Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what financial support he is providing to the cultural and arts sector during the covid-19 outbreak.

Last year the government announced the unprecedented £1.57 billion support package for the culture sector, of which over £1 billion has now been allocated to almost 3,800 arts and culture organisations across the country and a further £500 million to enable the film and TV sector to restart production. This funding is supporting the arts and culture sector to survive the pandemic and continue operating. On 4 March, the Chancellor announced over £400 million in additional funding for arts, culture and heritage industries, including £300 million additional funding for the Culture Recovery Fund, to continue to support key cultural organisations as audiences begin to return.

The £300 million additional funding for the Culture Recovery Fund will continue to support key cultural organisations; bridge the sector as audiences begin to return; and continue to ensure a vibrant future for the culture sector as the nation recovers from the pandemic. The Fund covers charitable and private organisations of all sizes in the arts, museums, heritage sectors as well as music venues, festivals and independent cinemas.

The Government’s other unprecedented packages of support includes bespoke support schemes for those who are self employed. SEISS has so far helped c.2.7 million self employed. Details on future SEISS support were announced by the Chancellor in his Budget Statement with an extension of the scheme to September 2021, with 600,000 more people who filed a tax return in 2019-20 now able to claim for the first time. The Government has extended the temporary reduced rate of VAT (5%) for hospitality, accommodation and attractions from 31 March to 30 September 2021. In addition, to help businesses manage the transition back to the standard rate, a 12.5% rate will then apply for a further six months, until 31 March 2022.