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• Grant funding will directly benefit over 2000 people across the country
• Over £1.25 million so far this year awarded to projects marking the 100th anniversary of some women winning the right to vote
• Only 32% women MPs sit in the House of Commons

Seventeen large projects have been awarded £406,667 to increase diversity in politics, the Minister for Women announced today.

The new support, from a £1.5 million government fund, will back local projects supporting women and young people, especially disabled people, LGBT people and those from black and minority ethnic groups, to get involved in democracy and politics.

The organisations will set up a range of programmes directly benefitting at least 2347 people – including making documentaries celebrating women’s involvement in social groups, participating in a mock House of Commons debate, and building a website encouraging people with learning disabilities to vote.

Minister for Women, Victoria Atkins, said:

The brave women who fought for the equal rights of women and men to vote must be honoured. Today we have the highest number of women in history sitting in the House of Commons. However, at only 32% women MPs we have a long way to go before we see true equality.

By funding these innovative projects we will inspire women and young people across the country to become active participants in our democracy. We want to see a new generation of women raise their voices, get stuck in and see how they can make a difference in their local communities and across the country.

This year, we are not just celebrating the achievements of the women who came before us – we are helping women here and now to take action to benefit the women of the next hundred years

The grant scheme is part of a £5 million centenary fund to open politics to the public – celebrating the centenary, educating young people about its significance, and encouraging more women to get involved and have an equal voice in the decisions that affect them.

The rest of the funding is being spent on:

• the first ever statue of a woman in Parliament Square – Millicent Fawcett
• local events and activities in the Centenary Cities (seven cities and towns in England with a strong suffrage history)
• a suite of education programmes and resources that engage young people with democracy
• initiatives to encourage more people to participate in politics such as an Ask Her to Stand event for potential women politicians
• National events celebrating the centenary including:
  • the suffrage Processions this June in the four capital cities of the UK.
  • the closing ceremony of the Great Exhibition of the North – the North Star

Notes to editors:

The Women’s Votes Centenary Grant Scheme’s objectives are to fund projects that celebrate the centenary, encourage young people to engage with democracy and increase the number of women participating in politics. It has a total pot of £1.5 million and is administered by Ecorys UK in two funding streams for large and small projects.

The final round of the Grant Scheme will run Tuesday 4th September to Tuesday 16 October and is for small events to celebrate the centenary, particularly the anniversaries of the Act allowing women to stand for Parliament (on 21 November) and the General Election of 1918 (on 14 December). The Scheme is particularly keen to encourage applications from eastern regions in England including the South East, East Midlands, East of England and North East as they are currently underrepresented.

Further details can be found at the website for the grant scheme

Previously, our grant scheme has awarded around £850,000 to 157 projects.

149 inspiring grassroots events have received over £240,000 and 8 large national and regional projects have been awarded over £600,000

The 8 large projects already funded by the Grant Scheme earlier this year include:

• The Step up to Democracy project led by Saathi House who received around £68,972 earlier this year to offer training and political leadership programme for Bangladeshi and Pakistani women who want to become local leaders in three locations, Birmingham, Bradford and Keighley. The participants are currently halfway through the programme and, as part of their leadership training, will go on to mentor other women in their communities.
• 36 online centres across England which are hosting Voice Box Cafes between July and December 2018. This £124,311 project run by the Good Things Foundation provides sessions for excluded women to gain digital and campaigning skills.
• The Essex Diversity Project which is using their £60,025 grant to run events across Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk from August to December 2018 celebrating the life of prominent suffragette Sophia Duleep Singh. The events include academic talks, creative writing workshops, a touring exhibition, a new theatre piece, and a women’s history conference. Around 10 have taken place already with a further dozen events planned.
• Cinema for All who has a £65,582 grant and is currently producing an archive film chronicling women’s political and civic lives over the past 100 years with local groups in Lancashire, Yorkshire, Cheshire, Merseyside and Country Durham. There will be screenings of the film from October to December to community groups in Liverpool, Preston, Durham, Sheffield and Huddersfield alongside a series of inspiring debates, discussions, celebration events, and a far-reaching social media campaign.
• National Trust which has opened the three exhibitions and outreach programmes supported by its £114,748 grant (Women & Industry at Cragside runs April to November 2018; Faces of Change at The Workhouse, Southwell runs end of April until August 2018 with workshops May-June with a homeless charity; Soapbox Dramas at Killerton House runs 8 July – 3 November 2018).
• Jacksons Lane’s project has a grant of £65,788 to work with 16-18 year old female students in Haringey from September to December developing three art installations showing women, politics and power in 1918, 2018 and 2118. The installations will host debates by young people on women in politics for those times. They have identified the three schools who will partner them in the project, recruited the participants and set up the workshops that start when schools return in early September.
• Young Women’s Trust has a grant of £58,350 and is running training courses in October and November for women aged 16-30 building practical skills and confidence to influence conversations at a local and national level.
• Feminist Archive has a grant of £50,780 to work with young rural working class women in the South West who are helping preserve the legacy of the women’s political movement by uncovering untold feminist narratives through digital learning and educational workshops. The touring exhibition of their discoveries opens in Glastonbury on 2 September.

