Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the rise in (1) unemployment, and (2) economic inactivity, highlighted in the Office for National Statistics data, published on 16 April; and what steps they are taking to support individuals transitioning back into employment.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department monitors a wide range of indicators to understand trends in employment, unemployment and inactivity. This is in line with advice from the ONS who say “we would advise caution when interpreting short-term changes in headline rates and recommend using them as part of our suite of labour market indicators” given the recent volatility in Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates.
DWP supports people across the country to move into and progress in work and is committed to reducing economic inactivity. The Department delivers comprehensive employment support including through face-to-face time with Work Coaches in our Jobcentres and via more intensive contracted employment programmes. Last year we also announced a wide range of additional support via the Spring Budget and the Back to Work Plan including extending and expanding our Restart scheme, announcing our new WorkWell service and expanding Additional Jobcentre Support.
Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to page 88 of his Department's Annual Report and Account 2022-23, what progress his Department has made on geographical case studies to understand local delivery challenges of the Restart programme.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The evaluation of the Restart Scheme, including research using geographical case studies, is being used to inform delivery of the Restart programme.
Asked by: Andy Carter (Conservative - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many grants were made to film and TV production companies through the (a) Global Screen Fund, (b) Film and TV Production Restart Scheme, (c) Creative industries: Sector Deal and (d) Creative Industries Sector Vision since 2010; and what the total value was of these grants.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government is committed to the continued success of the Film and TV sectors and we have a consistent track record of supporting them. Funding from DCMS has, and continues to, provide critical support to production companies across the UK:
The £21 million UK Global Screen Fund was introduced in 2021. Since inception it has supported 179 awards totalling £13.91 million. You can find out more about the awards made and the pilot year evaluation via: https://www.bfi.org.uk/get-funding-support/funding-support-international-activity/uk-global-screen-fund
The £500 million Film and TV Production Restart Scheme was established in 2020. It did not provide grant funding, but allowed 1,259 productions to purchase indemnity cover during the pandemic. Claims for compensation are currently being processed and are expected to total £49.5m, with 348 claims paid at September 2023. You can find out more about the scheme through the impact evaluation which was published in April 2023 via: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/film-and-tv-production-restart-scheme-impact-evaluation
The Creative Industries Sector Deal and the Creative Industries Sector Vision covered a wide range of schemes including the measures mentioned above. It is not possible to provide figures on the number of production companies supported and total value of grants provided across all these measures. However, there are ongoing evaluations for individual programmes which we would encourage you to look at where available.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department plans to spend on the Restart Scheme in the next three financial years; and if he will make an estimate of the number of people who will be supported through that scheme in the same period.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Referrals to the current Restart Scheme will be made up to June 2024, offering participants up to a year of support. As of the end of February 2024, around 150,000 people were receiving support and the majority will continue participating into 2024/25; in addition, around a further 50,000 are expected to start before June 2024. Spend over the next three financial years relating to supporting these people is expected to be around £400m, with the scheme operating on Payment by Result contracts.
In the Autumn Statement 2023, funding was approved to extend the Restart Scheme, taking referrals between July 2024 and June 2026. It is estimated that the extension will support around a further 500,000 people from two years of referrals. Funding of around £1bn has been agreed for the extension, with some of this expenditure expected to fall beyond the 2026/27 financial year due to the fact the scheme operates Payment by Results.
Please note
Asked by: Neil Hudson (Conservative - Penrith and The Border)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has taken recent steps to support independent cinemas.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government recognises that cinemas are a hugely important part of the UK’s fantastic film industry and has been supporting them throughout the uncertainties of the past several years with the pandemic and rising energy costs.
We supported more than 200 independent cinemas through the pandemic, who received £34.4 million from the Culture Recovery Fund as well as benefiting from other pan-economy measures. The Government has also delivered an £18 billion package of support through the Energy Bill Relief Scheme supporting businesses - including cinemas, arts venues, and charities - through the winter.
The Government’s £500m Film and TV Production Restart Scheme also helped keep the cameras rolling at the other end of the screen supply chain. The scheme supported over 100,000 jobs and productions worth more than £3 billion. To build on this, and support the industry to not only survive but thrive, further actions have been taken. This includes the Government’s current £1.6 million annual funding of the British Film Commission, the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund, and the continued success of our screen sector tax reliefs. This has been further bolstered at Spring Budget 2024 with the new UK Independent Film Tax Credit, with films with budgets up to £15 million being eligible for an increased benefit of 53% - which is estimated to increase spending on independent films by 70% before 2032.
