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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment her Department has made of the impact of rising inflation on the heritage and culture sector; and whether her Department has plans to increase funding to (a) museums, (b) galleries and (c) other heritage organisations to (i) support their continued operation and (ii) ensure their employees are paid an adequate wage.

As the Prime Minister stated to Parliament on 8 September, and as the Secretary of State for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy set out in a written ministerial statement on the same day, the government is acting to protect the UK from the spiralling costs of energy. The Government will support all business, charities and public sector organisations with their energy costs this winter, offering an equivalent guarantee to that for households for six months.

The written ministerial statement can be found here.

The Government continues to support the UK’s world-leading culture and heritage sectors, building on unprecedented support during the pandemic, and our long-term investment in these areas. My department is currently engaging with museum and heritage stakeholders to understand the impact of energy and inflation increases on the sector.