Today’s winners:

Women’s Resource Centres £64,992

Women’s Resource Centres (WRC) is the leading umbrella body for women’s charities nationally, representing over 500 women-focussed organisations. This project will see the development and delivery of a social leadership programme for BME women engaged in the women’s sector, either as employees or volunteers, aged between 20 and 30. The project is a two-day Personal and Organisational Leadership course; establishing a peer support network to discuss learning and engage local MPs; and a showcase event at the Palace of Westminster, organised and led by the peer support network.

Partners in Creative Learning CIC £35,000

This project will engage 60 young women in three post-16 educational settings in Stoke and North Staffs. They will:
* Explore opinions on politics, gender and civic life
* Discussions with female leaders and MPs about their own routes into democratic and civic participation
* Action learning groups around celebration of an individual or issues participants feel need to be campaigned on
* Working with artists to develop a piece (may be a film, production, exhibition) and showcase these to an audience made up of the community and key stakeholders.

Breakthrough UK Ltd £34,246

Breakthrough UK is a Manchester-based disabled people’s organisation led and staffed by disabled people. The project is 13 weekly face-to-face workshops for 5 to 10 disabled women in three areas of Greater Manchester. The workshops will facilitate discussions on the women’s and disabled people’s movements (including disabled suffragettes); support participants to train local, regional and national organisations on removing barriers to participation; build skill development, including placements, shadowing and internship opportunities; and build a sustainable peer support network. The project aims to bring together disabled people from a range of backgrounds, supporting them to understand the importance of democracy and representation. It will also allow individual beneficiaries to consider their own role in civic life, develop self-advocacy skills, and engage wider stakeholders and decision-makers such as MPs, peers and councillors.

Dorset Art £47,125

Dorset Arts Development is a social enterprise leading arts development in Dorset. The project will run a series of 8 workshops for young working class women and young women from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community encouraging greater civic participation through role play and other creative methods and will develop a theatrical performance. This will then be performed at schools in Dorset. Participants will learn about each other, democracy and how to influence decision making.

WILD Young Parents Project £25,890

This project will benefit 50 young mums across Cornwall who will learn about democracy and the basics of campaigning through interactive workshops and matched with local politicians who will mentor and support them. At the end of the project young women will create artwork. The project aims to impact beneficiaries in a number of ways; improved understanding of democracy and voting, increased motivation to engage with local democracy, increased confidence and the children of beneficiaries will have their mums’ increased understanding of democracy passed on to them.

Ashiana Community Project £20,000

Ashiana Community Project is a charity based in Sparkbrook, Birmingham, that aims to improve the social, physical and economic wellbeing of local people. The project will provide research, archiving and film making workshops for 30 young women from BME backgrounds who are disengaged from politics and civic engagements. They will learn about the women’s suffrage movement and create short documentaries celebrating BME women in social movements. The films will be shown at community venues and through social media.

Platform Thirty1 Limited £19,991.25
####Platform Thirty1 Limited is a creative grassroots organisation in Derbyshire that develops participatory art projects. The project will deliver 14 sessions including public speaking training, ‘The Chamber’ where beneficiaries participate in a fictionalised parliamentary chamber as issue-based political parties of their own debating a bill and sessions creating art work on gender parity for a public exhibition in Ilkeston. A further £11,000 has been secured from other sources.

Warrington Youth Club Limited £19,670

Warrington Youth Club is a registered charity that delivers a range of projects for young people aged 7 to 25. The project has three distinct strands. ‘Girl Power’ has a programme of activities on the importance of voting and women’s involvement in history, politics and business for 220 young women in Carlisle with learning difficulties, mental health issues or in care. ‘Brave New World’ will deliver weekly sessions to 30 women with disabilities using creative methods to explore women’s rights then and now. The third strand is a celebratory event at Chester University to present participants’ opinions from the two parts of the project.

