| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Urban Regeneration
10. Ms Hazel Blears (Salford): What assessment he has made of the impact of millennium projects on the regeneration of urban areas. [123679]
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Mr. Chris Smith): Millennium projects are already making a significant impact in urban areas across the United Kingdom, providing new community facilities, cultural and educational resources, improved public spaces and boosted economies. The Lowry centre in Salford, the international centre for life in Newcastle and Tate Modern have all opened within the last couple of months. The Millennium Commission will be undertaking a detailed large-scale economic impact assessment of its capital projects this summer.
Ms Blears: I am delighted that my right hon. Friend had an opportunity to attend the opening of the magnificent Lowry centre. I hope that he enjoyed the experience.
Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is vital for centres such as the Lowry to involve their local communities, as well as providing venues for world-class opera, ballet and other performances? Will he confirm that his Department intends to continue expanding the fund to build new audiences and, crucially, to invest in the skills, talent and creativity of local young people so that they see the Lowry as their theatre--their centre--and a place where they can express the talents that we all know they possess?
Mr. Smith: I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. I pay tribute to the role that she has played, on Salford council and subsequently as Salford's Member of Parliament, in ensuring that the Lowry has been an enormous success.
The Lowry has already attracted a £72 million retail and leisure development--a commercial development--to an adjacent site. It has been a catalyst for the £4 million water quarter improvement programme in the area, and it is estimated that it has helped to create some 6,500 jobs in the local economy. That demonstrates that major cultural capital projects rooted in the support of the local community can be a major force for regeneration.
Mr. John Bercow (Buckingham): Can the right hon. Gentleman offer the House some assessment of the proportion of the jobs to which he just referred that have been created in the private sector, and the proportion created in the public sector? Can he also offer a rough indication of the proportion of those important jobs that he expects to be sustained?
Mr. Smith: I certainly expect the jobs in whole to be sustained. I do not know the exact breakdown between
the public and private sectors, but I imagine that the overwhelming majority are in the private commercial sector, although some people will be directly employed by the Lowry centre.Forth Rail Bridge
11. Mr. Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow): Pursuant to his answer of 9 May 2000, Official Report, columns 379-80W, what liaison he has had with the devolved Administrations about nomination of the Forth bridge to UNESCO for world heritage site status; and if he will make a statement about how the UNESCO world heritage committee's priorities for action relate to the Forth bridge. [123680]
The Minister for the Arts (Mr. Alan Howarth): Although my Department liaises regularly with the devolved Administrations over United Kingdom world heritage site issues, including the possible order and timing of all future UK nominations, the Scottish Executive will decide when they wish to nominate the Forth bridge. UNESCO's world heritage committee is considering priorities for the number and types of sites it would like to see nominated from all countries in the future, and that will affect UK nominations.
Mr. Dalyell: When is the consideration to which my hon. Friend refers likely to reach a conclusion?
Mr. Howarth: I cannot answer my hon. Friend on that point, as it will be a matter for the Scottish Executive. I can, however, tell him that the Forth bridge is a category A listed building and, as such, should be properly cared for, whether or not it is nominated as a world heritage site. Should it be nominated, there is an expectation--indeed, I would say a requirement--for the site to be properly maintained to the highest standards in accordance with a management plan.
Holidays (People With Disabilities)
13. Mr. Gordon Marsden (Blackpool, South): What discussions he has had with the English Tourism Council about promoting and widening access to holidays for people with disabilities. [123682]
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Mr. Chris Smith): Widening access to tourism for everyone, including people with disabilities, is a key commitment for the English Tourism Council. I am pleased to note that, this summer, the ETC is publishing "Accessible Britain 2000", a complete list of accommodation awarded a category of accessibility by the tourist boards or Holiday Care under the national accessibility scheme.
