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Warships

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether Swan Hunter has retained lead ship status on the Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary) project; and if he will make a statement. [20389]

Mr. Ingram: Following a contract amendment in 2001, Swan Hunter acts as Lead Yard Supplier and Design Authority for the Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) project. As such, the company is responsible not only for the construction of its own two vessels but also for delivery of design information to BAE SYSTEMS for the construction of their two vessels.
 
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CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Active People Survey

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much (a) statutory funding and (b) National Lottery funding Sport England plans to spend on the Active People survey; and if she will make a statement. [21574]

Mr. Caborn: The cost of the Active People survey will be met by £6 million funding from the National Lottery.

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Sport England plans to spend on the Active People survey, broken down by main cost area; and if she will make a statement. [21575]

Mr. Caborn: The survey is being carried out by Ipsos Mori on behalf of Sport England. The majority of the costs are connected to the fieldwork associated with the interview process. The approximate breakdown of costs are:

	£
Fieldwork	5.64 million
Pilot survey and pre-survey activities	72,000
Project management	132,000
Evaluation of data and other post-survey activities	156,000

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the Sport England Active People survey is expected to be published; and if she will make a statement. [21576]

Mr. Caborn: The survey will be carried out over a 12-month period between October 2005 and October 2006. The results of the survey will be published in November 2006.

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the objectives of the Sport England Active People survey are; and if she will make a statement. [21577]

Mr. Caborn: The survey will provide baseline data at the local authority level on participation in sport.

One of the main purposes of the survey is to inform local authority performance, which may have potential to inform the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA). Local authorities will also be able to use the data to inform their policy development and planning, and to target specific areas of improvement.

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the sample size of Sport England's Active People survey will be; how this sample size was decided; and if she will make a statement. [21578]

Mr. Caborn: The sample size of the Active People Survey is 354,000, comprising 1,000 completed interviews per local authority area. This sample size is the minimum needed to provide statistically valid data on participation levels at the local authority level.
 
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Correspondence

Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she will reply to the letter of 22 August from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire (Ref: CMS 21128/DC). [22136]

Mr. Caborn: I wrote to the hon. Member for West Worcestershire on 24 October 2005.

Digital Television (Hertfordshire)

Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of (a) people and (b) households in (i) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (ii) Hertfordshire can receive analogue but not digital television signals. [22740]

James Purnell: The vast majority of households in the UK can, with the appropriate equipment, receive digital television services via at least one of digital satellite, digital terrestrial, cable or DSL broadband.

We do not have a breakdown of coverage by constituency but the Government are committed to ensuring that at digital switchover everyone in the UK who can currently get the main public service broadcasting channels in analogue form (BBC1 and 2, ITV, Channel 4/S4C and Five) can receive them on digital systems.

Drinks Pricing

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent meetings she has held with representatives of licensees with regard to the pricing of soft drinks; and if she will make a statement. [21377]

James Purnell [holding answer 25 October 2005]: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not held any meetings with representatives of licensees to discuss the specific issue of the pricing of soft drinks.

However, in implementing the licensing reforms and as a partner taking forward the alcohol harm reduction strategy, my Department continues to work with industry representatives to ensure that retailers promote sensible drinking. Proper provision of soft drinks is important in this context, and in particular we welcome initiatives such as "I'll be Des", which encourages those who are driving to stick to soft drinks.

Licensing Act

Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the establishment of the Licensing Fees Review Panel. [21477]

James Purnell: The Independent Licensing Fees Review Panel, chaired by Sir Les Elton, was established in summer 2005. The panel will consider whether the licensing fees, set by central Government, enable licensing authorities to recover fully their legitimate administration, inspection and enforcement costs, while at the same time achieve arrangements which are fair to business, non commercial organisations and to other individuals seeking licences. Over the last few months, the panel has commissioned evidence from around 70 stakeholder organisations touched by the new fees
 
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regime. The panel will deliver an interim report shortly, followed by a final report in autumn 2006 detailing findings and where appropriate making recommendations for the development of the licensing fees regime.

Listed Buildings (VAT)

Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on reducing the effects of VAT on repair costs to owners of listed buildings; and if she will make a statement. [21469]

Mr. Lammy: My officials have had regular discussions with Her Majesty's Treasury on this issue, including in preparation of the Government response to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) Select Committee report on the role of historic buildings in urban regeneration in 2004. Together with ODPM, we will keep the impact of VAT on the repair, refurbishment and maintenance of buildings under review, but to date the case for change is unproven. Final decisions on transition issues are a matter for the Treasury.

Music Manifesto

Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the music manifesto. [21482]

Mr. Lammy: The music manifesto, which celebrated its first anniversary in July, sets out a series of shared aims for music education for the next three to five years. The Government remains fully committed to the ambitions set out in the Manifesto.

Over 360 music organisations have now become signatories to the document, rising from 60 at the time of its launch. Over 140 pledges of programmes and resources have also been made.

My Department continues to work very closely with the Department for Education and Skills on this initiative, jointly funding the role of music manifesto champion, a position currently held by Marc Jaffrey.

The three workstrands identified for focused work by the signatories over the next 12 months are: workforce development; a national singing and vocal strategy; and the coordination of the formal and non-formal sectors.

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