Reform Radio Community Interest Company (Cic) £19,541

Reform Radio CIC is a community voluntary organisation that uses industry standard radio to develop well networked socially active citizens. 40 young women from Gorton, Manchester will develop skills in digital content production and interviewing local politicians. They will broadcast their work on Reform Radio’s breakfast show and finish by producing a 30 minute documentary on their experiences for Reform Radio. A celebration event with
local MPs will share their achievements and a social media campaign will stimulate debate.

United Multi Cultural Centre £18,490

United Multi Cultural Centre is a registered charity based in Rotherham supporting women to increase their participation in community life. This project will train 30 women to be advocates for female civic engagement in their communities, encouraging voting and participation. There will also be workshops on democracy and women’s political history. Participants will also visit their local Councillor’s surgeries, Rotherham Town Hall and Parliament to connect to how democracy works.

Hounslow Action For Youth Association £18,000

Hounslow Action for Youth Association is a registered charity for disadvantaged young people. “Agents For Change” weekly writing workshops run by award winning writers to better understand democracy and civic participation. They will also learn public speaking and presentation skills. They will present their work to local schools and youth centres to raise awareness of the issues faced by Gypsy, Roma and Traveller women. Their stories will be in an anthology to give a voice to marginalised women whose voices are often not heard

Transform Training Ltd £17,393

Transform Training Ltd is a registered charity based in Nottingham that works with young people with learning disabilities or mental health problems. A 12 week programme of activity for young people with disabilities will be delivered focusing on what it means to vote, why voting is important, the practicalities of voting, and how disabled young people can influence political change. They will create a new leaflet and online resource to encourage young people with learning disabilities to vote. They will use various media to raise issues that are important to them with local MPs.

It’s Your Life £16,800

It’s Your Life is a registered charity based in Tower Hamlets providing mentoring programmes. The project will increase BME women’s knowledge of UK democracy and it importance, covering how young people can register to vote, how the government and local democracy works, and the history of voting rights in the UK. The project will visit sites linked to the Suffrage movement as part of this. Participants will be awarded a certificate in ‘Understanding Government and Local Democracy’ at a celebration event and produce a tapestry depicting the women’s suffrage journey.

Friends Of The Ipswich Museums £16,000

Friends of the Ipswich Museums is a registered charity that supports all of the museums in Ipswich. ‘Women 100’ will show works by 100 women artists from Ipswich and Suffolk. Suffrage campaign workshops will explore why the suffrage campaigns were important and talks with young people will discuss democracy and voting. The project will produce a learning resource for local further education colleges.

Blueprint 22 £15,425

Blueprint 22 is a young people-led voluntary community group that delivers projects to 16 to 25 year old disabled, working class and LGBT young people with emotional and practical needs. The project provides research sessions, mentoring workshops and educational visits about politics and the political history of women to young women distanced from civic life, ending with a women’s weekend creative camp to produce an anthology of their learning through the project and celebrating their experiences of being women in 2018.

First Step North East £15,240

First Step North East is a registered charity based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne that delivers learning opportunities to BME women. The structured and accredited training programme of activities will build participants’ skills and knowledge, encouraging them to participate more fully in civic life and local decision making. It will examine the suffrage movement, gender parity and the barriers to engagement with themed workshops on ‘local women for local politics’ led by inspirational local women, and a Citizens Jury panel with invited speakers. The course will be documented on social media and finish with a celebration event.

Xenia £2,864

Xenia is a voluntary community group that helps women, many of whom are BME and/or speak English as a second language, to improve language skills and participate in activities. A series of workshops focus on women role models and political leaders, the centenary of women’s voting rights, learning and practicing the structure of how to debate, campaigning and volunteering, and practical guidance on how to respond to an open consultation exercise.

• the centre follows the Barclays’ Midlands Growth Fund, a £370 million lending fund for SMEs across the Midlands to boost jobs and growth
• new report reveals the characteristics of ‘superstar’ exporters – to further improve support for UK businesses

Minister of State for Trade and Export Promotion Baroness Fairhead opened Barclays’ new trade centre on Monday 3rd September, dedicated to helping over 1000 UK businesses to export more of their goods and services each year.

