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CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

World Heritage Sites

Mr. Dafis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the Ministers with whom he has consulted regarding the proposal to nominate the Atlantic Frontier Continental Shelf as a world heritage site. [64421]

Mr. Alan Howarth: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland has Ministerial responsibility for considering responses to the public consultation suggesting that the Atlantic Frontier Continental Shelf should be included in the new Tentative List for the UK of potential World Heritage Sites. Ministers in the Scottish Office have not yet consulted other Ministerial colleagues about this issue, but there has been consultation at official level with the Northern Ireland Office and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Animation Industry

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support is given to the animation industry in the United Kingdom by his Department. [65714]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: Total support from the National Lottery for production of animated films is £1,374,966 to date. In addition, the Arts Council of England contributes £50,000 per annum to a scheme for experimental animation, which it runs in conjunction with Channel 4.

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The British Film Institute, in collaboration with Channel 4, runs two animation schemes, Animation in Residence and the British Animation Training scheme. The National Film and Television School runs a Diploma Course in Animation.

Finally, my Department has granted co-production status to a number of animated films, which has enabled them to access financial benefits in the UK and in other countries.

Tourism

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans his Department has to create new incentives and grants to develop tourist attractions in the UK and create new jobs in the tourism industry. [65717]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: New and existing attractions are benefiting from the National Lottery and, in eligible areas of the UK, from the European Regional Development Fund. The new strategy for tourism which we shall be publishing soon, will include action to help the attractions sector, and the tourism industry as a whole, maximise its potential to create jobs.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of jobs in the north-west depend on tourism; [65713]

(2) what estimates he has made of the number of people employed in tourism. [65720]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: It is estimated that there were 1.8 million self-employment and employee jobs in the tourism-related industries in Great Britain in September 1998.

An estimated 7 per cent. of the total self-employment and employee jobs in the north-west were located within the tourism-related industries in September 1998.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) if he will estimate the turnover from tourism in the UK in each year for the next five years; [65721]

(2) how much revenue was generated through tourism by overseas visitors in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what estimates he has made of projected turnover for the next five years. [65712]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: Tourism by overseas visitors generated an estimated £12.2 billion in the UK in 1997 according to the latest figures from the International Passenger Survey. In the first 10 months of 1998, overseas visitors have spent an estimated £10.8 billion in the UK, a 4 per cent. increase on the amount spent in the equivalent period in 1997.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not make any projections of future turnover from tourism in the UK.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what grants are available to promote the conversion of farmhouses for tourism in the north-west. [65719]

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Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: Farm tourism is growing in importance, with a 3 per cent. increase in visitors between 1996 and 1997. In areas where agriculture or traditional industries are in decline, tourism can help economic development and create jobs.

Funding to encourage a wide range of agricultural activities, including the conversion of farmhouses for tourism, is available in the north-west under the Merseyside Objective 1 and the Northern Uplands Objective 5b programmes. Grants are made through the Merseyside Farm Tourism Initiative Project in the Objective 1 designated area and the Northern Uplands Farm Tourism Initiative in the Objective 5b designated area.

In addition, The Redundant Building Grant Scheme, currently operated by the Rural Development Commission, can provide grants for the conversion or refurbishment of redundant buildings to bring them back into productive business use or to enhance their current business use.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has produced a series of advisory booklets on farm diversification in order to assist farmers in developing successful diversified enterprises.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much revenue and what new grants have been made available to promote tourism in the north-west in 1998. [65718]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: The north-west, like all parts of England, benefits from the work of the British Tourist Authority and of the English Tourist Board. For 1998-99, the BTA has a grant of £35 million and the ETB a grant of £9.7 million, of which £292,000 is for the North West Tourist Board. New support structures, announced on 14 December, Official Report, column 352, will ensure more effective use is made of this money in the future, with a greater proportion going to the regions.

Government support for tourism is not limited to the funding of tourist boards. An important part of what makes this country attractive to tourists from home and abroad is our arts, museums and galleries. This year DCMS will spend around £1 billion in support of them.

In addition, tourism in the north-west has benefited, both directly and indirectly, from National Lottery funding (nearly £450 million has gone to the region), and from the European Regional Development Fund.

Increasingly, local authorities, tourist boards and the private sector are working together to promote and develop tourism in their areas and some excellent examples of such partnerships are to be found in the north-west. Our strategy for tourism, to be published next month, will support such initiatives. We shall be putting forward a wide range of action points designed to ensure that tourism delivers benefits for local communities, individual tourists and the economy.

Television Licences (Pensioners)

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) if he will estimate the costs to his

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Department of reducing the television licence for pensioners to £25; and if he will assess the benefits of introducing this measure; [65716]

(2) if he will estimate the costs to his Department of reducing the television licence for pensioners to £40; and if he will assess the benefits of introducing this measure. [65715]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 January 1999]: The estimated cost in lost television licence fee revenue of providing £40 colour television licences for all pensioner only households is £278 million. This would rise to £351 million if the concessionary fee were set at £25 and applied to both colour and black and white licences. The Government have no plans at present to introduce such concessions.

Millennium Projects

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how much money, other than from the National Lottery, has been raised for each Millennium Landmark Project to date; [66161]

(2) how much local government funding has been allocated to each Millennium Landmark project; [66405]

(3) how much National Lottery money has been paid for architects' and consultants' fees for each of the Millennium Landmark projects to date; and what is the forecast total cost of each project. [65742]

Mr. Chris Smith: These are matters for the Millennium Commission. I shall reply to the hon. Member in my capacity as Chairman of the Commission, and place copies of my reply in the Library of the House.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will ensure that Millennium Commission funding is made available to projects in each constituency; and if he will list those constituencies which have received funding to date. [65986]

Mr. Chris Smith: This is a matter for the Millennium Commission. I shall write to my hon. Friend in my capacity as Chairman of the Commission and place copies of my reply in the Library of the House.

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