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Government Offices for the Regions
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the (a) budgets and (b) administrative costs were for each of the Government offices for the Regions for each
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financial year since their establishment; and what their planned budgets and administrative costs are for the next two years. [1435]
Mrs. Roche: The Government offices for the English regions were established in 1994 and their work was originally overseen by the Government Office Management Board (GOMB). Following the Performance and Innovation Unit report, "Reaching Out", published in February 2000, the role of the Government Office Management Board passed to the Regional Co-ordination Unit (RCU).
The administrative running costs for each Government office and for RCU/GOMB for the period 1995–96 until 2000–01 are detailed in the table. The table also shows the administrative running cost allocations, including a very small allocation for capital expenditure, for the current financial year. Since 1 April this year, the RCU has managed a single running cost budget for itself and the nine Government offices. This funding is transferred from sponsor Government Departments to cover the running costs of the Government offices for the work that the latter undertake on behalf of sponsor Departments. As at 1 April this year the sponsor Departments were DETR (as was), DfEE (as was), DTI and MAFF (as was). From 1 April 2002, Home Office and DCMS are expected to become sponsor Departments.
The total indicative administrative running cost budget for the RCU and the Government offices for financial year 2002–03 is £98.63 million and £95.66 million for the 2003–04 financial year. There will be a resource planning exercise that will precede each of these financial years, and this will allocate these figures between individual Government offices and the RCU.
Programme budgets administered by the Government offices are the responsibility of the Secretaries of State for the relevant sponsor Departments.
| £ million | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GO | 1995–96 | 1996–97 | 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02(12) | Total |
| North East | 8.843 | 8.687 | 8.617 | 8.619 | 8.312 | 8.222 | 9.016 | 60.316 |
| North West | 9.984 | 9.839 | 9.443 | 13.690 | 13.049 | 13.398 | 14.562 | 83.965 |
| Merseyside | 4.754 | 4.350 | 4.200 | 0.012 | — | — | — | 13.316 |
| Total NW/M | 14.738 | 14.189 | 13.643 | 13.702 | 13.049 | 13.398 | 14.562 | 97.281 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 9.061 | 8.765 | 8.475 | 8.684 | 8.889 | 9.184 | 9.966 | 63.024 |
| West Midlands | 10.436 | 10.040 | 9.758 | 9.474 | 9.330 | 9.794 | 9.693 | 68.525 |
| East Midlands | 7.117 | 6.617 | 6.436 | 6.754 | 6.951 | 7.177 | 7.726 | 48.778 |
| East England | 6.123 | 6.169 | 6.271 | 6.269 | 7.005 | 7.391 | 8.514 | 47.742 |
| South West | 7.574 | 7.141 | 6.826 | 6.985 | 7.797 | 8.227 | 10.069 | 54.619 |
| South East | 8.331 | 8.406 | 8.545 | 8.561 | 8.659 | 8.953 | 9.748 | 61.203 |
| London | 11.106 | 14.106 | 13.459 | 13.238 | 13.716 | 13.747 | 12.617 | 91.989 |
| RCU | 1.137 | 1.696 | 4.356 | 3.095 | 3.703 | 3.130 | 9.717 | 26.834 |
| Total | 84.466 | 85.816 | 86.386 | 85.381 | 87.411 | 89.223 | 101.628 | 620.311 |
(12) Allocations for 2001–02
Note:
GO-North West and GO-Merseyside merged during 1998–99
Energy Policy
Mrs. Brinton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if the policy and innovation unit review of energy policy will examine the options for demand management. [1971]
The Prime Minister: I am replying to this question as it relates to matters for which I am responsible.
The role of demand side management and energy efficiency in reducing energy use in Great Britain will form a key part of the Energy Review, which will develop a strategy for achieving greater energy efficiency.
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TREASURY
Financial Services and Markets Act
Mrs. Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to bring into force the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. [3804]
Ruth Kelly: My predecessor announced in March that "N2", the date for commencing the main provisions of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, would be no later than the end of November 2001. I can now confirm that, in lay terms, the new regime will come into effect at midnight on 30 November. For legal reasons, the date named in the Commencement Order will be 1 December. Naming this day will have the effect of commencing the main provisions of the Act from the beginning of that day, which complies with the timescale set by my predecessor.
So far, the Government have secured Parliament's approval for seven statutory instruments subject to affirmative resolution, and made a further 27 statutory instruments subject to the negative resolution procedure.
We will shortly be making other statutory instruments with a view to enabling the FSA Board to make further provisions of its rulebook at its Board Meeting on 19 July. The key provisions of the rulebook, of course, were made by the FSA at its Board Meeting on 21 June.
It particular, we expect shortly to make the statutory instrument that provides mechanisms by which firms having authority under old law to do financial services business will be "grandfathered" across into permissions to do equivalent business once FSMA commences. The FSA will then be responsible for letting individual firms know their grandfathered permissions.
From Monday 3 September, we will commence FSA powers to consider applications from financial services firms to modify their grandfathered permissions or the grant of new permissions. Monday 3 September will also
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be the date from which the Financial Services and Markets Tribunal will consider appeals on decisions taken by the FSA in respect of those applications.
By the summer recess, therefore, the task of implementing the Act will pass substantially to the financial services firms. They will need:
- to become familiar with the secondary legislation passed by Government;
- to absorb the provisions of the rule book made by the FSA;
- to analyse their grandfathered N2 permissions, and consider whether to seek modifications to those permissions;
- to adapt their procedures; and
- to train their staff.
Statistics
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the categories of information and statistics sought by the ONS from businesses and individuals by way of requests for information. [2512]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Nick Gibb, dated 12 July 2001:
- As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the categories of information and statistics sought by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) from businesses and individuals by way of requests for information. (2512)
- Statistical and Registration inquiries conducted by the ONS for its own purposes are listed in the attached table. The table shows three main types of information; economic, collected from businesses, social, collected from individuals and socio-economic collected from both businesses and individuals.
- The table also includes inquiries conducted on behalf of other Departments and Agencies, but excludes statistical information derived as a by-product of administrative systems.
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