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Music (Government Support)

12. Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on Government support for music. [3002]

Mr. Lammy: The Government are committed to supporting music in all its forms. We are achieving this through increased investment—funding to music through Arts Council England has more than doubled since 1997 to over £100 million this year.

The Music Manifesto, launched in 2004, is bringing the music sector together to support our aims for music education.

We have set up the Creative Industries Intellectual Property Forum to look at IP issues affecting the creative sector including music.

And, through the Live Music Forum, we are working to ensure that opportunities for the promotion of live music are realised to the full.

London Olympic Bid

13. John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on progress with the London bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games. [3003]

Tessa Jowell: London's bid is in great shape. The publication of the International Olympic Committee's evaluation report last Monday reflects that. We are in a very strong position and we will be doing everything we can over the coming weeks to secure the greatest prize in sport.

14. Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the planned sources of funding for the London Olympic Games are; and if she will make a statement. [3004]

Tessa Jowell: The costs of staging and operating the Games would be met by income from ticket sales, sponsorship and licensing and by a contribution from the International Olympic Committee.
 
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To meet the infrastructure and capital costs of preparing for the Games, the Government and the Mayor of London have agreed a public sector funding package of up to £2.375 billion.

16. Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the requirement for further infrastructure development to achieve a successful Olympic games in London in 2012. [3006]

Tessa Jowell: The candidature file submitted to the IOC in November 2004 included assessments of both the sporting infrastructure and of the services and utilities requirements within the Olympic park.

Slave Trade Abolition (Anniversary Celebration)

15. Mr. Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to commemorate the 200th anniversary in 2007 of the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. [3005]

Mr. Lammy: We are considering with Home Office colleagues how best to mark the occasion but a great deal of work is already in hand. My Department will meet the £250,000 per year running costs of the new Slavery Gallery in Liverpool, due to open in 2007. Many of our museums and galleries and heritage sites are planning to mark the anniversary with special exhibitions and educational programmes.

Sport (Equality of Access)

17. Ms Angela C. Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress is being made on ensuring equality of access in sport. [3007]

Mr. Caborn: The Government are committed to promoting equality of access in sport for all, and are implementing a range of measures to help achieve this.

We have a PSA target to increase participation within priority groups of the general population, by 3 per cent. by 2008. At present, existing data on the levels of participation in the population are variable. However, we will measure progress on our target via a DCMS participation survey from autumn 2005.

In schools, our joint target with the DfES is to enhance the take-up of sporting opportunities by 5 to 16-year-olds so that the percentage of schoolchildren in England who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum increases from 25 per cent. in 2002 to 75 per cent. by 2006, and 85 per cent. by 2008, and to at least 75 per cent. in each School Sport Partnership by 2006. The Equality Standard for Sport, launched last year, is a framework to guide sports and community organisations towards achieving equality. Its aim is to widen access and increase the participation and involvement in sport and physical activity from under-represented individuals, groups, and communities.

Broadcasting Regulations

18. Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with Ofcom on the regulation of standards of decency in broadcasting. [3008]

 
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James Purnell: Decisions on broadcast programme standards are a matter for Ofcom to determine independently of Government, according to the provisions of the Broadcasting and Communications Acts.

The Secretary of State was briefed by Ofcom about their proposals for the regulation of standards in broadcast content prior to publication of the new programme code.

Sporting Events (Policing Charges)

19. Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent representations she has received from sporting bodies about charges for policing major events; and what steps she is taking in conjunction with other Government Departments to ensure that such costs are, as far as practicable, (a)affordable and (b) in line with charges for other sporting and public events. [3009]

Mr. Caborn: I have recently received representations from Wigan Athletic A.F.C and the organisers of the Unity Cup about police charges for sporting events.

My Department continues to work closely with the Home Office about police charging for sporting events to ensure that as far as practical, such costs are fair and reasonable.

Active Spaces Scheme

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the costs have been of the development and operation of the Active Spaces scheme; and how many people have used it to date. [3605]

Mr. Caborn: Active Places is a free to use, on-line database of sports facilities in England.

The cost of Active Places will be £5.2 million over three years. These costs cover the initial development, updating of the data and hosting of the system. Active Places is joint funded by The Big Lottery Fund and Sport England.

The Active Places website had 106,576 visits in the period from its launch in July 2004 to April 2005. The Active Places database can be found on www.activeplaces.com

Analogue Transmissions

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she expects analogue transmissions to be switched off. [2783]

James Purnell: As we said in our manifesto, we will achieve digital switchover between 2008 and 2012 ensuring universal access to high-quality, free-to-view and subscription digital TV. This will happen region by region, and we will make sure that the interests of elderly people and other vulnerable groups are protected.

Arts Promotion

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps the Government is taking to promote (a) theatre and (b) classical music. [2960]

 
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Mr. Lammy: Government funding for the arts is channelled through Arts Council England (ACE), which operates at arm's length from the Government.

Arts Council England currently provide regular funding for 248 theatre companies in England, including producing and touring companies and presenting theatres. ACE have also published the National Policy for Theatre in England which provides a strategic framework and identifies priorities for both ACE and the sector.

Arts Council England currently provide regular funding of over £24 million for 68 classical music organisations. As well as increasing support for opera and symphony orchestras since 1998–99, ACE have increased support to chamber orchestras by almost 50 per cent. since 2003–04.

Departmental Union Representation

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many trade union learning representatives there are in her Department. [3318]

Mr. Caborn: There are currently no trade union learning representatives in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

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