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Sports Coaching

22. Mr. Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action he is taking to improve sports coaching. [153884]

Kate Hoey: The recently published Government's Plan for Sport indicates that we are establishing a Coaching Task Force to review the future role of the National Coaching Foundation, to conduct, during this year, an independent international benchmarking exercise on coach education and to consider the feasibility of an investment programme to create 3,000 full-time paid coaching posts by 2005.

Millennium Dome

23. Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on the future of the Millennium Dome. [153885]

Janet Anderson: The Government are currently conducting market testing prior to launching a new competition. Details of the timetable and process for that competition will be announced as soon as possible after market testing is complete.

Mr. Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on the cost of maintaining the Dome at Greenwich. [153876]

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Janet Anderson: Following decommissioning it is estimated that the running costs of the Dome will be up to £500,000 per month.

Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) if the sponsorship of the Millennium Dome falls within the Guidance on Sponsorship of Government Activities and Events; [153326]

(2) if he will investigate the sponsorship of the Millennium Dome in relation to the Guidance on Sponsorship of Government Activities and Events. [153312]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 21 March 2001]: Responsibility for negotiating and securing sponsorship rested with the New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC), an executive Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB). As an NDPB, the NMEC is bound by specific rules and guidance on regularity and propriety in the stewardship of public funds in line with the principles set out in the sponsorship guidance.

Wembley Stadium

24. Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make a statement on Wembley stadium. [153886]

Mr. Chris Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Mr. Flight), Official Report, column 672.

UK Film Industry

25. Ms Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment he has made of levels of inward investment in the UK film industry. [153887]

Janet Anderson: Britain is an increasingly popular location for film production. A record 28 feature films produced by foreign companies were made in Britain last year, with budgets totalling £366 million, an increase of 9 per cent. on the previous year. Total inward investment in film and television productions was £539 million last year, a 33 per cent. increase on the previous year.

26. Mrs. Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the impact of the extension of the film tax concessions on the industry. [153888]

Janet Anderson: The Government's long-term aim is to create a more sustainable and better capitalised film industry. Film tax reliefs have already had a significant impact, attracting hundreds of millions of pounds of investment. The Chancellor's announcement that Section 48 reliefs for the film industry will be extended until July 2005 will give the industry sufficient time to build on these encouraging developments.

Arts Council

27. Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what Arts Council money has been distributed in Thurrock in the past five years. [153889]

Mr. Alan Howarth: East England Arts is contributing £19,900 over three years to help Thurrock unitary authority to fund an Arts Development Officer. In addition Thurrock

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has received £5,620 grant in aid funding and a further £15,055 from the Lottery funded Arts for Everyone scheme.

Football Foundation

Mr. Pond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance the Football Foundation can provide to small local clubs. [153869]

Mr. Chris Smith: Football clubs may apply to the Football Foundation for funding for grass roots initiatives which promote social inclusion or benefit local communities, for education projects, or for stadium improvement work. The Foundation has some £24 million to invest in football in 2000-01 and it is likely that the moneys available will more than treble from 2001-02 onwards. Decisions on applications are for the Foundation's Board, but it is likely that a substantial proportion of total funding will go to smaller clubs.

New Millennium Experience Company

Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport for what reason the new Millennium Experience Company decided to make remuneration payments through on offshore account; and what the value was of such payments. [145565]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 15 January 2001]: NMEC has advised that during the course of 1999 the company took advice from its tax consultants, in discussion with the Inland Revenue, and concluded that, while it would operate with a clear presumption against payments to offshore accounts, it would consider each case on its merits and on the condition that requested arrangements were not for the purpose of tax avoidance.

I refer to my letter of 19 December 2000 to the hon. Member, a copy of which has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. NMEC has completed a further search of all its payment records as part of its preparation for solvent liquidation. NMEC has concluded that prior to 19 December 2000, and excluding payments net of tax, remuneration through offshore accounts was made in two cases, not one as previously advised, both to an Isle of Man address. The total value of these payments was £93,898.5.

Separately, payments by cheque, handed over on site but payable to companies registered outside the UK, in respect of work undertaken by individuals filling headcount posts, totalled £138,423.

Hinduja Brothers

Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what date (a) his Department, (b) the NMEC and (c) Lord Falconer of Thoroton were informed of intelligence reports relating to the Hinduja brothers, referred to in paragraph 8.4 of the report of the Hammond inquiry. [153734]

Janet Anderson [holding answer 14 March 2001]: Sir Anthony Hammond's report set out all the facts relevant to the subject of his inquiry. He confirmed that the intelligence material which had been collected was handled entirely properly in accordance with the statutory

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functions of the intelligence agencies. It is long-standing practice not to comment on the detail of intelligence matters.

Departmental Policies (Ynys Mon)

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will set out, with statistical information relating as directly as possible to the Ynys Mon constituency, the effects on Ynys Mon of his Department's policies and actions since 2 May 1997. [154978]

Mr. Chris Smith: Through their commitment to public service broadcasting, the Government have helped to foster an environment in which a creative, commercially successful broadcasting industry provides a wide range of UK-made, high quality, original programmes catering for all viewers and listeners. We have ensured a secured funding base for the BBC and S4C, while giving them the freedom to develop commercial operations which complement and support their public service remit. We have made it clear in the Communications White Paper that public service broadcasting will continue to have a key role to play in the digital future.

The Government have also introduced free television licences for people aged 75 or over from 1 November last year. Information on the number of beneficiaries by constituency is not available, but estimates based on the 1991 Census indicate that there were approximately 5,300 people aged 75 or over living in the Ynys Mon constituency.

My Department sponsors the British Tourist Authority (BTA), which continues to promote Britain effectively as an attractive tourist destination for overseas visitors. The BTA's successful marketing activities are aimed at bringing benefits to all parts of the UK, including Ynys Mon.

According to the information supplied to us by the distributing bodies for the national lottery awards database, there have been 136 national lottery awards to Ynys Mon, totalling £3,715,880 since 2 May 1997. Nine Millennium Award Winners have been identified from Ynys Mon and between them they have received grants totalling £33,985.

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