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CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
New Wembley Stadium
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many seats will be available to the general public in the proposed new Wembley stadium; who made the decision to change the number of seats available to the public; what her policy is on a reduction in seats available to the general public; and what impact a reduction in seats has on the Lottery agreement. [53785]
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Tessa Jowell: The current Lottery Funding Agreement requires Wembley National Stadium Ltd. (WNSL) to make available 75,000 seats to the general public. Any change to that agreement to reflect the current project is a matter for Sport England, the FA and WNSL.
I understand that following the publication of the English National Stadium Review's interim report on 19 December 2001 [HC 479], WNSL asked Sport England to consider the need to change the balance between general public and premium seats in order to support efforts to secure financing for the project. The request was supported by a revised business plan and by thorough market research carried out by WNSL. The Council of Sport England has considered the revised business plan presented by WNSL and following discussions with WNSL has agreed to reduce the number of general public seats which WNSL must make available to 71,200. This 71,200 figure compares with approximately 73,000 seats available to the general public at the current stadium.
The change to the number of general public seats will be incorporated as an amendment to the Lottery Funding Agreement.
Disclosure of Interests
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what rules apply to the disclosure of interests on the part of those serving on public bodies which are responsible to her Department. [56449]
Dr. Howells: All advisory and executive non- departmental public bodies (NDPBs) are required to adopt a board members' code, based on guidance produced by the Cabinet Office, and they should have registers of interests. All DCMS NDPBs have such codes and registers.
Film Industry
Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what bilateral discussions she has had with (a) the Foreign Secretary and (b) the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry regarding raising the profile of the British film industry overseas; and if she will make a statement. [56607]
Dr. Howells: None, but officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Trade Partners UK and the British Council in posts overseas and at home have worked closely with DCMS officials and the Film Council, for example in the development of the British Film Office in Los Angeles.
Committee Mandates
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the mandate of the Committee on the export of cultural goods is; how many times it has met over the last 12 months; what the UK representation on it is; what the annual cost of its work is to public funds; if she will list the items currently under its consideration; if she will take steps to increase its accountability and transparency to Parliament; and if she will make a statement. [56788]
Dr. Howells: The terms of reference of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art, which is an advisory non-departmental public body, are to advise the
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Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the principles which should govern the control of export of works of art, antiques etc.; to consider all cases where refusal of an export licence for a work of art or antique is suggested on grounds of national importance; to advise in cases where a special Exchequer grant is needed towards the purchase of an object that would otherwise be exported; and to supervise the operation of the export control system generally.
The committee has met on 11 occasions in the last 12 months. It has eight members, drawn from across the UK, who are appointed by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport provides the committee with an annual budget of £20,000-£23,000. The cost of departmental staff support is approximately £75,000 per annum. The committee's current business arises from its terms of reference and includes consideration of cases where the deferral of a decision upon granting an export licence for an object is suggested on grounds of national importance (39 cases in the last 12 months), related policy issues and the preparation of an annual report.
The committee has adopted the Model Code of Practice for Advisory Non-Departmental Public Bodies, issued by the Cabinet Office, and its annual report is presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. According to Cabinet Office requirements, DCMS is currently undertaking a quinquennial review of the committee's operation.
National Lottery
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding has been granted to Sport England from the National Lottery in each of the last three years, broken down by the sports which have received funding. [56599]
Mr. Caborn: I have arranged for the information requested to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Sport England
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funding has been granted by Sport England in each of the last three years to (a) local authorities for sports facilities and (b) independent sports clubs. [56598]
Mr. Caborn: The information requested is set out below:
| Local authorities | Sports clubs | |
|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | 26.99 | 26.93 |
| 2000–01 | 44.82 | 45.46 |
| 2001–02 | 37.57 | 24.76 |
Departmental Staff (Scotland)
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many and what percentage of (a) Civil Service, (b) executive agencies and (c) non-departmental public body jobs under the
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remit of her Department are located in Scotland; and how many of each have been relocated to Scotland since May 1997. [56318]
Dr. Howells: There are no civil service or executive agency staff under the Department's remit in Scotland. There are currently 67 non-departmental public body jobs in Scotland; this is less than a per cent. of all jobs in non-departmental public bodies sponsored by the Department. No staff have been relocated to Scotland since May 1997.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Deportation Powers
Mr. Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from (a) police (i) forces and (ii) organisations, (b) organisations with a reporting line to his Department and (c) official body concerned with immigration about further powers which may be required in relation to deporting those who pose a security threat to the UK. [52550]
Mr. Blunkett [holding answer 26 April 2002]: I have received no recent representation on this matter.
Correspondence
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter of 30 January 2002 from the hon. Member for West Chelmsford on behalf of Mr. Taylor of Chelmsford; and if he will make a statement on the reasons underlying the time taken. [55833]
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Angela Eagle [holding answer 14 May 2002]: A reply to the hon. Member was sent on 13 May 2002. The delay was caused by an error in the checking system. New procedures have now been put in place to ensure this situation does not re-occur.
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter of 19 March 2002 from the right hon. Member for North-West Cambridgeshire on behalf of Miss Huta. [56013]
Angela Eagle [holding answer 13 May 2002]: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 17 May 2002. I am sorry he did not receive an earlier reply.
Asylum Seekers
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have committed offences and received custodial sentences of more than two years in each of the last five years. [53739]
Angela Eagle: In 2000 there were 677 court recommendations for deportation. Of these 514 (76 per cent.) related to sentences of two years or more. The records do not show whether convicted foreign nationals who were also immigration offenders were asylum seekers or not. This information will be available in the future.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers being supported by NASS live within a 20 mile radius of each of the sites under consideration for the proposed asylum accommodation centres; and what proportion of the total of asylum seekers so supported this represents. [56574]
Angela Eagle: Information is not available in the form requested.
The table shows the number of asylum seekers (including dependants) who were living in the same region as the proposed locations for the accommodation centres as at the end of December 2001.
| Site for accommodation centre | Region | In receipt of accommodation only | Supported in NASS accommodation | Total | Percent of NASS supported asylum seekers (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Air Force (RAF) Hemswell, Lincolnshire | East Midlands | 500 | 3,220 | 3,720 | 6 |
| RAF Newtonm, Nottinghamshire(18) | East Midlands | 500 | 3,220 | 3,720 | 6 |
| Air West Edinburgh, Edinburgh(18) | Scotland | 240 | 4,750 | 4,990 | 8 |
| Defence Storage and Distribution Centre Bicester, Oxfordshire | South Central | 3,150 | 800 | 3,950 | 6 |
| Sully Hospital, South Glamorgan | Wales | 140 | 700 | 840 | 1 |
| Qinetiq, Pershore, Worcestershire(18) | West Midlands | 520 | 6,930 | 7,450 | 11 |
(18) It was confirmed on 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 597W that planning notifications would be submitted in respect of these sites.
Mr. Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 2 May 2002, Official Report, column 898W, on asylum seekers, who the experts referred to were. [56539]
Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend for Leyton and Wanstead (Mr. Cohen) on 15 May 2002, Official Report, column 705W.
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