Staffed by 30 export and trade product specialists, the new centre will work to boost jobs and economic growth, enabling British businesses to start exporting sooner, or sell even more of their products in domestic and overseas markets.

The announcement is a great example of the private sector support that the Department for International Trade (DIT) is promoting as part of their new Export Strategy. This is part of a commitment to better signpost all support available to British companies.

The strategy also sets out the government’s ambition to raise exports as a percentage of GDP from 30% to 35%.

A raft of measures, including the roll out of thousands of Export Champions, increased awareness raising of the £50 billion of finance available from UK Export Finance and a boost to the number of export opportunities listed on GREAT.gov.uk were also announced as part of the strategy.

The Birmingham-based team has already started to help a number of British businesses with their export activity into markets such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, as well as Far Eastern markets such as China, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Minister of State for the Department for International Trade, Baroness Fairhead, said:

Time and again we have seen the boost that exporting gives to UK businesses. By selling their goods and services around the world, companies can increase profits, employ more workers and create businesses which endure longer.

That is why our new Export Strategy aims to increase the substance, availability and awareness of export support.

I am therefore delighted to be opening Barclays’ new trade centre today, and would encourage businesses up and down the country to make the most of the team’s expertise.

Jes Staley, Barclays Group CEO, said:

From manufacturing to agriculture, retail to digital, we are helping more UK businesses sell their goods and services to more people around the world. This trade centre is our latest initiative to make it easier for UK businesses to find their way in overseas markets, by providing the right finance, and all-important advice and guidance.

New research we have commissioned on this important subject, published today with the Policy Institute at King’s College London, shows that one important way to boost UK exports is to create more ‘superstar exporters’, or UK firms who export 10 or more products to 10 or more overseas markets. Helping these businesses to export more in turn helps smaller firms in their supply chain to grow, and to create jobs. Helping firms to become superstar exporters can deliver wider benefits to the UK economy and Barclays is determined to play its part.

The key findings from the report are:

• superstar exporters support smaller firms to export through their supply chains
• non-manufacturing production sectors are weakly represented in terms of access to trade support
• export growth associated with DIT support appears to arise mainly from access to more overseas markets
• overseas trade missions can increase the likelihood that firms start and continue exporting to a new market
• firms receiving trade support are unevenly distributed across the country

DIT will consider the recommendations in the report as part of the department’s commitment to listen to voices from across the business community with regards to trade and export support.

Further information

The West Midlands has been selected to become the innovative home to the UK’s first multi-city 5G test bed. The multi million pound trial of new high speed connectivity will pave the way for the future rollout of 5G across the UK, making the region the first in the UK ready to trial new 5G applications and services at scale.

The Urban Connected Communities Project, the next step in the Government’s 5G Testbed and Trials Programme, will develop a large-scale, 5G pilot across the region, with hubs in Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton.

Up to £50m is currently available for the project, subject to further development and approval of the business plan. This includes £25m from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and a further £25m match funding from regional partners. An additional £25m may be made available at a later stage.

Minister for Digital, Margot James said:

5G has the potential to dramatically transform the way we go about our daily lives, and we want the citizens of the UK to be amongst the first to experience all the opportunities and benefits this new technology will bring. The West Midlands Testbed, which is the first of its kind anywhere in the world, will be instrumental in helping us realise this ambition.

Following its selection through open competition, the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) will now work with the 5G Testbeds and Trials Team at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and industry partners on preparing the formal business case for approval, with the first of a series of projects expected to go live early next year.

The West Midlands Combined Authorities bid has an initial focus on the health, construction and automotive sectors, with its overarching ambition to help drive economic growth and benefit people’s lives through participation in new digital technologies and digitally transformed public services.

Subject to formal approval, initial plans include:

• Hospital outpatient appointments and emergency consultations carried out remotely by video link not subject to droppage or latency barriers. As well as being more convenient for patients, this means they can play back their appointment at a later date or share it securely with a family member or carer to help inform their care.
• “Connected Ambulances” – Paramedic crews at an incident could access specialist advice while they are at the scene, eg video conferencing with consultants or other clinical specialists. Live streaming of patient data from ambulance en route to hospital would help inform the immediate care patients receive on arrival.
• Live streaming of CCTV footage from public transport buses, enabling immediate action against anti-social behaviour. “Intelligent cameras” using artificial intelligence (AI) to identify incidents could provide the opportunity for far greater coverage than is possible at present.

