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Written Answers to Questions

Friday 11 April 2003

CABINET OFFICE

European Working Groups

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will make a statement on progress with achieving transparency in respect of the European working groups for which his Department is responsible. [105738]

Mr. Alexander: The Cabinet Office does not have lead responsibility for any Council Working Groups.

PFI Schemes

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will make a statement on the expected saving to public funds from the private finance initiative schemes due to become operational in 2003. [105721]

Mr. Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Member for Brent, South (Mr. Boateng) gave to the hon. Member on 10 April Official Report, column 400W.

Public and Advisory Bodies

Tony Wright: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the criteria are for classifying public and advisory bodies as (a) executive non-departmental public bodies, (b) advisory non-departmental public bodies, (c) task forces, (d) ad hoc advisory groups and (e) reviews; and what particular qualities or characteristics distinguish these bodies from each other. [102521]

Mr. Alexander [pursuant to his answer, 17 March 2003, Official Report, c. 499–500W]: Paragraph 6 of the answer should have read, Some of these bodies may go onto become classified as NDPBs where the need for the body's advice continues beyond its original life span e.g. Skills Task Force and the New Deal Task Force.

Regions White Paper

Joyce Quin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made by the Cabinet Office towards the aim in the White Paper, "Your Region, Your Choice", of encouraging applicants to public bodies from all parts of England; what change there has been in the geographical diversity of appointees to NDPBs and other public bodies sponsored by the Cabinet Office since the publication of the White Paper; what the outcome was of the regional seminars organised by the Cabinet Office for women interested in serving on a public body; who the attendees were; and how many attendees have begun to serve on public bodies since attending one of these seminars. [108562]

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Mr. Alexander: The Government are keen to promote greater national diversity on the boards of public bodies. Departments are advertising their public appointments vacancies on a new website (www.publicappts-vacs.gov.uk) launched by my Department on 27 March 2003. The website currently has details of over 100 opportunities, arising at local and regional levels throughout the country, as well as those with a national remit. Departments also publicise vacancies in the media and on their own departmental websites.

All public appointments are made on merit. For my own Department, between 14 May 2002 and 31 March 2003, five new appointments were made to NDPB's. Those appointed live in either London or the South-East region.

The regional seminars for women held during 2002 to help increase awareness of public appointments were organised by the Women and Equality Unit, which is now in the Department of Trade and Industry. The seminars were aimed at encouraging more women from the regions, minority ethnic women and disabled women who are already participating in public life to apply for regional and national public appointments. There were eight regional seminars which 848 women attended. In addition, five national seminars took place, targeted at specialist female audiences. In total, 1,328 women, from diverse backgrounds, attended the 13 seminars. As a result of the seminars, 91 per cent. of those attending said that they would be more likely to apply for an appointment after attending the seminars.

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Employment Relations Act

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff in her Department have taken time off from work in order to attend to domestic incidents as provided for by the Employment Relations Act 1999. [108353]

Dr. Howells: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has a range of flexible working policies intended to help staff achieve a better work/life balance, including paid and unpaid special leave. Staff are entitled to take a maximum of 10 days paid special leave each year to deal with domestic crises, as well as an extended period of unpaid special leave if appropriate. No central records are kept of the numbers of staff taking this leave and no requests have been received under the Employment Relations Act 1999.

National Lottery

Mr. Simon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the Review of Lottery Funding consultation paper launched last year. [108212]

Tessa Jowell: We received over 400 substantive responses from a wide range of people including local authorities, charities, voluntary groups, individual members of the public and of course Lottery distributors. An analysis of the responses can be found

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on the Department's website at www.culture.gov.uk/lottery and we are using them to help develop specific proposals which we intend to publish this summer.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will set up a system to report the proportion of Lottery funds which are spent on projects that previously would have competed for central government funding. [108473]

Mr. Caborn: We have no plans to set up a system on this basis. It is the Government's policy that Lottery funding should be additional to, rather than substitute for, Government spending.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of the good causes Lottery money was distributed via the (a) Community Fund and (b) New Opportunities Fund in 2002–03; and what her estimate is of these proportions in the next two years. [108477]

Mr. Caborn: Of all the money entering the National Lottery Distribution Fund (NLDF) in 2002–03, one sixth was allocated for distribution by the Community Fund and one third by the New Opportunities Fund (NOF). I have guaranteed the share passing to the charitable good cause until 2009. Currently this is distributed solely by the Community Fund. There are no plans at present to change the share passing to the NOF, which distributes funds for health, education and environment good causes.

Interest accruing on the balance held in the NLDF passes to the distributors in proportion to their share of the overall balance.

Parental Leave

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff in her Department have used their leave entitlement under the Parental Leave Directive since it came into force. [108411]

Dr. Howells: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has a range of policies intended to support staff with parental responsibilities including paid maternity and paternity leave; adoptive leave; career breaks; special leave with and without pay; and a range of flexible working options. To date no staff have requested leave under the Parental Leave Directive.

Property Portfolio

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the estimated value is of the property portfolio held by her Department. [108376]

Dr. Howells: The property operated by the DCMS is held on commercial leases of some years standing and in relation to current market rents has no realisable value. The notional value of Royal Parks property is not included.

Regions White Paper

Joyce Quin: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress her Department has made towards the goal set out in the White Paper, "Your Region, Your Choice," of (a) ensuring that regional awareness and devolution feature strongly in

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Civil Service training and development, (b) increasing the mobility of civil servants between headquarters offices, regional offices and the Government Offices and (c) encouraging interchange between the Civil Service and organisations in the regions. [108580]

Mr. Caborn: The information is as follows:

(a) The Civil Service College runs courses specifically for those civil servants who work with the devolved administrations. The Department's key NDPB's have regional agencies on whom we rely for the delivery of our agenda and our Departmental induction courses cover awareness of local and regional government.

(b) Although the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has no regional offices, we are already fully integrated into the Government Office network and welcome two way interchange.

(c) We also have a strong record on interchange with 4 per cent. of staff on secondment, 5 per cent. of staff on outward loan and 25 per cent. of staff on inward loan. 15 per cent. of the staff on outward secondment are based in regional organisations.

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