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THE ARTS
Victoria and Albert Museum
62. Dr. Marek : To ask the Minister for the Arts what discussions have been held with representatives of staff at the Victoria and Albert museum about staff restructuring.
Mr. Luce : I understand that consultations were held throughout last year with staff about the options for the reorganisation of collections management functions at the Victoria and Albert museum.
70. Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Minister for the Arts what discussions his office has had with the director of the Victoria and Albert museum about staff restructuring.
82. Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he has met the chairman of the trustees of the Victoria and Albert museum to discuss staff restructuring.
Mr. Luce : I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Cynon Valley (Mrs. Clwyd) earlier today.
79. Mr. Sedgemore : To ask the Minister for the Arts what representations he has received about the plans of the Victoria and Albert museum to restructure staffing.
Mr. Luce : Since the museum's announcement of 27 January I have received a number of letters about the planned reorganisation of departments of the Victoria and Albert museum.
81. Mr. Boyes : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will make a statement on the future of (a) research into, and (b) conservation of photographic collections at the Victoria and Albert museum.
Mr. Luce : Decisions on research into and conservation of the photographic collections of the Victoria and Albert museum are matters for the director and trustees of the museum.
84. Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Minister for the Arts what will be the financial consequences of restructuring staffing at the Victoria and Albert museum.
Mr. Luce : The management of the museum's resources is a matter for the director and trustees.
Stepping Forward"
63. Mr. Lewis : To ask the Minister for the Arts what discussions he has had with the chairman of the Arts Council about the Devlin report entitled "Stepping Forward".
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64. Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he plans to meet the chairman of the Arts Council to discuss the Devlin report entitled "Stepping Forward".
Mr. Luce : The report has been issued for consultation, and I have not discussed it with the chairman. The question of dance funding is a matter for the Arts Council.
Theatre Companies (Joint and Reciprocal Productions)
65. Sir David Price : To ask the Minister for the Arts what steps he is taking to encourage both joint and reciprocal productions between British theatre companies and continental theatre companies in the light of the implementation of the single European market.
Mr. Luce : Theatres are free to make their own arrangements, and I hope will think increasingly of European engagements. There is no reason to think that the completion of the single European market will require Government intervention in such cultural exchanges.
Northern ballet theatre
66. Mr. Orme : To ask the Minister for the Arts when he last met the chairman of the board of Northern ballet theatre to discuss the company's future.
Mr. Luce : The future of Northern ballet theatre is a matter for the Arts Council.
69. Sir Fergus Montgomery : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he intends to meet the chairman of the Arts Council to discuss the level of financial support for the Northern ballet theatre.
Mr. Luce : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Southport (Mr. Fearn) on Monday 13 February at column 49.
73. Mr. Litherland : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he has plans to meet the artistic director of the Northern ballet theatre to discuss the company's future.
Mr. Luce : I have no plans to do so.
76. Mr. Wareing : To ask the Minister for the Arts how many touring performances were given by the Northern ballet theatre in 1988.
89. Mrs. Ann Winterton : To ask the Minister for the Arts what information he has on the number of performances undertaken by the Northern ballet theatre last year.
Mr. Luce : I am informed that the company gave 162 touring performances in 1988.
78. Mr. Bradley: To ask the Minister for the Arts what is the subsidy per seat at performances given by the Northern ballet theatre.
Mr. Luce : A total of £4.60 in 1987-88.
British Theatre Association Library
67. Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Minister for the Arts what progress has been achieved in preserving the British Theatre Association library.
Mr. Luce : Discussions are continuing between the interested parties, and I am keeping in close touch with developments.
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A Fresh Boost for Culture in the European Community"
68. Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Minister for the Arts what steps he is taking to meet the objectives set out in the European Community document, "A Fresh Boost for Culture in the European Community" ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Luce : This document is a Commission communication only, not a set of objectives, and it has not been endorsed by European Community Ministers of Culture. At their meeting on 27 May 1988 EC Ministers of Culture decided to give priority to Community action in four areas : audiovisual ; books ; sponsorship ; and training. However, no specific programme proposals have yet been put to them by the European Commission.
Office of Arts and Libraries
71. Mr. Jessel : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will make a statement on the achievements of the Office of Arts and Libraries in the last three years.
Mr. Luce : The principal achievements of the Office of Arts and Libraries in the last three years have been :
The establishment of a three-year programme of funding for the arts.
The introduction of corporate planning for the national museums and galleries, and other non-departmental bodies, linked to the three-year funding programme.
