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12 May 2003 : Column 26W—continued
Taxation
Mr. Howard: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research he has commissioned into the relationship between taxation and (a) business competitiveness and (b) business productivity; and if he will publish the results. [108460]
John Healey: The Government is committed to developing the evidence base to help evaluate the effect of measures and inform future policies. Policy advice and development on tax measures are informed by in-house research and analysis, and in some cases, research commissioned externally. In addition to this, international comparisons allow the Government to identify areas where UK businesses lag behind their
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main competitors. This has prompted the development of targeted policies, often based on economic and statistical analysis of reforms in other countries.
The most recent research published is into the Enterprise Investment Scheme and Venture Capital Trusts, which was published on 9 April 2003 on the Inland Revenue website. This research is wide ranging, looking at all aspects of the schemes, including their effects on the productivity and competitiveness of the relevant businesses.
CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Commemorative Plaques
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average cost was of erecting a blue commemorative plaque in the last 12 months. [111631]
Dr. Howells: The average cost to English Heritage of erecting a commemorative plaque in England under its Blue Plaque Scheme in the last 12 months was £1,107 (excluding the cost of research and administration by English Heritage staff).
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many blue commemorative plaques were erected in each of the last five years; and, for each year, what the cost was to public funds. [111632]
Dr. Howells: The number and cost of the commemorative plaques erected in England by English Heritage under its Blue Plaque Scheme in the last five years is as follows:
| Year | Number of plaques | Cost (£) |
|---|---|---|
| 1998–9 | 17 | 61,000 |
| 1999–2000 | 18 | 74,000 |
| 2000–1 | 27 | 84,000 |
| 2001–2 | 18 | 86,000 |
| 2002–3 | 22 | 92,000 |
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who (a) sets the criteria of selection and (b) is responsible for the erection of blue commemorative plaques. [111633]
Dr. Howells: English Heritage sets the selection criteria and is responsible for the erection of blue commemorative plaques in England under its National Blue Plaque Scheme, which so far has operated in Greater London, Merseyside, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Southampton, and is to be extended further. A number of local authorities and civic societies around the country operate separate schemes of their own.
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the policy and criteria are for the erection of blue plaques to commemorate distinguished citizens in their native localities. [111637]
Dr. Howells: English Heritage inherited the Blue Plaque Scheme in Greater London from the former Greater London Council in 1986, and made it a
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National Blue Plaque Scheme for England in 1998. English Heritage has so far worked in partnership with local authorities in Merseyside, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Southampton, where it complements existing local initiatives. The selection criteria are published on English Heritage's website www.english-heritage.org.uk and I am arranging for copies to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Counselling Services
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what arrangements are made in her Department to allow staff to access counselling services. [111941]
Dr. Howells: All staff in DCMS have direct access to counselling services provided by the ODPM Counselling and Support Service. It is an occupational service paid for by the Department. The counsellors are civil servants who are professionally trained in counselling skills and who have a knowledge and understanding of procedures and practice in DCMS. DCMS is committed to helping employees deal with concerns both inside and outside the workplace.
Criminal Offences
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list, broken down by Act, the criminal offences created in legislation sponsored by her Department since 1997. [111788]
Dr. Howells [holding answer 8 May 2003]: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has enacted two measures since 1997 which create new criminal offences. These are the Royal Parks (Trading) Act 2000 which created one offence and the Television Licences (Disclosure of Information) Act 2000 which created one offence.
EU Committees
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list (a) the names, titles and grades of the officials who sit on the EU committee on general authorisations and individual licences in the field of telecommunications services, (b) the number of times, and the dates, on which it has met since January 2002, (c) the agenda items it has considered since January 2002, (d) the decisions it has made since January 2002 and (e) the means used to communicate the decisions to the House. [110292]
Dr. Howells: No officials from DCMS sit on this committee.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the names, titles and grades of the officials who sit on the EU committee on the implementation of the multiannual community programme to stimulate the development and use of European digital content on the global networks and to promote linguistic diversity in the information society, the number of times and the dates on which it has met since January 2002, the agenda items it has considered since January 2002, the decisions it has made since January 2002 and the means used to communicate these decisions to the House. [110492]
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Dr. Howells: No officials from my Department sit on the eContent programme committee.
Hague Convention for the Protection ofCultural Property
Joyce Quin: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her policy with regard to UK participation in the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. [111459]
Tessa Jowell: We remain fully committed to the protection of cultural property in time of armed conflict in accordance with international law and, with other interested departments, are giving active consideration to the ratification of the 1954 Hague Convention.
For information, I am arranging to place a statement in the Libraries of both Houses outlining what we are doing to protect Iraq's cultural heritage.
Honours
Mr. Pope: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many officials in her Department have received honours; and how many honours are held by her officials, broken down by category of honour. [111495]
Dr. Howells: According to our records twelve members of staff currently working within DCMS and its agencies have received honours: one at CB, one at CBE, four at OBE, three at MBE, and three at MVO.
We do not keep records of awards that are unrelated to official duties, nor those already held by staff before joining the Department, including those transferred under machinery of government moves. Consequently, data are not available on the number of awards held by individuals.
Iraq
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received from the All-Party Parliamentary Archaeological Group on the protection of archaeological artefacts in Iraq; and what steps she has taken to establish protection measures for Iraq's historical artefacts. [111358]
Tessa Jowell: The All-Party Parliamentary Archaeological Group have made representations to the Prime Minister and to Baroness Symons in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The Government is working with UNESCO, the US Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs, the British Museum and other organisations and we have issued a statement on the steps that are being taken to establish protection measures for Iraq's cultural heritage. I am arranging for copies of this document to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Libraries
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many loans have been made from libraries in each year from 1996; and if she will make a statement. [111816]
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Mr. Caborn: The numbers of issues per year (in thousands) for the period 1995–96 to 2000–01 by UK libraries are contained in Table 4, "Stocks and Issues", within the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy's (CIPFA's) Public Library Statistics 2000–01 Actuals volume.
The number of issues by English library authorities solely may be deduced by looking at the "Annual Issues" tables in the CIPFA editions for those years.
The House of Commons Library has copies of all of the volumes in question.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many visits have been made to libraries in each year since 1996; and if she will make a statement. [111817]
Mr. Caborn: The number of visits to library premises for 1995–96 and 1996–97 are contained in the "Miscellaneous Tables" within the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy's (CIPFA's) Public Library Statistics Actuals volume for those years and, subsequently, in that publication's "Library Users" tables for the period 1997–98 to 2000–01.
The House of Commons Library has copies of all the editions in question.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many qualified librarians have been employed in libraries in each year since 1996; and if she will make a statement. [111818]
Mr. Caborn: The numbers of full time equivalent professional staff employed by UK library authorities for the period 1995–96 to 2000–01 may be found in Table 2, "Staff Establishment", within the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy's (CIPFA's) Public Library Statistics 2000–01 Actuals volume.
The number of professional posts within English library authorities solely may be deduced by looking at the "Staff in Post and Establishment" tables in the CIPFA editions for those years.
The House of Commons Library has copies of all of the volumes in question.
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