The British Film Institute (BFI), a DCMS Arms Length Body, is also conscious of the pressures faced by the cinema sector. The BFI’s Film Audience Network (BFI FAN) is a collaboration of 8 film hubs, managed by leading film organisations and venues around the UK. Film hubs are centres of expertise and support that connect cinemas, festivals and creative practitioners. You can also read more about the National Lottery funding the BFI makes available to bring film to a wider UK audience, including through BFI FAN, at: https://www.bfi.org.uk/get-funding-support/bring-film-wider-uk-audience.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
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 to support the (a) growth and (b) development of the creative industries in South Wales.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK Government has a clear plan to grow the creative industries by a further £50 billion and add another 1 million jobs by 2030. As set out in the Creative Industries Sector Vision, we are committed to working with industry and the devolved administrations to ensure our creative industries continue to be the best in the world. As part of this, we invited Creative Wales to become a member of the Creative Industries Council to ensure they are represented in discussions about the UK’s creative industries.
Culture and the creative industries are devolved policy areas. The UK Government has provided opportunities to support Welsh creative businesses through the following programmes:
The UK-wide Film & TV Restart scheme which supported 1,259 individual film and TV productions and £3.06 billion in production expenditure through the pandemic. Wales received £287.5 million – the largest share of funding of any nation after England (c.9%).
The £56 million Creative Clusters programme was announced in the 2018 Sector Deal: and supported R&D across the Cardiff Clwstwr one of 9 first-wave of clusters across the UK. The Clusters programme has generated approximately £252 million of private co-investment, creating or safeguarding over 4000 jobs.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 20 December 2023 to Question 7037 on Restart Scheme, if the Department will publish the results of the first Customer Satisfaction Measure survey.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There is no current plan to publish the full results of the first Customer Satisfaction Measure survey. DWP already publish the overall Customer Satisfaction Measure rate. The full results are used internally to improve delivery.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to extend the restart scheme beyond 2025.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As announced in the 2023 Autumn Statement, DWP is looking to extend the Restart Scheme for an extra two years with final referrals being made in June 2026.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the film and television industry in England, including the freelance workforce, and to encourage investment from the US, following the industrial action by Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists in 2023.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
His Majesty’s Government has set out a clear plan to grow the creative industries by a further £50 billion and to add another 1 million jobs in the sector by 2030. That includes supporting the growth of the television and film industry.
Since 2010, HM Government has introduced a range of tax reliefs across the creative industries, including expanded relief for film and high-end television. Our screen sector tax relief is estimated to be worth more than £13 billion in Gross Value Added to the UK economy.
We have taken a number of additional steps to ensure that British film and television companies are able to invest in production, expand their businesses, and offer opportunities for cast and crew across the UK, in spite of production disruption resulting from the pandemic and the recent strike action in the United States of America.
This includes the £500 million Film and TV Production Restart Scheme and the Culture Recovery Fund for Independent Cinemas. To build on this, and support the industry not only to survive but to thrive, the Government has taken further actions. This includes our support for the British Film Institute and British Film Commission, which has helped drive a near doubling of UK studio capacity, and the £28 million UK Global Screen Fund, which is expanding the global reach of UK independent content. The sector also benefits from the continued success of our screen sector tax reliefs (for film, high-end TV, animation and children’s TV), which in 2021–22 provided £792 million of support for over 1,000 projects.
We recognise the impact of the American strikes on the film and TV workforce. HMRC has a ‘Time to Pay’ policy which may provide some support to affected cast and crew. This policy allows people experiencing temporary financial difficulty to schedule their tax debts in affordable, sustainable, and tailored instalments with no maximum repayment period. These arrangements can be applied to any tax debt and are flexible, so they can be amended if circumstances change.
In the Creative Industries Sector Vision, the Government set out an ambition to improve the job quality and working practices of the sector, including supporting the high proportion of freelancers in the sector. This includes promoting fair treatment and working practices, enhancing support networks and resources for creative freelancers through Creative UK's Redesigning Freelancing initiative. DCMS and the industry will also continue to work together to produce an action plan in response to the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre’s Good Work Review, and proposals include the recent launch of the British Film Institute’s £1.5 million Good Work Programme for screen. The Government will continue to work with the BFI and the newly established screen sector Skills Task Force to support a strong skills pipeline in the sector and attractive careers pathways into the industry.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2023 to Question 208 on Restart Scheme, for what reason the Customer Satisfaction Measure results of the Restart Scheme are not published.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP publish Key Performance Indicators for the Restart Scheme, which includes the overall Customer Satisfaction Measure rate. The full results are used internally to improve delivery.