National museums and galleries being given greater control over their affairs by the move to grant-in-aid funding, and by their being untied from the Property Services Agency.
The direction of the funding of the national museums and galleries towards the conservation and display of the collections, and the maintenance of the fabric of their buildings.
The Government's support for the development strategies designed to give the regions a larger share of arts spending and facilities. The development of incentive funding schemes for the performing arts and for public libraries, designed to encourage subsidised bodies to become more self- reliant in their development and growth. The continued success of business sponsorship of the arts. The new marketing initiatives to encourage arts bodies to market themselves more professionally and to increase access to the arts. The substantial progress with the British library St. Pancras project which will bring together most of the library's London-based collections and reading rooms on a single site, and provide much improved facilities.
Carnegie Trust
72. Mr. David Martin : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he intends to support the Carnegie trust in its efforts to improve facilities for the disabled in arts venues.
Mr. Luce : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Sherwood (Mr. Stewart) on 20 December 1988 at column 151.
Arts Education Establishments
74. Mr. Bowis : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will list the arts education establishments he has visited in the past year.
Mr. Luce : I have visited the following :
29 January 1988--Yehudi Menuhin School of Music
28 March 1988--opened a research conference at the
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Central School of Art and Design.6 May 1988--Performing Arts Technology Studies at University of Surrey.
30 June 1988--Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds. 26 October 1988--Warwick Arts Centre, University of Warwick. 16 November 1988--Royal Ballet School.
18 November 1988--Guildford School of Acting and Dance.
British Libraries (Titles)
75. Mr. Robert G. Hughes : To ask the Minister for the Arts how many titles are currently listed as being held in British libraries ; and what were the figures five and 10 years ago.
Mr. Luce : Details of titles held are not kept centrally. Figures for total bookstock held by public libraries are published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. The figures for England for 1987-88 and the fifth and 10th preceding years are :
|Million
------------------------
1977-78 |109.0
1982-83 |113.1
1987-88 |105.5
The figure for 1987-88 is distorted because the CIPFA actual statistics show returns from only 98 authorities.
The British Library's holdings (including monographs but excluding serials, manuscripts, microform, music, newspapers) in these years were :
|Million
------------------------
1977-78 |11.8
1982-83 |11.9
1987-88 |13.0
Museums and Heritage Organisations (Volunteers)
77. Mr. Butler : To ask the Minister for the Arts what estimate he has made of the contributions of volunteers to the running of museums and heritage organisations.
Mr. Luce : I am aware of the excellent contribution made by volunteers to the running of museums and heritage organisations. In 1987 the Museums Association database project found that volunteers were used extensively by all types of museums and galleries. I hope that this contribution will be enhanced following the research project for the preparation of guidelines on the constructive use and management of volunteers which I announced on 9 February.
Political Parties (Archives)
80. Mr. Sumberg : To ask the Minister for the Arts, what amount of public funds are currently expended by libraries on housing and maintaining the archives of political parties in Britain.
Mr. Luce : This information is not held centrally.
Arts Council
83. Mr. Soames To ask the Minister for the Arts when he last met the chairman of the Arts Council ; and what matters were discussed.
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Mr. Luce : I met the chairman on 15 February. We discussed matters of mutual interest and current concern.
Ballet and Dance
85. Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Minister for the Arts what is his policy for developing ballet and dance in the north-west.
Mr. Luce : The development of ballet and dance is a matter for the Arts Council. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Worsley (Mr. Lewis) today.
Phoenix Arts Centre, Leicester
86. Mr. Janner : To ask the Minister for the Arts when he last visited the Phoenix arts centre in Leicester.
Mr. Luce : I visited the Phoenix arts centre on 8 September 1988.
London Opera
87. Mr. Carrington : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he will make a statement on opera in London.
Mr. Luce : I am keen to see the success of opera companies both in and outside of London. The form and extent of provision is a matter for the Arts Council.
Crafts Council
88. Mr. Knapman : To ask the Minister for the Arts, what support he gives to the Crafts Council.
Mr. Luce : Funding for the Crafts Council in 1988-89 is £2.25 million. It will rise to £2.55 million in 1991-92, an increase of over 13 per cent.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Leaflets (Translation)
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the titles and code numbers of the 10 most issued leaflets published by his Department and indicate which of these leaflets has been issued in translation and in which languages.
Mr Peter LLoyd : The details of the 10 most issued leaflets published in 1988-89 are
Code Number |Title
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ch 11 |One parent benefit
D 49 |What to do after a death
FB 2 |Which Benefit?
