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25 Jun 2007 : Column 37Wcontinued
10. Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with the BBC on its charter, with particular reference to regional news coverage. [144653]
Mr. Woodward: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not had any recent discussions with the BBC about its charter.
The BBC agreement places requirements on the BBC relating to the amount of time given to regional news coverage and its scheduling. The BBC Trust is responsible for ensuring these requirements are met.
12. Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to review the financial arrangements for Channel 4 television. [144655]
Mr. Woodward: Following Ofcoms report on the funding of Channel 4 the Government have announced their intention to use part of the licence fee to fund some of Channel 4s digital switchover costs and to bring forward our review of public service broadcasting funding.
14. Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on progress on selling the Tote. [144657]
Mr. Caborn: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Lancaster and Wyre (Mr. Wallace).
Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the future of the Tote. [144658]
Mr. Caborn: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Lancaster and Wyre (Mr. Wallace).
15. Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to strengthen Government support for seaside and coastal tourism. [144659]
Mr. Woodward: DCMS continues to provide VisitBritain with funding of around £50 million a year to promote Britain overseas and England to the domestic market. The attractions of the coast have been prominent, for example, in its recent Family Fun and English Rose campaigns.
Councils and businesses on the coast are also responsible for the product they offer, and they have taken great strides to change their image. It is important that seaside resorts continue to use the national quality schemes for accommodation and attractions developed by VisitBritain.
18. John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what additional measures she has considered to encourage more visitors to the national museums and galleries; and if she will make a statement. [144663]
Mr. Lammy: Free admission has ensured that more people than ever have access to the national collections. The number of visits to national museums and galleries has risen from 24 million in 1997-98 to 39 million last year.
What we need to do now, and have already been encouraging through our performance targets, is to increase participation from under-represented groups.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will take steps to ensure that new regional casinos make use of energy efficient light bulbs. [144660]
Mr. Caborn: Any new casino development will be required to comply with relevant planning and building requirements, including relevant requirements designed to protect the environment and promote energy saving.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much National Lottery arts funding (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) England received per capita in each of the last five years. [145398]
Mr. Caborn: The series of tables show the per capita figures for the last five financial years for Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England where the good cause is recorded as Arts. The search is location specific. That is the tables include only grants that are specific to location in the region and exclude grants that might have gone to addresses in the region, but are not otherwise related to it.
The value of grants is taken from the Lottery grants database which uses information supplied by the Lottery distributors. The population figures used are from the mid 2005 estimates of the Office for National Statistics.
Northern Ireland (population 1,724,400) | ||
Year (financial) | Value of grants (£) | Per capita (£ and pence) rounded to nearest pence |
Scotland (population 5,094,800) | ||
Year (financial) | Value of grants (£) | Per capita (£ and pence) rounded to nearest pence |
Wales (population 2,958,600) | ||
Year (financial) | Value of grants (£) | Per capita (£ and pence) rounded to nearest pence |
England (population 50,431,700) | ||
Year (financial) | Value of grants (£) | Per capita (£ and pence) rounded to nearest pence |
The Departments Lottery grant database is searchable at www.lottery.culture.gov.uk and uses information supplied by the Lottery distributors.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2007, Official Report, column 1038W, on the Public Arts Centre in West Bromwich, East constituency, what recent discussions the Minister for Culture has held on the Public Arts Centre; and if she will make a statement. [145464]
Mr. Lammy: I have not had any recent discussions on the Public Arts Centre in West Bromwich, East constituency.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the future of the British Film Institute. [145418]
Mr. Woodward: The British Film Institute (BFI) play a vital role to the Film industry through their care for the BFI National Archive and Collections and their encouragement of knowledge and participation in film in the UK. DCMS works closely with the BFI and UK Film Council to ensure this work can be continued and developed in the future.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funding was provided to the British Film Institute in each of the last 10 years; and what the projected funding allocation is for 2007-08. [145427]
Mr. Woodward: Funding from Government for the British Film Institute, directed through the UK Film Council since its establishment in 2000, is in the following table.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has held on the future of Formula One motor racing at the Silverstone circuit in Northamptonshire, with particular reference to its future after 2009; what steps she is taking to support the British motor racing industry; and if she will make a statement. [145428]
Mr. Caborn: The Government maintains its desire for a British Grand Prix at Silverstone but our role remains one of dialogue and facilitation.
I have attended a number of meetings to discuss the future of Formula One Grand Prix racing at Silverstone. The most recent meeting was on 20 March with the British Racing Drivers Club (BRDC) to discuss their plans for redevelopment of the Silverstone circuit and discussions are ongoing.
The Government support British Motorsport through Motorsport Development UK (MDUK) who have invested over £12 million to help maintain and strengthen the UKs dominant position in world Motorsport.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to reclassify the ceramics industry as a creative industry; and if she will make a statement. [145352]
Mr. Woodward: The creative industries, as defined in the 1998 and 2001 Mapping Documents, are those which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent. This definition includes design and crafts, which cuts across many sectors, including ceramics, and the creative elements of them. The Creative Economy Programme is considering the broad framework of support for the creative industries and through that work there is a broad recognition that creativity itself is a vital component of sectors such as ceramics, where I am aware that there are many examples of companies achieving renewed success through their innovation and willingness to reinvent themselves.
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