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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has for new efficiency savings in (a) her Department and (b) each of its arms length bodies.

As laid out in the Spending Review 21 Settlement, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport was required to manage a decreasing funding settlement over this period. This department’s funding was further reduced following the Machinery of Government change in February 2023. This reduction has therefore been incorporated into our yearly budget planning, ensuring greater levels of efficiency.

Our arm’s-length bodies have had to absorb below-inflation increases to their budgets through this Spending Review period, and so have been required to continuously generate further efficiencies.

Future efficiency plans will be incorporated into the next Spending Review, and this government is committed to ensuring that this department and its arm’s-length bodies are providing the greatest levels of efficiency and productivity.