FB 8 |Babies and Benefits
FB 28 |Sick or Disabled
FC 1 |Family Credit
N1 17A |A guide to maternity benefits
N1 205 |Attendance Allowance
N1 211 |Mobility Allowance for people unable or virtually
| unable to walk
SB 1 |Income Support-cash help.
Leaflet FB 2, re-numbered as FB 22 is available in the following languages :
Bengali
Chinese
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GujaratiHindi
Punjabi
Urdu
A Turkish translation will be available shortly.
Elderly People (Disabilities)
Mr. Andrew Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security for what percentage of (a) those aged 75 years and over and (b) those aged 60 years and over with disabilities his Department holds addresses.
Mr Peter Lloyd : The Department holds addresses for all those aged 75 and over in receipt of retirement pensions and/or income support, with the exception of those who do not have a settled way of life. No record is held of people over 60 with disabilities other than for those receiving specific disability benefits.
Social Fund
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what proportion of their budgets for community care grants from the social fund for the financial year 1988-89 had been spent by each social security office in the north-eastern region by the end of January 1989 ;
(2) what proportion of the Dewsbury social security office's budget for community care grants from the social fund for the financial year 1988-89 had been spent by the end of January 1989.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Such information is available from the details held in the Library.
Income Support
Mr. Wray : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many 16 and 17-year-olds have (a) applied for and (b) been refused income support on grounds of extreme hardship (i) in Scotland and (ii) in England and Wales since the introduction of the scheme.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : During the period from 12 September 1988 to 17 February 1989 the number of applications for a direction by the Secretary of State under the "severe hardship" provision and the results of those applications were as follows :
|Number of applications|Number of directions |Number of directions
|received |given |refused
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scotland |1,430 |947 |483
England and Wales |3,016 |1,946 |1,070
Note:
Information relates to the number of applications received rather than to the number of individual young people
involved. Some individuals have made more than one application.
Family Credit
Mr. Strang : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of those people claiming family credit are farmworkers or employed in farming.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I regret that this information is not available.
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Single Payments
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will state the figures for the Lerwick office for the years 1986-87 and 1987-88 in respect of (a) the number of applicants for single payment, (b) the number of single payment applications which were refused and (c) the amount of money paid out in respect of single payments.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Information on the number of single payment claims awarded, the number refused and the amount paid by each local DSS office for the period April 1986 to April 1988 is in the Library.
Office Manpower (Lerwick and Kirkwall)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will indicate the level of staffing at the (a) Lerwick office and (b) Kirkwall office of his Department as at 1 February of each year from 1984 to 1989.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The information requested is as follows :
|Lerwick ILO|Kirkwall LO
------------------------------------------------
1984 |19 |8
1985 |21 |10
1986 |21 |11
1987 |20 |11
1988 |21 |11
1989 |17.5 |11
Notes:
ILO=Integrated local office.
LO=Local office.
Pensioners (Income)
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the categories of statistics which his Department collects on pensioners' income and give in each case the smallest geographical unit covered by each group.
Mr. Peter Lloyd [holding answer 20 February 1989] : Statistics on pensioners' income from benefits collected by this Department are published in "Retirement Pension and Widow's Benefit". Further information may be found in "Social Security Statistics 1988". These statistics are collected on a national basis and analysed by country of residence. Both these publications are in the Library. Information on pensioners' total income is obtained from the family expenditure survey, which is collected by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys on behalf of the Department of Employment. The extent to which information on pensioners' total income can be subdivided geographically depends on the sample sizes involved in answering particular questions.
HEALTH
Health for All" Report
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the 1987 "Health for All" monitoring report submitted to the World Health Organisation in July 1988 has been published.
Mr. Mellor : The United Kingdom monitoring report has not been published, but copies are available in the Library.
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Child Abuse
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the professional, scientific and inter-departmental sources, by name or organisation, which are providing advice on child abuse, pursuant to his answer of 14 February.
Mr. Mellor : The Department has available a number of professional and scientific advisers from whom advice is sought. In addition the Department holds regular meetings with a research liaison group on child care which contains service advisers from the Association of County Councils and the Association of Metropolitan Authorities, at present Mr. John Chant and Mr. Martin Manby and scientific advisers who are at present Professor Graham of Great Ormond Street hospital, Mr. Mervyn Murch of Bristol university, Professor Dorothy Whitaker of York university and Professor Noel Timms of Leicester university. Other Departments normally include the territorial Departments (Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Offices), the Home Office, the Department of Education and Science and the Economic and Social Research Council.
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