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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of arranging with the Independent Community News Network and the Publish Interest News Foundation for a portion of public health campaign spending to be disbursed across the independent media sector.

The government recognises the vital role of independent newspapers in supporting communities by ensuring the provision of reliable, high-quality information throughout the current pandemic. Safeguarding the UK’s news media so that they are able to continue to provide this is a key priority for the government and we are in regular dialogue with a range of stakeholders, including publishers, the Independent Community News Network and the Public Interest News Foundation to ensure that our response to the challenges they are facing is as effective and wide reaching as it can be.

The government will continue to consider all possible options in the interests of promoting and sustaining high-quality news journalism. Never have the activities of journalists been more popular and critical; providing quality news to all, including those self-isolating, and binding communities together, a fundamental function of our modern day democracy.