Written evidence from the Secretary of
State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport
During the recent session of the Culture, Media
and Sport Select Committee on the DCMS Annual Report and Accounts,
I undertook to write with further information on a variety of
matters.
HERITAGE PROTECTION
BILL
I share the Committee's disappointment that
it has not been possible to include a Heritage Protection Bill
in the 2009-10 legislative programme. I will, however, look to
introduce a Bill as soon as Parliamentary time allows. Even without
a Bill, though, it is clear that there are a number of ways to
help the heritage protection system work better.
Although the legislative route was our preferred
one, a number of aspects of the Bill can be delivered without
legislation. In particular, we are working with English Heritage,
Communities and Local Government and others to:
— publish a new Planning Policy Statement
on the historic environment (draft published for consultation
July 2009);
— agree a clear statement of the Government's
vision and priorities for the historic environment which will
be published in the autumn;
— make changes to the current heritage
designation systems to ensure they operate as effectively as possible
within the current legislative framework;
— improve online access to information
about designated heritage assets via the Heritage Gateway;
— increase public engagement with heritage
protection and introduce a more strategic and planned approach
through English Heritage's Strategic Designation programme; and
— build capacity through the continuation
of English Heritage's training programmes for local authorities.
Unfortunately, in the absence of primary legislation,
it will not be possible to take forward all the measures in the
Bill, including the single unified designation system, interim
protection for heritage assets under consideration for designation,
the transfer of responsibility for granting Scheduled Monument
Consent to local authorities and statutory status for historic
environment records. However, without a statutory right of appeal
against designation decisions, the informal listing review process
will continue to operate.
GAMBLING
The Hon Member for Shipley asked for my views
on gambling and the performance of the Gambling Commission. The
Commission is, of course, a relatively new body, but an assessment
under the Gateway arrangements of the Office of Government Commerce
was positive about the way in which the Commission completed its
start up phase in 2007. A subsequent Hampton Implementation Review,
instigated by the Commission itself and published in April 2009,
found that the Commission was committed to the Hampton principles
of effective and efficient regulation, but would need to implement
its plans in areas such as risk analysis and the development of
its engagement with businesses. These reviews show an organisation
that has achieved much in establishing itself and the new regulatory
regime, but has more work to do, including the development of
risk based regulation, the identification and delivery of simplification
measures and ensuring effective and efficient co-regulation with
local government. I know the Commission is committed to these
objectives and continues to work with its partners, including
my department, local government and the industry, to deliver them.
I appreciate the concerns about the recent increase
in Gambling Commission fees, particularly during the current economic
climate, but my department looked very carefully at the evidence
presented by the Commission and the views expressed in the public
consultation before agreeing to the changes to fees earlier this
year.
Despite efficiencies which reduced costs by
£2.4 million against original plans, it was clear that the
assumptions on which the fees had been based in 2006 had delivered
insufficient income to fund the Commission's activities. So, while
fees for around 20% of operators remain frozen, annual fees increased
by 4.75% or 6.25% for most. However, total fee levels had not
been increased since 2006 and I do not anticipate any further
aggregate increase in fees until 2011 at the earliest.
The Hon Member for Shipley suggested that some
in the industry thought the Commission knew very little about
gambling. I do not agree with that view, but would be happy to
raise the Committee's points with the Commission and ask them
to respond to you in writing.
I am aware of the bingo industry's concerns
arising from the increase in bingo duty announced as part of the
2009 Budget. Whilst taxation is a matter for the Chancellor, officials
from my department do have regular meetings with the Treasury
to ensure that the concerns of DCMS sectors are fully considered
when the Chancellor makes his decisions on tax and duty.
We also discussed the issue of gambling addiction
associated with fixed price gaming machines. I recognise wider
concerns about the potential harm these gaming machines, and other
types of high stake, high prize machines, might cause. That is
why, at our request, the Gambling Commission prioritised work
on identifying what further research was needed to understand
the impact of these types of machines on problem gambling. They
made recommendations to Ministers in July 2009, and the Responsible
Gambling Strategy Board have highlighted the need to develop a
programme of work around this issue as one of their key priorities.
In the meantime, the Department remains committed to undertaking
a review of stake and prize levels for all category B machines
in 2009 and an announcement on this will be made shortly.
THE SUSTAIN
PROGRAMME
We are delighted that Arts Council England have
already allocated around £17m worth of funding through the
scheme so far, with a number of further applications to consider.
This was an innovative and swift response to the present economic
circumstances and will enable organisations to continue to provide
high quality artistic programmes.
I cannot comment on the future of the scheme, as
this is an Arts Council England initiative, funded from National
Lottery reserves. However, I understand that they are currently
undertaking a review of Sustain before deciding if further action
is needed to support artistic excellence through the recession
and, if so, what form this might take.
WEST BROMWICH
ARTS CENTRE
(THE PUBLIC)
With regards to "The Public", the
Arts Centre in West Bromwich that was raised during our discussion,
I must reiterate that Arts Council England make their decisions
independently from Government. I have confidence in their professional
judgement and it would be inappropriate for me to get involved
in the detail of individual cases.
Arts Council England made a final funding award to
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council in response to their latest
business plan in July 2009. I am pleased to see that The Public
is now open and has achievable business milestones in place. I
hope that the building proves to be a success which will bring
much pleasure to the people of Sandwell.
The Arts Council has agreed with the NAO that
it will take into account the lessons learnt from past decisions,
including The Public, when it develops any future capital funding
programmes.
ILLEGAL FILE
SHARING
On the issue of illegal file sharing, I said
to the committee that a court order would be needed before technical
measures could be taken. For clarity, it might be helpful if I
set out the proposed process: to initiate the process leading
to technical measures a court order would be needed by rights
holders if they wanted ISPs to release details of the most serious
infringers. At the stage at which technical measures or account
suspension are threatened, we propose that the alleged infringer
would have a right of appeal, and ultimately this may be heard
by a First Tier Tribunal (the second court stage I referred to).
The obligation to appeal rests with the alleged infringer.
As I asserted during our discussion, the matter of
costs is something that will be covered as part of the Regulatory
Impact Assessment issued in the context of the Bill, which will
be the most appropriate vehicle to provide this information.
November 2009
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