Culture in Parliament - December 2022

Culture Counts monitors the Scottish and UK Parliament for discussions and questions about the Culture Sector. We’ve listed recent committee business and chamber questions in each house below.

The link attached to each item will take you to the Official Report, where you can read the Government response and further discussion around each item.


Scottish Parliament:

Small Business Saturday 2022, 1 December 2022

Motion S6M-06414

Michelle Tomson, Falkirk East

(Extract): Figures from the Scottish Parliament SPICe briefing, Scotland’s Business Base: Facts and Figures, showing that, in 2020, sole proprietors, owner-manager or employee director companies, mainly in the arts or education fields, accounted for 70% of the 364,310 private sector enterprises in Scotland and contributed 14% of employment in Scotland

Portfolio Question Time, Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, 7 December 2022

Cinemas and Edinburgh Film Festival (Closures)

Question by Foysol Choudhury, Lothian

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any progress that has been made in finding a solution to save the Belmont Filmhouse in Aberdeen and the Edinburgh Filmhouse and Edinburgh International Film Festival from permanent closure. (S6O-01644)

Heritage Sites (Reopening)

Question by Finlay Carson, Galloway and West Dumfries

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to Historic Environment Scotland to ensure that heritage sites are fully reopened as soon as possible. (S6O-01645)


House of Commons

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Oral Questions, 1 December 2022

Question by Sir Desmond Swayne, New Forest West

What steps her Department is taking to support the film and television industry. (902501)

Question by Sarah Green, Chesham and Amersham

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of Arts Council England funding decisions on leading cultural institutions. (902503)

DCMS Select Committee

Our Colleagues at Culture Commons produce insightful summaries of meetings of the DCMS Select Committee. Their summaries for the two most recent meetings of the committee can be found below:

DCMS Committee meeting summary – 1 December 2022

DCMS Committee meeting summary – 22 November 2022