Autonomous vehicles will transform the way we travel, preventing major accidents, improving traffic flow and reducing energy consumption. The WMCA will partner with Jaguar Land Rover to facilitate real world testing of driverless cars.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, said:

This announcement is game-changing for the West Midlands economy. This will be the backbone of our future economy and society.

We have been working to put the foundations in place to grow the industries which will create the jobs of the future, particularly around driverless vehicles and life sciences where we have a genuine advantage. To deliver the future of these industries we need the power of 5g.

The potential of this technology is endless – and we will enjoy the benefits first. From monitoring the health of babies and the elderly, to the way out people are linked to the economy of the future, the way companies do business, the way we deliver public services, the experience of travellers on public transport and the way we deliver City of Culture and the Commonwealth Games – everything can be made better thanks to the power of this technology.

DCMS funding for the project will come from the £200 million government has assigned to develop 5G technologies as part of more than £1bn of investment in next-generation digital infrastructure, including via the £31bn National Productivity Investment Fund (NPIF).

The 5G Testbeds and Trials Programme forms part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy, aimed at continually driving the UK’s connectivity, telecommunications and digital sectors, and investing in the skills, industries and infrastructure of the future.

Notes to Editors

1. The NPIF is designed to bolster UK productivity, which is crucial to raising living standards. Through the NPIF, the Government is investing in the vital infrastructure needed to make it easier for people to connect with others, and work remotely and flexibly.
2. West Midlands Combined Authority have committed an initial £25m of funding to the Urban Connected Communities Project, which Government will match. This will be subject to approval of the project’s business plan. Further public funding will be subject to the development of the project and the parameters of the business case. The total investment made from public funding for the entire project will be matched by commercial funding.
3. In the next phase of the Urban Connected Communities project West Midlands Combined Authority will be looking to develop partnerships with the mobile sector to design and deliver the project.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Esther McVey today urges parents with children under 12 to ensure they receive the valuable National Insurance credits which may improve their State Pension income.

Some parents may inadvertently be missing out on retirement income to which they are entitled, the Secretary of State warned today. To ensure they receive National Insurance credits parents must submit a child benefit claim, even if they opt out of receiving any payments.

Credits can help to fill gaps in National Insurance records, and help people to qualify for some contributory benefits including State Pension.

The full new State Pension is £164.35 per week – or around £8,500 a year – however, the actual amount you get depends on an individual’s National Insurance record.

Esther McVey, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said:

I urge everyone to check their eligibility and apply for any credits for which they qualify and are entitled to. Don’t miss out on potentially increased pay-outs from your future state pension.

The State Pension is a foundation for retirement. If you are caring for a child or a relative then you may be eligible for National Insurance credits which will strengthen this foundation.

National Insurance credits aim to ensure that someone’s State Pension is not affected if they are unable to work and pay National Insurance contributions.

People who are in receipt of Child Benefit (even if they don’t receive any payment), Carer’s Allowance, Universal Credit, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance and some other income replacement benefits receive National Insurance credits automatically.

People in the following circumstances may be eligible to apply for NI credits:

• looking after a relative under age 12
• foster carers
• on maternity, paternity or adoption pay
• a partner of a person in the armed forces who is serving outside the UK
• caring for someone who is elderly, unwell or disabled for more than 20 hours a week
• looking for work and not claiming Jobseekers Allowance
• ill or disabled and not claiming Employment and Support Allowance – some people on Statutory Sick Pay are also eligible for credits
• on a training course
• on jury service

Some parents may not be aware that they need to make a child benefit claim to receive the credits and some may not claim because they feel they may be subject to the High Income Child Benefit Charge. However, parents can choose to receive no payments once they’ve applied and that charge won’t apply.

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Commuters could speed up their journeys by up to 10 miles per hour by starting and finishing work just one hour later, according to new research.

The study by Highways England was carried out on a 9-mile-stretch of the M62 which links the M6 near Warrington to the M60 near Manchester. The route is used by 120,000 drivers every day and construction work is currently taking place to upgrade it to a smart motorway, increasing its capacity by a third.

Commuters had previously faced speeds of just 36 miles per hour between 5pm and 6pm when almost 9,000 drivers take to the short section of motorway on their way home from work.

The study has found that drivers who set off for work after 9am are likely to get there much more quickly than those travelling during the two hours after 7am.

