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18 Oct 2007 : Column 1288W—continued
Small Businesses: Regulation
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what measures he is taking to reduce the burden of regulation on small and medium sized businesses. [158667]
Mr. McFadden: Government have embarked upon one of the most radical programmes of regulatory reform in the world. For the first time ever, government departments have published rolling simplification programmes—outlining measures to reduce burdens for business. That is why we attach particular importance to better regulation and are committed to reducing the burden of regulation on business by 25 per cent.—a total saving across government of £2 billion by 2010, with BERR playing its part, reducing its burden by about £700 million by 2010.
Tradeshow Access Programme
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many applications the Tradeshow Access Programme received in (a) 2005-06 and (b) 2006-07; how many it has received in 2007-08; and how many his Department forecasted for the financial year 2007-08. [155860]
Mr. Thomas: The number of participants that received financial support at overseas exhibitions under the Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP), or its predecessor Support for Exhibitions and Seminars Abroad (SESA), between the dates requested are as follows:
| Participants | ||
| (1) Applications received as of end August 2007, not all of which will result in grant. | ||
The revised forecast for the financial year 2007-08 was to support 3,400 businesses.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what proportion of the Tradeshow Access programme budget was used by the end of August 2007; how many applications were made in this period; and how many applications have been refused. [155861]
Mr. Thomas: By the end of August 2007, the Tradeshow Access programme had commitments which we forecast to result in a spend of 83 per cent. of its revised budget of £8.5 million; this was to fund participations in tradeshow activity throughout the financial year from April 2007 until March 2008 (i.e. not just until end August 2007). The scheme had received 3,279 applications during this period, a figure which will be subject to downward revision following companies dropping out of the scheme. My department has not refused any eligible applications under the scheme. In August 2007, we announced some restrictions in numbers for events in the second half of the year intended to manage demand against the resources available.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the total budget was of the Tradeshow Access programme for the financial year (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07 and (c) 2007-08. [155862]
Mr. Thomas: The total revised budgets for the Tradeshow Access programme in financial year 2006-07 was £10.5 million and for 2007-08 is £8.5 million.
The Tradeshow Access programme (TAP) was established at the beginning of financial year 2006-07. However, exhibition support prior to this date was covered under a different scheme called Support for Exhibitions and Seminars Abroad (SESA). The comparative budget for 2005-06 was £15.9 million.
Unfair Practices: Competition
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) if he will take steps to ensure that a market-dominant vertically integrated business is required to wholesale its channels on a reasonable basis to other retailers; [157027]
(2) what assessment he has made of the level of retail price competition in the pay TV market; and what assessment he has made of the effect of this level on consumers; [157028]
(3) what his policy is on consumer choice in the pay TV market. [157029]
Mr. Thomas: The matter raised is the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive’s letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Children, Schools and Families
Academies
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many city academies (a) have been (i) opened and (ii) agreed and (b) are proposed in each local education authority. [152923]
Jim Knight: The Government are firmly committed to establishing 400 academies. There are 47 Academies now open; 35 academy projects have funding agreements with the Secretary of State and are in their implementation phase; and there are 65 proposed projects where the Secretary of State has agreed a formal expression of interest with a sponsor for an academy project. Details are given in the following table. In addition to these, the Department is in discussion with local authorities on a large number of potential projects where no formal expression of interest has yet been agreed.
| Local authority | Open | In implementation | In feasibility |
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