David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding his Department has allocated to the maintenance of war memorials in each of the next three years; what steps it takes to ensure that war memorials are maintained to a high standard; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The DCMS-run Memorial Grant Scheme has a budget of £543,000 for this financial year. Grants are available to charities and faith groups, and can be used to repair and maintain war memorials. The Government has today announced that it will give the War Memorials Trust up to £3 million over the First World War centenary period to boost the funds available to local communities for the repair and conservation of war memorials. English Heritage, Imperial War Museums and Civic Voice will together be given £1.5 million over the same period to deliver better protection through Listing, a greater pool of specialist skills, a national register of war memorials, and a network of trained volunteers.