Drivers using this stretch of the M62 who wait until 6pm before leaving the office are also likely to travel 10 miles per hour faster than those leaving at 5pm, or 20 miles per hour faster if they wait until 7pm – cutting journey times by around a third.

Overall, the research found that commuters travelling 20 miles each way and working the traditional 9am to 5pm day could be spending almost an hour extra on the road every week, compared to those working from 10am to 6pm.

Mike Bull, Highways England’s smart motorways programme manager for the North, said:

We all know that our roads are at their busiest during the morning and evening commute but it’s surprising that shifting our working days by just one hour could have such a significant impact on journey times.

Many people won’t have a choice about the hours they work but if some are able to start and finish work an hour later then it could benefit everyone – and save some drivers around an hour each week.

We’re also doing our bit to improve journey times for drivers at Highways England by converting some of our busiest stretches of motorway into smart motorways, adding extra lanes and using technology to prevent tailbacks caused by sudden braking.

The hard shoulders on each new smart motorway will be converted into permanent extra lanes and new emergency areas will be created for drivers to use if they break down. New CCTV cameras will also provide 100% coverage of the routes.

One of the most important signals on a smart motorway – the red X – is used to identify when a lane is closed and indicates that drivers should move into an open lane to continue their journeys.

Driving in a closed lane is dangerous, as there could be debris in the road or an accident or breakdown up ahead. Keeping the lane clear gives the emergency services the access they need to help.

More details about how to drive on a smart motorway are available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-to-drive-on-a-smart-motorway.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

Following an investigation into the secondary ticketing sector, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) began enforcement action against 4 major secondary ticketing websites last November. As a result, 3 of those sites – StubHub, GETMEIN! and Seatwave – offered formal commitments in April to overhaul the way they do business.

However, despite being warned a failure to do likewise would result in court action, viagogo has not offered to make the changes the CMA considers necessary to bring it in line with the law. Legal proceedings have therefore been brought in the High Court.

Andrea Coscelli, CMA Chief Executive Officer, said:

People who buy tickets on websites like viagogo must be given all the information they are entitled to. It’s imperative they know key facts, including what seat they will get and whether there is a risk they might not actually get into the event, before parting with their hard-earned money.

This applies to viagogo as much as it does to any other secondary ticketing website. Unfortunately, while other businesses have agreed to overhaul their sites to ensure they respect the law, viagogo has not. We will now be pursuing action through the courts to ensure that they comply with the law.

The CMA is concerned that viagogo is breaking consumer law – with the result that customers are:

• not being told if there is a risk that they will be turned away at the door
• not being informed which seat in the venue they will get
• not being told who is selling the ticket, so that they can benefit from enhanced legal rights when buying from a business
• given misleading information about the availability and popularity of tickets – which has the potential to lead to them being rushed into making a buying decision or making the wrong choice
• experiencing difficulties in getting their money back under viagogo’s guarantee when things go wrong
• being offered tickets that a seller does not own and may not be able to supply

The CMA is therefore now seeking a court order to bring these practices to an end, and ensure that viagogo does not repeat historic failures to make its customers aware of the face value of tickets on sale through its site.

Given the importance of ensuring its concerns are addressed promptly, the CMA is also seeking an interim enforcement order from the court that, if successful, will put a stop to some practices in the period up until the full trial.

The CMA continues to work closely with partner agencies and enforcers to drive up standards in the sector.

Notes to editors

1. Further information on the sector wide investigation conducted by CMA.
2. Further information on the enforcement action conducted by CMA.
3. On 13 August, Ticketmaster announced that it will be closing its 2 secondary ticket platforms – Seatwave and GetMeIn! – and that from 13 August, no new events will be listed on these platforms. Ticketmaster will still allow tickets to be resold through ticketmaster.co.uk in the future, but it has said that it will only allow those tickets to be sold at the price originally paid or less. Ticketmaster has formally committed to making sure that this new resale function will comply with the commitments it provided to the CMA in April.
4. The key pieces of consumer protection legislation relevant to the CMA’s investigation are the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA), the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 (CCRs), the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs) and the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 (ECRs).
5. As an enforcer under Part 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002, the CMA cannot levy administrative fines but it can enforce the above legislation through the courts, and where appropriate, obtain additional measures to improve consumer choice, drive better compliance with the law, or obtain redress for consumers.
6. Media enquiries to the CMA should be directed to press@cma.gov.uk or 020 3738 6460.