Written questions by Morris.

What steps the Government is taking to strengthen the UK’s resilience to climate change, including through the (a) protection and (b) restoration of nature.

Awaiting answer.

Media and Sport, if she will (a) include cinemas as eligible recipients of capital funding for UK cultural venues and (b) introduce a (i) complementary and (ii) parallel funding scheme for cinemas.

Cinemas help to sustain our high streets whilst offering one of the most accessible and affordable cultural experiences for communities around the country.In a challenging fiscal environment, we have to make difficult choices about where to direct available funding. Whilst we have no current plans to expand the eligibility criteria of existing schemes or introduce new capital funding schemes, we continue to engage with cinema stakeholders to identify options to support the sector.Cinemas based in eligible venues can benefit from capital investment through the Creative Foundations Fund (CFF). Not-for-profit mixed arts venues in England are eligible for the CFF, including those with cinemas on site. The first round of CFF recipients included many mixed arts venues with cinemas, including Firstsite in Colchester, the Rich Mix Cultural Foundation in London, and the Queen’s Hall Arts Centre in Hexham. We are also supporting the cinema sector through permanently lower business rates multipliers; public funding schemes through the British Film Institute including the National Lottery Audience Projects Fund and the Film Audience Network; and our significant investment in stimulating production - including through generous tax credits and the £75 million Screen Growth Package we announced in the Creative Industries Sector Plan - which creates the strong slate of films cinemas need to thrive.

Media and Sport, how her Department plans to support the BBC in growing the North East’s creative economy.

The BBC is a vital national institution and an engine of the nations and regions, including the North East of England. In that context, this news is concerning for the BBC workforce who are facing significant uncertainty, and for the sector as a whole. The BBC is delivering significant savings, which requires difficult decisions to be made independent of the Government. The BBC have stated that there will be more information on their plans later this year. Looking ahead, the Charter Review aims to deliver a BBC that is sustainably funded in a way that sets the BBC on a path to thrive until well into the latter half of this century. The Charter Review will consider how the BBC can support the creative economy and drive growth across the UK.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support rural sports clubs.

The Government is committed to supporting grassroots sport clubs, including those in rural areas, which play an important role within communities across the country. The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport clubs through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery Funding. They invest in over 90 Place Partnerships in various locations across the country, including in rural areas, to promote sport and physical activity.

Media and Sport, whether she plans to re-join Creative Europe.

This Government does not have any plans to rejoin Creative Europe, though we are committed to finding constructive ways to work with the EU and deliver for the British people on shared priorities and global challenges.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the availability of quality roadside facilities on recruitment and retention of HGV drivers.

Through the Rapid Evidence Assessment published in October 2023, the Department has assessed the potential impact of the availability and quality of roadside facilities on HGV driver recruitment and retention, finding that inadequate facilities can act as a deterrent to entering and remaining in the profession. In addition, the Department also published the National Survey of Lorry Parking in September 2022, which identified shortages in HGV parking and concerns about the quality and security of welfare facilities. In response, the Department launched the HGV Parking Match Funding Grant Scheme to improve driver welfare and increase secure parking provision, delivering up to £35.7 million of joint investment from government and industry in 30 counties across England. This is on top of up to £30 million investment in lorry parking by National Highways and industry in lorry parks along the strategic road network in England, The Department is currently undertaking a new National Lorry Parking Survey, which will provide up to date and comprehensive evidence on the availability and quality of lorry parking in England. The survey is scheduled to be published in autumn 2026.

What steps she has taken with Cabinet colleagues to increase local roads maintenance funding.

The Government has committed a record level of funding for local authorities to repair, renew and fix potholes; totalling over £2 billion annually by 2029-30. This is double the amount provided by the previous government – and it ensures that we will exceed our manifesto commitment to fix an additional 1 million potholes in each year of this Parliament.

Media and Sport, what opportunities her department has for independent cinemas to apply for national support schemes.

