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29 Oct 2008 : Column 1111W—continued
| Millennium good cause | ||
| £000 | ||
| Lottery income cash | At 2007-08 prices | |
| Health, education, charities and environment good cause | ||
| £000 | ||
| Lottery income cash | At 2007-08 prices | |
| Olympic good cause | ||
| £000 | ||
| Lottery income cash | At 2007-08 prices | |
| (1) Sourced from draft NLDF 2007-08 Accounts. | ||
Olympic Games 2012: Cultural Heritage
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what role heritage will play in his Department’s plans for an Olympic legacy; and if he will make a statement. [225291]
Barbara Follett:
Heritage plays a significant role in plans for the Olympic and Paralympic games and the Olympic legacy. As the Government’s adviser on the historic environment, English Heritage has had a direct involvement in the Olympics construction programme through its statutory responsibilities in planning and archaeology. The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), the Government’s statutory adviser on architecture and the built environment, is
also a key player in the promotion of well designed, sustainable facilities that make best use of existing built assets where appropriate.
As part of the build process for the Olympic Park, the waterways adjacent to and through it are being repaired and renovated. River wells are being repaired and soft river edges, reseeded with indigenous plants, are being re-established.
All archaeological finds have been recorded and the artefacts are being held by the Museum of London for public viewing. The Olympic Programme is also financing two architectural reports on the history of the Olympic Park which will cover a thousand years of its history, as well as giving a more recent picture of how it has changed in modern times.
The Cultural Olympiad provides an opportunity for all sorts of cultural organisations to engage in Olympic legacy. The heritage sector has already chosen to become involved, and many organisations took part in the Olympic Handover Celebrations in August and the Open Weekend in September which celebrated the launch of the Cultural Olympiad. Organisations from the heritage sector are also involved in the development of the major Cultural Olympiad project, Discovering Places. This programme introduces a new generation to the hidden places and spaces of the UK.
There are also opportunities for interested heritage organisations to get involved in the UK wide festival, part of the Cultural Olympiad.
Plain English
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many documents produced by his Department were submitted to the Plain English Campaign for approval for Crystal Mark status in each year since 2005; and how many documents achieved such status in each year. [230654]
Barbara Follett: No documents have been submitted for approval for Crystal Mark status.
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many documents produced by his Department were submitted to the Plain English Campaign for approval for Crystal Mark status in each year since 2005; and how many documents achieved such status in each year. [231115]
Mr. Sutcliffe: No documents have been submitted for approval for Crystal Mark status.
Remembrance Day
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was raised from the sale of poppies in his Department for Remembrance Sunday in each of the last five years. [227737]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department has sold poppies for Remembrance Sunday in its offices in each of the last five years. The Department does not have a record of how much was raised from the sale of poppies.
Tourism
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what tourism growth target his Department has set for the period 2008 to 2011; and if he will make a statement. [231353]
Barbara Follett: The current published ambition of achieving £100 billion turnover by 2010 was agreed with the industry, the regional development agencies and the Local Government Association in 2004.
The publication of VisitBritain’s strategic review in late 2008/early 2009 will provide an opportunity to examine the need for a new UK growth target.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Banks: Competition
Mr. Bone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what his most recent assessment is of levels of competition within the banking sector. [229447]
Mr. Thomas: The UK's independent competition authorities (the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission) are responsible for promoting effective competition in markets, tackling anti-competitive behaviour and examining markets that may not be working well for consumers. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) also has statutory responsibilities within the banking sector which are about maintaining confidence in the financial system, promoting public awareness and understanding of the financial system, securing greater consumer protection and reducing financial crime.
Full details of all investigations conducted by the competition authorities can be found on their respective websites. Within the banking and financial sector, the most recent investigations conducted by the authorities are as follows:
The Office of Fair Trading investigation into the market for personal current accounts in the UK. Findings were published on 16 July 2008 and can be found at
The Competition Commission investigation into banking services provided by clearing banks to small and medium sized enterprises. Final decisions and areas for further work for the Office of Fair Trading were published on 21 December 2007 and can be found at
The Competition Commission investigation into store credit card services. Final decisions were published on 7 March 2006 and can be found at
The Competition Commission investigation into Northern Irish Personal Banking. Final decisions were published on 15 May 2007 and can be found at
Departmental Reorganisation
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what change there has been to his Department's budget to reflect the movement of responsibilities to the Department of Energy and Climate Change. [230624]
Mr. McFadden: The Machinery of Government changes of 3 October 2008 announced the creation of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, formed from the Energy Group located in the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Climate Change Group located in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will transfer their budgets for Energy and Climate Change respectively to the new Department, based on the settlements agreed in the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007, for the financial years 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11. The annual budgets are currently being determined with HM Treasury engaged in the process. The agreed budget figures will be published in the Spring Supplementary Estimates in February 2009.
Departmental Secretarial Staff
Mr. Hands: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether his Department provides a separate diary secretary to (a) each Minister of State and (b) each Parliamentary Under Secretary of State. [230927]
Mr. McFadden: Every Minister of State and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State is provided with their own diary secretary except that in the case of Ministers shared with another Department agreement is reached about which Department should provide the diary secretary as it would lead to confusion if there were two.
Departmental Visits Abroad
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what official visits abroad he plans to make in 2009. [229364]
Mr. McFadden: Overseas travel plans for 2009 are not finalised at this time.
Departmental Written Questions
Mr. Harper: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many and what proportion of written questions for answer on a named day his Department has answered on the due date in the current session of Parliament to date. [226816]
Mr. Thomas: As at 20 October 2008, the Department had answered 591 named day questions, of which 144 were answered on the due date. Of those answers receiving a “holding” reply, just under 40 per cent. received a substantive reply within two sitting days of the specified date. The Department is considering ways to improve its performance on answering named day questions.
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