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 merits of expanding funding for cultural organisations to include independent cinemas.

I am very proud to have announced in January a significant package of funding for arts and cultural organisations. I do, however, understand the sector's disappointment that funding for cinemas was not included in that announcement. We are still operating within a challenging fiscal climate, and across government we have had to make very difficult decisions about where to direct available funding.

We know that, very often, a local cinema is one of the few - if not the only - cultural offer in a place, and the government does not underestimate the challenges that continue to face cinemas across the country. My department will continue to work closely with the BFI, UK Cinema Association, and the sector more widely to actively explore how we can best support our cinemas, and in doing so increase opportunities for people to access cultural experiences.