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Regional Development Agencies

Mr. Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what factors determine the budget allocation formula for regional development agencies. [119028]

Ms Beverley Hughes [holding answer 14 April 2000]: The allocation methods vary for the RDAs eight main programmes and for their administration. Many factors are taken into account. These include: levels of deprivation; existing legal commitments; opportunities; value for money; Structural Fund responsibilities; regional population totals; and likely receipt income. There are also some allocations for common costs and account is taken of the RDAs' corporate plans and of other relevant information supplied.

Local Government Bill

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will place in the Library the opinion on which he based his decision that he was unable to make a statement, under the provisions of section 19 of the Human Rights Act 1998, that the provisions of the Local Government Bill [Lords] are human rights compliant. [119160]

Ms Armstrong [holding answer 14 April 2000]: The Government do not normally publish their legal advice. However, I can clarify that there are doubts as to whether section 2A of the Local Government Act 1986 is compatible with Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the

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European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and with Article 14 (freedom from discrimination) when read with Article 8 (respect for private and family life) and Article 10.

The Bill on introduction to the Lords was, in our opinion, compatible with the ECHR. However, clause 91 of the Local Government Bill amends, and thereby reaffirms, the provisions of section 2A. By extension, this amendment casts doubt on whether the Bill is now compatible with the ECHR. On this basis, the Secretary of State made a statement under section 19(1)(b) of the Human Rights Act 1998.

The Government have already said that they intend to remove clause 91 of the Bill and, in its place, provide for the repeal of section 2A of the 1986 Act. In our view, the Bill will then be compatible with the ECHR.

Rail Franchises

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when a rail franchise passes to the successful company in the event of an existing train operating company failing to secure the renewal of its franchise; and what extra monitoring of service standards will be put in place during the transitional period. [119483]

Mr. Hill: The shadow Strategic Rail Authority will agree a date with interested parties. Normal monitoring standards that are contained within the terms of the franchise agreements will apply.

Asylum Seekers

Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much his Department spent directly or indirectly on asylum seekers in (a) 1995, (b) 1996, (c) 1997, (d) 1998 and (e) 1999; and what estimate has been made of expenditure in the year 2000. [119484]

Ms Beverley Hughes: The Home Office will be responding to this Question on behalf of Government as a whole, using information that we have provided to them.

Cycling (Mileage Rate)

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will provide funding for local councils to pay a mileage rate on cycle use by their employees. [119337]

Ms Beverley Hughes: The Government do not provide funding specifically for this purpose. It is for individual local authorities to decide whether to pay cycling mileage allowances to their employees, and to meet the cost from their general budgets. We would certainly encourage all councils and other employers to promote the use of cycles; mileage allowances are one way of doing this. The Government have already increased the taxable allowance on business travel by bicycle to 12p per mile.

If cycles are used on official journeys by employees instead of their cars, councils stand to make a considerable saving on mileage payments.

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CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Energy Efficiency

Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what is his Department's energy efficiency performance target, expressed as a percentage change in comparison with 1990-91, for each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement. [118991]

Janet Anderson: The Department's target is to reduce energy consumption by 8 per cent. from a base year of 1994-95 to 1999-2000 and 1 per cent. per annum thereafter. This later base year reflects the fact that the Department was not created until 1993.

My Department is investigating further measures to reduce energy but opportunities are limited as we already occupy energy efficient buildings which are air conditioned and have intensive IT usage.

Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what has been the percentage change compared with 1990-91 in his Department's energy efficiency in each year since 1990-91; and if he will make a statement. [118990]

Janet Anderson: The percentage change compared with the base year of 1994-95 is as follows:

Year	Percentage change
1995-96	0
1996-97	3
1997-98	7
1998-99	-7

These are provisional data as recording errors mean that the consumption figures have been recalculated back to the base year. The latest data have still to be confirmed by DETR.

My Department is investigating further measures to reduce energy but opportunities are limited as we already occupy energy efficient buildings which are air conditioned and have intensive IT usage.

Museums (North-west)

Mr. Fearn: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funds museums in the north-west of England will receive from the amounts which his Department has allocated to cut museum entry fees; and which museums will receive the money. [119101]

Mr. Alan Howarth: In 1999-2000 to enable free admission for children at the two museums funded by my Department in the north-west which are affected, the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside (NMGM) received £719,000 and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester (MSIM) £188,000. In 2000-01, to enable free admission for children and people over 60, NMGM has been allocated £188,000. The allocation of funds to cut museum entry fees at the museums and galleries funded by my Department in 2001-02 is still under consideration and no detailed figures are available yet. An announcement will be made in due course.

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SIMA TV

Mr. John D. Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what monitoring the Independent Television Commission carries out of programmes on SIMA TV; if SIMA TV broadcasts the statements of Mojahedin Khalq Organisation of Iran and the National Council of Resistances of Iran; when SIMA TV was last fined by the ITC; and if he will make a statement about the future licensing of SIMA TV. [118942]

Janet Anderson: Monitoring is regularly undertaken by the ITC on the broadcasts of all its licence holders. For broadcasters, like SIMA, who have breached the ITC's Programme Codes, this monitoring would be more intense.

Broadcasting statements by groups such as Mojahedin Khalq Organisation or the National Council of Resistances of Iran are not in themselves a problem, provided they carry no incitement to crime, and that they form part of a wider range of views. SIMA was fined £20,000 in November 1999 for not adhering to these points. SIMA may retain its licence as long as it complies with the ITC's Programmes and other Codes.

Turf Football Pitches

Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will take action to ensure that there is public access to artificial turf pitches for football in each parliamentary constituency; and if he will make a statement. [118956]

Kate Hoey: There are 577 sites in England providing full size, synthetic turf pitches for community or club use. A further 12 sites have, in principle, been awarded funding from the Lottery Sports Fund. Sport England will shortly be carrying out a detailed analysis of the provision of synthetic turf pitches. Any gaps in existing provision will be assessed on the basis of the size of the population served, rather than by parliamentary constituency. The adequacy of the provision of pitches in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is assessed in the same way.

Canoeing

Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action he is taking to (a) encourage increased public participation in canoeing and (b) assist Britain's elite canoeists to prepare for the Olympic Games. [118957]

Kate Hoey: The Sports Councils, through which public funding for sport is channelled, are providing a total of £5.5 million to encourage participation in canoeing and to assist elite canoeists. Sport England has made 31 awards worth £4,071,474 from the Lottery Sports Fund to canoeing projects. It is also providing £220,000 in 2000-01 towards the English development programme of the British Canoe Union (BCU). This will help fund: a network of development officers whose key objective is to generate greater youth participation in the sport; the development of a network of Access Officers whose role will be to open up additional waterways for canoeing; and the delivery of the BCU's equity programme for England which targets the recruitment of more disabled and women participants into the sport. For the period April 2000--March 2001 the BCU will receive

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from UK Sport World Class Performance Programme Lottery funding of £1,221,471, which includes support for British Canoeists preparing fro the Olympic Games.

I will be meeting my hon. Friend the Minister for Water and Coastal Policy soon to discuss how to improve provision for water-based recreation, including canoeing. In addition, my officials will be discussing these issues with the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, the Countryside Agency, the Environment Agency and British Waterways.

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