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9 Oct 2006 : Column 66W—continued
Church Commissioners
Pastoral Reorganisation
28. Mr. Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con): To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners if he will make a statement on pastoral reorganisation and the promotion of outreach work. [92609]
Sir Stuart Bell: The commissioners administer the legal framework for pastoral reorganisation which enables effective deployment of the Church's resources. As part of our guidance on possibilities for pastoral provision we recently began a series of seminars to promote the Church's mission agenda and reach out with the gospel to a new generation.
Church Upkeep
Ben Chapman (Wirral, South) (Lab): To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions the commissioners have had with Ministers on the upkeep of churches and other places of worship. [92604]
Sir Stuart Bell: We are frequently emphasising the importance of additional funds for the upkeep of places of worship, not only as important heritage buildings but also to support and enhance their substantial contribution to the life of our communities.
Equality
27. Chris Bryant (Rhondda) (Lab): To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the commissioners plan to take to ensure there is no discrimination in the provision of their goods and services. [92608]
Sir Stuart Bell: Like other Church bodies, the commissioners will be reviewing their activities and making necessary modifications to ensure that they comply with the new requirements to be introduced by the Equality Act 2006.
Electoral Commission Committee
Electoral Register
Mr. Hands: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission what guidance the Electoral Commission has produced on whether political parties may use the full version of the electoral register for (a) party political fundraising purposes and (b) survey canvassing. [89802]
Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has not produced any guidance on whether political parties may use the full version of the electoral register for party political fundraising purposes or for survey canvassing.
Policy Development Grant
Mr. Hands: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission what plans the Electoral Commission has to review the allocation of policy development grant following the 2005 general election results; and what the payment was to each eligible party in 2006-07. [89803]
Peter Viggers: Policy development grant (PDG) is payable by the Electoral Commission, in accordance with a scheme made by order of the Secretary of State following the submission of recommendations by the Commission, to registered parties which have at least two Members of the House of Commons who have taken the Oath and are not disqualified from sitting or voting in the House.
The Commission is required to keep the terms of the scheme under review, and to make recommendations to the Secretary of State for any variation it considers appropriate. Following the 2005 general election, the Ulster Unionist party ceased to be eligible for PDG with effect from 1 April 2006 as it no longer had the requisite qualifying number of Members in the House. The Electoral Commission recommended a revised scheme to the Secretary of State which came into effect on 1 April 2006. Under the new scheme, the same overall sum as under the previous scheme is distributed between the seven remaining eligible parties.
PDG is paid in arrears against claims submitted by eligible parties in respect of qualifying expenditure. The 2006-07 allocations and payments to date are:
| £ | |||
| Party | 2006-07 allocation | Total payments to date | Balance remaining |
| Note: All figures rounded to the nearest pound. | |||
Deputy Prime Minister
Admiralty House
Mr. Heald: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the cost to public funds of his official residence in Admiralty house was in 2004-05. [83225]
The Deputy Prime Minister:
The operation of Admiralty house is covered by a single facilities management contract. It is not possible to separately identify the actual costs of my flat from those of the building as a whole. However, for internal accounting
purposes, costs are apportioned on the basis of the floor area of my flat as a proportion of the whole (at 20.7 per cent.). Figures for 2004-05 are already in the public domain.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether his flat in Admiralty house has ancillary staff paid for from public funds; and what the (a) notional monthly market rent and (b) estimated capital value of the flat is. [89785]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs. May) on 19 June 2006, Official Report, column 1615W, and the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 25 July 2006, Official Report, column 1636W.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what Government-owned works of art are located in his flat in Admiralty house. [89786]
The Deputy Prime Minister: A number of works of art from the Government art collection are on display in Ministers’ official residences.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what the floor area is of his flat in Admiralty house; [89800]
(2) what minor works took place on his flat in Admiralty house in (a) 2004-05 and (b) 2005-06. [89801]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 25 October 2005, Official Report, column 326W.
