergencies Partnership - a group that comes together to improve national and local coordination before, during and after emergencies - to help strengthen the voluntary sector’s response to coronavirus and future emergencies.
To support the BBC’s 'Big Night In', the Government matched the generous donations of the public across the country with grants to the National Emergencies Trust working in Partnership with the UK Community Foundations (£20million) and to the remaining £17million being shared by Comic Relief and Children in Need. £1.14 million from the National Emergencies Trust grant was allocated to the Heart of England Community Foundation. Under the National Emergencies Trust, Comic Relief and Children in Need grants, a total of 125 awards valued at £723,029 have been made to organisations in the West Midlands as at 28th August 2020.
The ‘Community Match Challenge’ which is matching funds raised by philanthropists, foundations and grant making organisations will further support small to medium sized organisations from across the country working with those who are most vulnerable and have been hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak. This Fund closed for bids on 2nd August and the outcome will be announced shortly.
In addition to the £750million, a further £150m has been unlocked from dormant bank and building society accounts which will be directed to charities, social enterprises and individuals.
Finally, civil society organisations and charities can access additional business support measures including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loans.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to commemorate VJ Day in 2020.
Answered by Matt Warman
On 15 July, the Government launched its website to help the public mark the 75th anniversary of Victory Over Japan Day on 15 August. Further information on how to get involved will be made available shortly at https://ve-vjday75.gov.uk/
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking support (a) theatres, (b) museums and (c) other tourist attractions in Wolverhampton after the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
In order to support the sustainability of the Arts sector, including theatres and museums, DCMS has worked closely with Arts Council England (ACE) to provide a tailored package of financial support. In March, ACE announced a £160m emergency response package to complement the financial measures already announced by the Government and to ensure immediate resilience of this vital sector.
This package includes £140 million of support for artistic organisations including theatres and museums; and £20 million of financial support for individuals, including self-employed theatre practitioners, so they can better sustain themselves, and their work, in the coming months. More than 9000 individuals and organisations have been successful in applying for this emergency funding. Additionally, the National Lottery Heritage Fund launched the £50 million Heritage Emergency Fund, and Historic England has launched two £2 million Emergency Funds.
The Secretary of State, myself and officials continue to consult the Art and Tourism sectors extensively to ensure we fully understand the impacts of Covid-19 and remain well placed to respond as it develops.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on preparations for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
Birmingham 2022 will be at the heart of a memorable summer of sport and a year of national celebration in 2022. We will continue to work with our partners to closely monitor the situation over the next two years and ensure we can deliver a fantastic Games in 2022.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make it his policy to establish an online Coronavirus charity support finder to signpost Government financial support that is available.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The £750 million funding package announced by the Government on 8 April is to ensure charities providing frontline services to vulnerable people affected by the pandemic can continue their vital work. £360m is being distributed via individual government departments based on evidence of service need. Up to £200m of this will directly support hospices and be administered by the Department of Health and Social Care. Departments are using a range of approaches to allocating funding in order to meet identified needs quickly, including bidding processes and awarding funding directly. Applications are now open for funding for the distribution of food to vulnerable people, safe accommodation for survivors of domestic abuse, armed services charities, and charities working to tackle loneliness and homelessness. Further information has been released on gov.uk.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will publish an online resource signposting charities to these funding opportunities available for applications through government departments. We expect this resource to be published shortly.