Independent cinemas play an important role in our communities, providing an accessible form of culture for people across the UK. Independent cinemas can apply for various public funding schemes through DCMS's Arm's Length Bodies if they meet the eligibility criteria. For example, through the British Film Institute, cinemas can access support for audience-facing projects through the BFI National Lottery Audience Projects Fund; and can join the BFI Film Audience Network and apply for funding to support projects that bring audiences together for screenings of UK independent and international films. Cinemas based in not-for-profit mixed arts venues in England may also meet the eligibility criteria for Arts Council England's Creative Foundations Fund; we estimate this applies to approximately 13% of the 218 full-time independent cinemas in the UK. This sector will also benefit from permanently lower business rates multipliers for Retail, Hospitality and Leisure venues, starting this year.

Media and Sport, if Science and Discovery Centres can apply to any of the support schemes for cultural venues announced in the press release of 21 January 2026, entitled ‘Government announces bumper £1.5 billion package to restore national pride.

In January 2026, the Government announced a package of £1.5 billion Arts Everywhere funding to support arts, culture libraries and heritage over the course of this parliament. The vast majority of this funding is capital investment, and is the single biggest Government investment in arts capital in over a decade.This investment will support more than 1,000 cultural projects to open up access to culture for everyone, everywhere. It will keep venues open, finance urgent repairs and infrastructure projects, bolster long-term resilience, and widen access to arts and culture in communities that have faced under-investment.Science and Discovery Centres play an important role supporting science education and fostering curiosity. The Government's response to the 2025 Curriculum and Assessment Review addressed the Science curriculum, whilst the Department for Science Innovation and Technology, and its agencies, such as UKRI, are committed to supporting pathways into STEM careers. Science and Discovery Centres that are accredited museums may be eligible for some of the recently announced funds. Eligibility criteria, and details of how to apply for individual funds, will be published in due course.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps are being taken to ensure the enforcement of regular risk assessment and monitoring of private water supplies by local authorities as per their responsibilities outlined in the Private Water Supplies Regulations 2016.

Private water supplies are regulated by local authorities. They are responsible for identifying risks to the quality of the water and must have comprehensive monitoring programmes in place to sample the drinking water for any element, organism or substance that they believe may cause the supply not to be wholesome. Defra expects all local authorities to undertake their statutory duties. Local authorities are regularly reminded of their duties, and where they may not be being complied with, in the Chief Inspector of Drinking Water’s annual reports on the quality of private water supplies in England. Local authorities’ compliance with reporting duties is raised by officials from Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government through their regular liaison meeting with the Local Government Association.

Innovation and Technology, what steps she is taking to provide reliable broadband service to rural areas that fall into the category of ‘Very Hard to Reach’, and outside of the scope of contracts already awarded as part of the roll out of Project Gigabit.

Through a combination of commercial market and government subsidised delivery, government is ensuring 99% of UK premises will have access to gigabit-capable broadband by 2032. However, our expectation is that some remote premises will remain too expensive to build a gigabit connection to.The market for ultrafast, alternative connections via technologies such as LEO satellite and 5G fixed wireless access is developing at pace. Government continues to monitor and support the development of this market, including encouraging spectrum releases and ground station deployments, with many remote premises are already adopting these servicesWe continue to consider what the government can do to further enable alternatives to fibre connections, for premises located in very hard to reach and rural areas.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to mitigate the loss and fragmentation of open moorland habitats across the UK.

Moorland areas contain a wide variety of habitats and species of importance. We are committed, through grant programmes such as Landscape Recovery, Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier, the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL), to creating a network of bigger, better and more resilient habitats to help nature thrive. Additionally, Defra, in partnership with Dr Hilary Cottam OBE, has been working closely with upland communities across England to better understand the unique challenges and opportunities in these landscapes. These insights are being shared across Defra and next steps are being developed.

Whether the document entitled Government’s Principles of Engagement, published on 14 March 2024, remains active; and whether those principles should guide engagement with stakeholders and the public during government consultations.

The Government Principles of Engagement was published under the 2022 to 2024 Conservative government. Responsibility for decisions and due diligence around who departments engage with sits with those departments and the appropriate policy areas.It is for individual government departments to decide to use these principles, or their own due diligence processes around engagement.

Innovation and Technology, further to the Westminster Hall debate of 14 January 2026 titled ‘impact of Science and Discovery Centres on national science and technology priorities', whether science and discovery centres now fall within the remit of her department.

Science and Discovery Centres are primarily cultural institutions and visitor attractions which would normally fall under the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) remit.Where they carry out research, they are funded for those activities, for example through UK Research and Innovation or other funders.DSIT is engaging with DCMS to discuss how government’s relationship with these important institutions can best be supported.