Casinos
Mr. Swire: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when (a) he and (b) his officials have held meetings in the last 12 months with casino operators interested in securing licences under the Gambling Act 2005; where each meeting took place; and what was discussed. [83819]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I have not had any such meetings with casino operators, and neither have officials in my Office. For information relating to officials’ meetings prior to Friday 5 May 2006, I refer the hon. Member to the answer which will be given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what meetings he has had with casino operators and their associates since January 2003; and who the attendees were in each case. [84191]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 11 July 2006, Official Report, column 1794W, to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman).
Mr. Swire: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what meetings he has had with (a) Ministers and (b) officials to discuss with his colleagues in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (i) the Government’s policy on regional casinos, (ii) planning issues connected to regional casinos, (iii) the post-sale use of the millennium dome and (iv) gambling policy. [84705]
The Deputy Prime Minister [holding answer 12 July 2006]: I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues and others on a wide range of subjects. Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.
Council Tax
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he has responsibilities for co-ordination of Government policy on council tax. [86002]
The Deputy Prime Minister [holding answer 17 July 2006]: Responsibility for policy relating to council tax rests with the Department for Communities and Local Government.
The hon. Member may be aware that I chair the Cabinet Committee on Local and Regional Government. The Chair of a Cabinet Committee must act in a neutral way if the system is to work effectively. Departments’ views are represented by their own Ministers who attend the meetings.
Departmental Expenditure
Grant Shapps: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list for 2001-02 and each subsequent financial year the amount spent by his Office in respect of hotel and other similar privately provided accommodation (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad for (a) himself, (b) staff and (c) other persons. [91909]
The Deputy Prime Minister: For information relating to the financial years 2001-02 to 2005-06, I refer the hon. Member to answer which will be given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the amount spent by his Office on food and alcohol for its staff working out of office for 2001-02 and each subsequent financial year. [91910]
The Deputy Prime Minister: For information relating to the financial years 2001-02 to 2005-06, I refer the hon. Member to answer which will be given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.
Donated Assets Reserve
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the gifts he has received in an official capacity that he (a) has and (b) has not retained since the last register of his Department's donated asset reserve. [90534]
The Deputy Prime Minister: The Government publishes an annual list of gifts received by Ministers valued at more than £140, including details of which gifts were retained by Ministers personally. Information relating to 2005-06 was published on Monday 24 July and copies are available in the Library for the reference of Members.
Government Art Collection
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what art work he has selected from the Government art collection to decorate his office. [87582]
The Deputy Prime Minister: The Government art collection holds over 13,000 works of art in a broad range of media, with displays in several hundred major Government buildings in the UK and abroad.
A 2001 painting by George Robson entitled “Marching Out” is on display in my office at 26 Whitehall.
Ministerial Meetings
Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the (a) US Government officials and (b) industry representatives he met during his recent visit to Texas and the USA. [87623]
The Deputy Prime Minister [holding answer 24 July 2006]: As is usual during an official visit abroad, I met and was introduced to a number of US Government officials and industry representatives while in the USA in 2005. These included Senator Mel Martinez, Secretary Alphonso Jackson, Assistant Secretary Buddy Garcia, Secretary of State Roger Williams, Speaker Andrew Romanoff, Mr. Michael Dell, Mr. Charles Carpenter, Dr. Henry Cisneros, Mayors Will Wynn, Phil Hardberger, John Hickenlooper and Antonio Villaraigosa.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what telephone conversations he has had since 1997 with (a) casino operators, (b) Anschutz Entertainment Group, (c) Mr. Anschutz and (d) companies with interests in a casino licence in the UK; and what topics were discussed in each case. [87831]
The Deputy Prime Minister: Records of telephone conversations are not maintained.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he has held meetings with representatives of companies or consortia on the shortlist for the contract as the Olympic Delivery Authority deliver partner; which companies or consortia partners he has met; what the location was of each meeting; what was discussed at each meeting; and if he will make a statement. [88229]
The Deputy Prime Minister [holding answer 24 July 2006]: I have not had any such meetings.
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