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QUEST
Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the annual budget will be for the departmental body QUEST . [65236]
Mr. Chris Smith: The allocations for my Department which I published on 14 December 1998 included a sum of £500,000 in each of the financial years 1999-2000, 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 for the operation of Quality, Efficiency and Standards Team (QUEST).
Museums and Galleries (Free Admission)
Mr. Peter Ainsworth:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to introduce universal free admission to museums and galleries by 2002. [64648]
11 Jan 1999 : Column: 32
Mr. Chris Smith:
I announced on 14 December 1998, Official Report, column 589, that funds had been allocated in two stages to allow Trustees of currently charging national museums in England to introduce free admission for children in 1999-2000 and pensioners in 2000-01. This reflects our expectation that they will endorse the first two stages of our programme to widen access.
Funds have also been set aside to enable those national museums and galleries in England that wish to offer universal free access in 2001-02 to do so, and discussions about this will take place between my Department and the museums over the coming year.
Decisions about free entry will continue to be a matter for the Trustees of individual museums.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to allow religious organisations to obtain national broadcasting licences; and if he will make a statement. [64839]
Janet Anderson:
I have no such plans. The Broadcasting Act 1990 disqualifies groups whose objectives are wholly or mainly of a religious nature from holding a terrestrial national radio licence issued by the Radio Authority.
Mr. Nigel Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will assess the advantages of introducing a policy analogous to the Green State scheme established in Sweden and Norway. [62974]
Mr. Meale:
We are not aware of such a scheme.
Mr. Brake:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment the Government have made of the advantages and disadvantages of establishing NATS as a non-profit making organisation. [64570]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Ayr (Ms Osborne) on 22 June 1998, Official Report, column 366. The Government are consulting interested parties on their preferred option of a public/private partnership for NATS, and will take account of responses to the consultation in taking final decisions. The consultation period will end on 31 January 1999.
Mr. Brake:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what estimate he has made of the re-payment cost of the public/private partnership for London Underground; [64571]
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Ms Glenda Jackson:
Under the public/private partnership for the Underground, London Underground will pay to the private sector a fee based on availability and performance of infrastructure. The work to date, to develop the contract structure and model the financial relationships, which is still being refined, suggests that, over the life of the concession, this fee and all the Underground's operating costs could be covered from London Underground revenues. Details of the estimated payments cannot be divulged, as to do so might compromise the public sector's ability to achieve value for money in the competition for the infrastructure contracts.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what procedures will be in place to ensure that the proposed People's Question Time for the London Mayor and the Assembly of the Greater London Authority will be (a) publicised by means accessible to people with sensory disabilities, (b) in buildings which are accessible to disabled people and (c) equipped to offer communication support to deaf and hard of hearing people who might attend. [64488]
Mr. Raynsford:
The GLA will need to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 when deciding how best to publicise People's Question Time and its other public meetings and whether to hold them in the GLA building or other suitable locations. The GLA's own building will be built to a specification which as a minimum meets the standards set out in current legislation. Specific requirements have yet to be finalised, but I would expect the building to be equipped to meet the needs of all disabled people. For example, I envisage that the chamber and committee rooms would be equipped with induction loops for the hard of hearing.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if church representatives who serve on local education committees, will be able to retain an executive role in any of the new political structures proposed in "Modern local government: In Touch with the People", Cm 4014. [64489]
Mr. Raynsford:
Our intention is that the new political structures will safeguard the present ability of church representatives to contribute to decision taking on the planning and provision of education services.
Mr. Cann:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the impact of the capital receipts initiative in Ipswich. [64664]
Mr. Raynsford:
Ipswich Borough Council received a total allocation of £1.570 million under the Capital Receipts Initiative (CRI) in 1997-98 and 1998-99 (£368,000 and £1,202,000 respectively). Returns from the
11 Jan 1999 : Column: 34
authority show that two thirds of these resources are to be used to refurbish the authority's own stock. This will mean improvements mostly targeted at providing improved heating and insulation, to over 3,000 local authority properties. The remaining resources are being used to support RSL new build (14 per cent.), on renovation grants and home repair (8 per cent.) and for community safety and other improvements (10 per cent.). The Council's CRI allocation for 1999-2000 is £1.330 million.
Mr. Cann:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action his Department has taken to maintain the size of the United Kingdom's merchant fleet. [64528]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
A shipping policy paper--"British Shipping: Charting a new course"--was published by the Deputy Prime Minister on 16 December. This sets out the Government's strategy for revitalising the British merchant fleet.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many privately owned and rented properties were vacant in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne in each of the last five years; and if he will estimate a vacancy rate for privately owned and rented properties in those years. [64680]
Mr. Raynsford:
The number of privately owned and rented properties that were vacant in the City of Newcastle in each of the last five years are as follows:
(2) what proportion of the repayment costs of the public/private partnership for London Underground will be covered (a) by Government and (b) by the Greater London Authority from the revenues generated by congestion charges or parking levies. [64572]
| Year | Number | Per cent. |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 4,679 | 6.4 |
| 1995 | 4,339 | 5.9 |
| 1996 | 4,191 | 5.6 |
| 1997 | 4,385 | 5.8 |
| 1998 | 4,455 | 5.8 |
A1
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what (a) highway improvement and (b) major highway maintenance have been carried out along the A1 corridor from the Eighton Banks interchange north to the Scottish Border in the last three years; indicating the length in mileage and duration of the works involved. [64681]
Ms Glenda Jackson: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency, Mr. Lawrie Haynes, to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 11 January 1999:
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The Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question. You asked "What highway improvement and major highway maintenance has been carried out along the A1 corridor from Eighton Banks interchange to the Scottish Border in the last three years".
The tables attached set out the information you require.
The durations shown are the duration of the works, and do not reflect the extent of any lane closures, etc on the A1. For example, the Lobley Hill to River Derwent scheme was completed using night time only closures resulting in little or no delays to traffic throughout the 3 month contract period.
I trust the above information meets your requirement.
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| Scheme | Length in miles | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| A1 Seven Mile House to Stannington Bridge (Marginal Strips/Maintenance) | 2.1 miles | 3 months |
| A1 Hitchcroft to Cawledge (Additional C/Way) | 1.7 miles | 6 months |
| A1 Hitchcroft to Cawledge Southbound carriageway (Marginal Strips/Maintenance) | 1.4 miles | 1 month |
| A1 Lobley Hill Junction (Partial Signal Control) | Not applicable | 2 weeks |
| A1 Loughend Farm (Diverge Taper) | Not applicable | 3 weeks |
| A1/C137 Burgham Farm Junction (Junction improvement) | Not applicable | 1 month |
| A1/B1342 Belford Junction (Diverge Taper) | Not applicable | 1 month |
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| Other Minor Schemes | |
|---|---|
| Signing/Roadmarking | 11 |
| Red surfacing at junctions | 20 |
| Safety Fencing | 8 |
| Anti-skid treatment | 2 |
| Speed Cameras | 5 |
| Cycle Crossings | 3 |
| Central Reservation Hardening | 2 |
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