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BBC
Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will ask the Office of Fair Trading to investigate the market power of the BBC. [4506]
Dr. Howells [holding answer 17 July 2001]: No. It is open to anyone with the appropriate evidence of alleged infringement of the Competition Act 1998 to raise this with the Office of Fair Trading.
Mr. Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport from what source the BBC plans to fund the establishment and running of Network Z. [4654]
Dr. Howells [holding answer 17 July 2001]: The BBC has applied for approval to introduce Network Z as a licence-fee funded public broadcasting service.
Welsh Language Programmes
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people viewed Welsh language programmes broadcast on S4C each week in the last six months. [4448]
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Dr. Howells [holding answer 17 July 2001]: This information is not currently available in the form requested. However, I understand that S4C has recently commissioned a more detailed analysis of its viewing figures, from which it should be possible to extract the information requested. I will write to my hon. Friend as soon as this is available.
Foot and Mouth (Tourism)
Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to make interest free loans available to tourism businesses affected by the economic impact of foot and mouth disease. [119]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 25 June 2001]: I have no plans to make such loans available, although my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is closely monitoring the effectiveness of the financial assistance measures made available by Government to rural businesses, including tourism businesses, which are worth over £250 million. This package includes £50 million allocated to the Rural Business Recovery Fund, an estimated £22 million
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available in hardship rate relief and £120 million available in loans under the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme. Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue will also agree to the deferral of tax or National Insurance Contributions where a business is in serious financial difficulty.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
IT Contracts
Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the information technology contracts in excess of £500,000 let by her Department or its predecessor since April 1991, giving in each case the original estimated cost and original estimated completion date, the actual cost and actual completion date and the names of the contractors involved and consultants retained by her Department. [3501]
Clare Short: DFID undertakes most of its IT development work in-house, with modest specialist consultancy support.
The Department has had three IT contracts above £500,000 since April 1991.
| ASSIST 96(1) | CODA Accounts system | ASSIST 2000(1) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estimated cost (£ million) | 2.25 | 2.8 | 3.2 |
| Actual cost (£ million) | 2.246 | 3 | 3.2 |
| Estimated completion date | September 1996 | July 1997 | September 2001 |
| Actual completion date | September 1996 | February 1998 | On schedule |
| Contractor | ELONEX | CODA | COMPAQ |
(1) New desk-top
London Underground
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when she last travelled on the London Underground in the course of her official duties. [3684]
Clare Short: I rarely travel on official duties to destinations served by the London Underground. I cannot recall when I last travelled on the underground in the course of official duties. I occasionally use the underground in a personal capacity.
TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND
THE REGIONS
Walton Group
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what progress he is making in recovering the grant from the Walton Group plc in respect of Exchange Flags Liverpool; and if he will make a statement. [3689]
Ms Keeble: The civil claim for recovery of grant paid and interest thereon is proceeding and is expected to go to trial in June 2002.
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 2 July 2001, Official Report, column 10W, what the breakdown of activities is for which the qualifying expenditure made available to the Walton Group plc for claimed work on Exchange Flags was made. [3668]
Ms Keeble: The grant was made available against the following work:
- (i) the refurbishment of the semi-derelict building to provide a net area of not less than 400,000 square feet of floor space suitable for office use and not less than 350 parking spaces at basement level;
- (ii) the re-paving and landscaping of an overall area of 2,025 square metres of the adjacent courtyard known as "Exchange Flags";
- (iii) the refurbishment and fitting out of the former war room on the lower ground floor of the building as a museum.
Train Safety
Mr. Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the timetable for implementation of train safety systems. [3555]
Mr. Jamieson: Under the Railway Safety Regulations, made by the Government in 1999, the Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) must be installed and operational on the rail network by the end of 2003.
In addition, the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) will be advising the Government, next year, on regulations to take forward the new European Train Control System (ETCS) on high-speed and other main lines as recommended by the Joint Inquiry Report by Lord Cullen and Professor Uff into train protection systems published on 29 March 2001. A progress report will be published by HSC in September.
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Nuclear Freight
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions on how many occasions since July 1998 external radioactivity has been discovered on (a) transport flasks and (b) railroad flathaul carriages used for the transport of spent nuclear fuel to Sellafield from nuclear power plants. [3962]
Mr. Jamieson: Information on incidences of contamination of transport flasks and railway wagons is published annually in the report on events involving the transport of radioactive material in the UK. The reports covering events in 1998 and 1999 have been placed in the House Library. The report for events during 2000 will be published in October this year.
Housing Developments
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many new housing developments in Chorley have been built on brownfield sites since 1997; and how many are planned in each of the next five years. [4392]
Ms Keeble: Detailed figures are not available centrally. Under Best Value, Chorley Borough Council is required to report on the percentage of new homes built on previously developed land. The Audit Commission is currently collecting data from all authorities and the Government expect to be able to publish estimated outturn for 2000–2001 shortly.
Chorley Railway Station
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what steps he has taken to ensure disabled people can access Chorley railway station. [4393]
Ms Keeble: Access to railway stations for disabled people is covered by Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. Since October 1999, service providers have been required to take reasonable steps to change practices, policies or procedures which make it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people to use a service. From 2004, service providers will have to take reasonable steps to remove, alter or provide reasonable means of avoiding physical features that make it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled people to use a service.
In addition, the Strategic Rail Authority is currently revising its Code of Practice, "Meeting the needs of Disabled Passengers", which is aimed at helping protect the interests of disabled users of railway passenger services and station services.
Railtrack are also committed to ensuring that disabled people have access to the railway network. I understand they are currently exploring a framework for achieving accessibility so that a detailed programme can be developed in consultation with train operators and other interested parties.
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I am not aware of any specific plans to upgrade Chorley Station which I understand has wheelchair access to each platform but not between platforms.
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