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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide increased funding for the Public Lending Right during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Government has recently completed a consultation on the Public Lending Right (PLR) Scheme rate per loan for the 2019 -20 PLR scheme year. The consultation sought views on the proposal to increase the rate per loan. We intend laying a Statutory Instrument to vary the rate per loan later this year to ensure eligible authors can receive payments by the end of this financial year.

There are no plans to increase the overall amount of the PLR central fund. The British Library administers the PLR Scheme on behalf of the Government and the funding level of the PLR would form part of the consideration of British Library’s overall funding at a future spending review.