What evaluation has been undertaken to ensure the reintroduced maintenance grants will reach the students who need them most and what steps are being taken to ensure high take-up rates among students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds in Northumberland.

This government is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to attend higher education.Targeted maintenance grants from the academic year 2028/29 onwards will provide up to £1,000 extra support per year to students from low income households studying courses aligned with the government’s missions and Industrial Strategy. It will be crucial that the subject list is informed by the best and most up-to-date evidence on skills needs, and we will confirm which subjects will be eligible for grants closer to launch. The grants will be available to new and continuing students undertaking full-time courses at levels 4 to 6, including technical qualifications and degrees, at university or college.In parallel, we have established a Task and Finish Group to tackle regional disparities in access and the most systemic barriers across the journey into higher education for disadvantaged students.

Whether she has plans to increase the number of state school students able to study Latin and the Classics.

The government is committed to supporting a broad and balanced curriculum that is inclusive and accessible to all pupils. The study of classics and ancient languages can teach pupils valuable lessons in history, politics and art that are still relevant today. All schools are free to include Latin, Ancient Greek and classics as part of their curriculum, and there are GCSEs and A levels available in all three subjects. The department has worked with organisations such as Classics for All, The Classical Association and Hands Up Education to ensure schools are aware of free support available to help teach these subjects.We also continue to provide bursaries for trainee language teachers, including ancient languages. For the 2026/27 academic year, this will be £20,000.

What data the Department holds on the expected changes in childcare demand in the North East associated with childcare measures in the Child Poverty Strategy.

It is the government’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. As part of the Child Poverty Strategy, the government will provide Universal Credit childcare support to help with the childcare costs for all children instead of limiting this to two children, supporting parents who have larger families into work The Strategy sets out how we intend to monitor and evaluate the impacts of the strategy, including understanding how this varies across the UK and for different groups.

Media and Sport, what assessment the Department has made of tourism’s contribution to the North East's rural economy.

DCMS recognises tourism’s vital contribution to the economy of the North East, where a diverse range of historic sites and natural landmarks, from the architectural heritage of Alnwick Castle and Hexham Abbey to the expansive Kielder Water & Forest Park, support the local economy.The British Tourist Authority’s data for Northumberland, which incorporates Hexham, reveals that for inbound travel, Northumberland welcomed 35.6k visits, 191.8k nights and a spend of £20.7 million in 2024. For domestic visits, Northumberland welcomed 800k trips, 2.6 million bednights and a spend of £225 million from September 2022 to September 2024.Destination North East England’s Quarterly Research Report for Spring 2025, reported that the North East region’s visitor economy is worth £6.6 billion and supports almost 63,000 jobs. The report also notes that North East England welcomed 68.44 million visitors and hosted 7.82 million overnight visitors in 2024.

What data the Department holds on the expected changes in childcare demand in Hexham constituency associated with childcare measures in the Child Poverty Strategy.

It is the government’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. As part of the Child Poverty Strategy, the government will provide Universal Credit childcare support to help with the childcare costs for all children instead of limiting this to two children, supporting parents who have larger families into work The Strategy sets out how we intend to monitor and evaluate the impacts of the strategy, including understanding how this varies across the UK and for different groups.

Media and Sport, what estimate her Department has made of the potential economic impact of tourism on Hexham.

DCMS recognises tourism’s vital contribution to the economy of the North East, where a diverse range of historic sites and natural landmarks, from the architectural heritage of Alnwick Castle and Hexham Abbey to the expansive Kielder Water & Forest Park, support the local economy.The British Tourist Authority’s data for Northumberland, which incorporates Hexham, reveals that for inbound travel, Northumberland welcomed 35.6k visits, 191.8k nights and a spend of £20.7 million in 2024. For domestic visits, Northumberland welcomed 800k trips, 2.6 million bednights and a spend of £225 million from September 2022 to September 2024.Destination North East England’s Quarterly Research Report for Spring 2025, reported that the North East region’s visitor economy is worth £6.6 billion and supports almost 63,000 jobs. The report also notes that North East England welcomed 68.44 million visitors and hosted 7.82 million overnight visitors in 2024.