Mr. Marsden: I thank my right hon. Friend for his answer. It is important, given the large number of people who cannot currently take a holiday, many of whom are disabled. Does he, like me, welcome the work done by other organisations such as the Association of British Travel Agents in promoting awareness, and in particular the scheme that it is pursuing with the Royal National Institute for the Blind? Does he agree that many small hoteliers in seaside towns still need advice and assistance
from the ETC in making their establishments accessible, and will he consider the possibility of using the new opportunities fund for that purpose?
Mr. Smith: I certainly endorse what my hon. Friend says about the importance of encouraging and widening accessibility for people with disabilities. It is a notable fact that about 40 per cent. of the population do not take a holiday. I suspect that a substantial proportion of those do not do so because of difficulties of physical access. We need to continue to encourage the tourism industry to seek to overcome that. One of the features of the industry is that it is made up of many very small enterprises. We need to encourage and enable them to improve accessibility. The ETC will certainly seek to do that.
Football Taskforce
14. Mr. Peter L. Pike (Burnley): What discussions he has had with the football authorities about the football taskforce report on commercial issues, with special reference to the cost of going to professional football matches for families and children. [123683]
The Minister for Sport (Kate Hoey): With my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, on 16 March I met representatives of the Football Association, the premier league and the football league to discuss the Government's response to the report. In further informal discussions with the football authorities and supporters groups, I have made clear the Government's desire that football's new regulatory body--whatever form it takes--should examine the costs of attending football matches.
Mr. Pike: My hon. Friend will know that the majority report expressed serious concerns about ticket pricing at some clubs and about the price of replica shirts supplied by some football clubs. Those are issues of great importance. Will she recognise the important step that has been taken by Burnley football club, which, newly promoted to the first division, has introduced a children's ticket to all parts of the ground for £35 for next season? Should not all premier clubs ensure that they issue concessionary tickets to all children?
Kate Hoey: I congratulate Burnley. Indeed, a number of other clubs have introduced quite innovative methods to ensure that children and families are attracted to football, but we take the issue seriously. As I have said, whatever form the regulatory body takes, when we announce our formal conclusions on the taskforce report, that will be a priority.
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): Does the hon. Lady agree that there should be a restoration of balance in favour of ordinary football-going supporters such as my brother and his family? There should be a restoration in the balance of interests, so that it is not just the commercial interests of big companies that take directors to football matches on a Saturday that are respected but those of ordinary football-goers who enjoy their Saturday.
Kate Hoey: I am sure that the hon. Lady's family are ordinary football supporters. They are the people without whom football would not be what it is. It is crucial that
football clubs, whether they be in the premier league or in another division, realise the strength and importance of their supporters and look at things in the long term. They should not just go for the short-term effects of short money, with no long-term solutions for football.Swimming
15. Mr. John Bercow (Buckingham): If he will make a statement on the promotion of swimming in schools. [123684]
The Minister for Sport (Kate Hoey): Swimming is important in its own right as a school sport and as an essential safety tool. That is why it remains a compulsory element of the national curriculum for physical education, which requires that, by the age of 11, pupils should be able to swim 25 m and should be aware of the principles of water safety.
Mr. Bercow: I speak as someone who swims badly but persistently five times a week at the Living Well health club at No. 4 Millbank. Does the hon. Lady accept that I and many of my right hon. and hon. Friends are concerned about the diminution in opportunities in schools to participate in swimming? Will she guarantee to arrest the tide? Will she take this opportunity to spell out the importance not only of swimming in general, but of the excellent sport of synchronised swimming in particular?
Kate Hoey: The only information that the hon. Gentleman has not given me is the time that he goes swimming at the health centre, but I agree about the importance of swimming. Last October, I raised my concerns with Chris Woodhead of the Office for Standards in Education to encourage him and Ofsted to do more in terms of section 10 inspections of school swimming. It is something that a number of Members are interested in. Ofsted has now introduced an extra focused inspection on swimming. We will get the results of that very soon. They will be announced shortly.
Having watched synchronised swimming, I support it very much. It is a sport that requires a huge amount of physical effort; it is very demanding indeed.
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |