Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with (a) her Greek counterpart and (b) the Board of the British Museum on the potential merits of returning the portion of the Parthenon sculptures which are held by the Museum to Athens.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Decisions relating to the care and management of the museum's collections, including loaning objects from their collection, are a matter for the Trustees of the British Museum, in accordance with the British Museum Act 1963. The British Museum is operationally independent of the Government.
We are aware that the Chair of the Trustees, George Osborne, has had talks with Greek Ministers on the issue, seeking a constructive partnership. We value the work that the British Museum does internationally, and welcome the success of their partnerships, such as the recent collaboration between the British Museum, the V&A, and the Manhyia Palace Museum in Ghana.
With regards to the legal title for the Parthenon Sculptures, the removal of the sculptures was lawful and well-documented. They were transferred to the British Museum in 1816 and have been the legal property of the British Museum, not the UK Government, since then.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will review the Government's justification to legal title for the Parthenon Sculptures held by the British Museum.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Decisions relating to the care and management of the museum's collections, including loaning objects from their collection, are a matter for the Trustees of the British Museum, in accordance with the British Museum Act 1963. The British Museum is operationally independent of the Government.
We are aware that the Chair of the Trustees, George Osborne, has had talks with Greek Ministers on the issue, seeking a constructive partnership. We value the work that the British Museum does internationally, and welcome the success of their partnerships, such as the recent collaboration between the British Museum, the V&A, and the Manhyia Palace Museum in Ghana.
With regards to the legal title for the Parthenon Sculptures, the removal of the sculptures was lawful and well-documented. They were transferred to the British Museum in 1816 and have been the legal property of the British Museum, not the UK Government, since then.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how many officials in his Department are stationed on the British Antarctic Territory as of 20 May 2024.
Answered by David Rutley
There are no officials stationed in the British Antarctic Territory. The Territory has no permanent population and is administered by officials in London. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) operates three research stations in the BAT and the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust (UKAHT) manage the historic base, post office and museum at Port Lockroy.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many staff have left the British Museum in each year since 2015.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
DCMS does not hold these data centrally.
Asked by: Baroness Debbonaire (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to promote the inclusion of deaf people in sport.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Government is dedicated to making sport in this country accessible and inclusive for everyone, including d/Deaf people.
That is why, through our arm's length body, Sport England, we have provided £1.2 million between 2022 and 2027 to support deaf sport at the grassroots level, build wider participation, and develop strong governance within UK Deaf Sport.
Sport England are also exploring a series of small-scale talent pilots for d/Deaf athletes. These pilots will see Sport England, National Governing Bodies, and UK Deaf Sport working together to explore these issues and suggest potential solutions.
The Government-funded School Games programme offers children the opportunity to take part in competitions in over 40 sports at local and regional level, including inclusive, modified versions of the sports. Since 2010, the School Games have offered 13.4 million participation opportunities for young people.
Outside of the school day, the £57 million investment in the Opening School Facilities programme allows schools to open their sport facilities outside of the core school hours. Up to 1350 schools across England have been targeted, with the funding aimed at having the most positive impact on their communities, including for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) has supported a range of funding to help widen access to heritage. For example, in 2020 they supported Funky Kids to enable families of children with D/deafness or hearing impairments to take part in social activities that taught them about local heritage, traditions and skills passed down through generations.
Arts Councils across the UK are working together with the British Film Institute to launch a free, UK-wide arts access scheme, called ‘All-In’. The pilot of this scheme is set to launch in spring 2024. This scheme will operate across the UK in arts and cultural venues, for seamless, barrier-free booking which is responsive to individual circumstances and needs, including those who are d/Deaf.
DCMS investment is enabling important accessibility upgrades in cultural venues across the country, including via infrastructure grants to DCMS-sponsored cultural bodies. The joint DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund, which is available to a wide range of museums and galleries across England, also has improvements to access and/or interpretation for visitors with disabilities as a core criterion. Recent grants have supported projects at the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford and the People’s History Museum in Manchester who are working with d/Deaf people, and other groups, to improve accessibility to their galleries and spaces.
Asked by: Baroness Debbonaire (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to reduce barriers to entry for young deaf people in (a) sport and (b) other activities.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Government is dedicated to making sport in this country accessible and inclusive for everyone, including d/Deaf people.
That is why, through our arm's length body, Sport England, we have provided £1.2 million between 2022 and 2027 to support deaf sport at the grassroots level, build wider participation, and develop strong governance within UK Deaf Sport.
Sport England are also exploring a series of small-scale talent pilots for d/Deaf athletes. These pilots will see Sport England, National Governing Bodies, and UK Deaf Sport working together to explore these issues and suggest potential solutions.
The Government-funded School Games programme offers children the opportunity to take part in competitions in over 40 sports at local and regional level, including inclusive, modified versions of the sports. Since 2010, the School Games have offered 13.4 million participation opportunities for young people.
Outside of the school day, the £57 million investment in the Opening School Facilities programme allows schools to open their sport facilities outside of the core school hours. Up to 1350 schools across England have been targeted, with the funding aimed at having the most positive impact on their communities, including for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) has supported a range of funding to help widen access to heritage. For example, in 2020 they supported Funky Kids to enable families of children with D/deafness or hearing impairments to take part in social activities that taught them about local heritage, traditions and skills passed down through generations.
Arts Councils across the UK are working together with the British Film Institute to launch a free, UK-wide arts access scheme, called ‘All-In’. The pilot of this scheme is set to launch in spring 2024. This scheme will operate across the UK in arts and cultural venues, for seamless, barrier-free booking which is responsive to individual circumstances and needs, including those who are d/Deaf.
DCMS investment is enabling important accessibility upgrades in cultural venues across the country, including via infrastructure grants to DCMS-sponsored cultural bodies. The joint DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund, which is available to a wide range of museums and galleries across England, also has improvements to access and/or interpretation for visitors with disabilities as a core criterion. Recent grants have supported projects at the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford and the People’s History Museum in Manchester who are working with d/Deaf people, and other groups, to improve accessibility to their galleries and spaces.
Asked by: Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative - Shrewsbury and Atcham)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of the incorporation of Non-Fungible Tokens into cultural objects held by (a) the British Museum and (b) other museums to (i) confirm their authenticity and (ii) help prevent their theft.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not made a specific assessment of the merits of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) in this context. The British Museum has noted that, due to the cost and resource requirements involved, and as they do not significantly mitigate risk, the Museum currently has no plans to adopt the use of NFTs in this way.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support disabled access to venues.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is committed to improving the accessibility of cultural and heritage venues across the UK for everyone.
In June 2021, the Government Disability Unit launched an enhanced programme of Disability and Access Ambassadors. As part of this, David Stanley BEM was appointed as the Arts and Culture Disability and Access Ambassador. The Department is working closely with him to improve accessibility to the sector and its venues for people with disabilities.
DCMS investment is enabling important accessibility upgrades in cultural venues across the country, including via infrastructure grants to DCMS-sponsored cultural bodies. The joint DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund also has improvements to access and/or interpretation for visitors with disabilities as a core criterion, with recent awards including new accessible doors, lifts, ramps, and signage at the People’s History Museum in Manchester, amongst other projects.
Arts Councils across the UK are also working together with the British Film Institute to launch a free, UK-wide arts access scheme, called ‘All-In’. The pilot of this scheme is set to launch in Spring 2024. This scheme will operate across the UK in arts and cultural venues, for seamless, barrier-free booking which is responsive to individual circumstances and needs.
Asked by: Lord Boateng (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they last discussed the return of artefacts of disputed ownership held in the British Museum with (1) a visiting head of state, or (2) another government.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Shadow Minister (Culture, Media and Sport)
His Majesty’s Government has regular discussions with visiting heads of state and other governments about a range of issues. If items owned by the British Museum are raised in such discussions, HM Government makes clear that decisions about such items are a matter for the Trustees of the British Museum, that the Museum is prohibited by law from deaccessioning items from its collection, and that we have no plans to change the law. The Government also highlights the extensive work the British Museum does with scholars and cultural institutions around the world to deepen understanding about all the items in its collection, and to ensure that the widest possible audience can learn from and admire them.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the British Museum spent on equality and diversity training in the 2022-23 financial year.
Answered by John Whittingdale
On 2 October, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a value for money audit of all equality, diversity and inclusion expenditure in the Civil Service. The audit will dovetail with the public sector productivity review, aiming to deliver a leaner, more efficient Government. The audit forms part of our drive to improve productivity across the public sector by driving down waste and improving performance. The findings and actions of the audit will be announced by the Chancellor in the autumn.