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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he has taken to underwrite the £270 million of repayable finance in his funding package for arts and cultural organisations in England; and what the repayment timeframe is for those loans.

The Repayable Finance Scheme is intended to assist larger organisations who need more than £3m, and that have a history of financial resilience. Thorough financial checks will be conducted prior to awards being granted, and recipients will need to demonstrate financial viability as a result of receiving the award. This support package represents the most cost effective way of preventing key cultural and heritage organisations from insolvency, and the repayable finance option will ensure a return to the taxpayer on their investment.

Loans will be available on generous terms including a payment term of up to 20 years, an initial repayment holiday of up to four years and a 2% interest rate per annum. Further details are available in the guidance published by Arts Council England.