Written Answers to Questions
The following answers were received between Thursday 10 September and Monday 14 September 2009
Culture, Media and Sport
Cricket
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many registered amateur cricket clubs there were in each region in (a) 2000, (b) 2002, (c) 2004, (d) 2006 and (e) 2008. [288780]
Mr. Bradshaw: Sport England has advised that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) does not hold details of how many registered community amateur cricket clubs there were in each region in each of the last 10 years.
However, the ECB holds details of the number of community amateur cricket clubs registered as Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) since CASC status was established in 2002.(1)
(1) From 2004 publication of collated data changed from November to May of each year.
| Date | Number of registered cricket clubs |
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1376W, on public expenditure, how much his Department (a) allocated and (b) spent on (i) sport, (ii) the arts and (iii) heritage in 2008-09. [290903]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 9 September 2009]: It is my Department's policy to publish details of funding spent, as opposed to funding allocated, to avoid confusion or potential double-counting where end-year flexibility has been applied or where funds have been transferred in year. The amount of Exchequer funding spent by DCMS and its NDPBs on sport, the arts and heritage in 2008-09 is set out in the following table.
| 2008-09 | |
| £000 | |
|
Heritage (including Royal Parks and Listed Places of Worship Scheme plus central DCMS spend) | |
English Heritage: Fees and Charges
Mr. Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average price of entry to an English Heritage property was in (a) 1996-97, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10. [290896]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Information from English Heritage is that the average price of entry to an English Heritage property, based on one full price adult ticket, in 1996-97, 2008-09 and 2009-10 is as set out in the following table.
| Average charge (£) | Constant sample of sites | |
Heritage Lottery Fund: Grants
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been distributed by the Heritage Lottery Fund (a) in cash terms and (b) expressed in current prices in each year since its foundation. [290768]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Information from the Heritage Lottery Fund is that the amount paid to recipients of HLF grants in each financial year is as set out in the following table.
| £ million | ||
| Actual cash terms | Current prices | |
Members: Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when a reply will be sent to the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton's letter dated 27 July 2009 to him with regard to Ms Gina Hine, referred to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. [290991]
Mr. Simon: A response was sent from my right hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr. Bradshaw) on 8 September 2009.
Music
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the number of music venues and rehearsal spaces which have closed in (a) London and (b) each region in each of the last five years. [290911]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The information required to make these assessments is not held centrally.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he expects the 12 pilot community music rehearsal spaces announced in December 2007 to be operational. [290912]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The first spaces were opened in Liverpool and Bristol in May and July 2009, respectively. It is difficult to be precise about the opening dates of further spaces-each has different requirements for instruments and these have to be sourced and costed before we can make a grant offer for the local authority concerned to consider. However, we are hopeful of making such offers in respect of five further spaces in the next few months-in St. Austell, Nottingham, Washington (near Sunderland), Hastings, and rural Norfolk. Discussions are also under way about setting up spaces in Manchester, Coventry and Birmingham.
Swimming
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what criteria will be applied to the assessment of local authority bids for Phase 2 funding from his Department's free swimming initiative. [288273]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 20 July 2009]: The overall aim of the Government's free swimming programme is to encourage more people to swim by assisting in modernising and enhancing publicly accessible swimming pools including pools at maintained schools of any category in England.
Applications to the second round of the Free Swimming Capital Modernisation Programme will be assessed against the criteria laid out in the programme prospectus, which was agreed by the Free Swimming Capital Project Board (comprising DCMS, Department for Children, Schools and Families, Sport England, the Amateur Swimming Association and Local Government Association representatives) for both rounds of funding (2009-10 and 2010-11). I have arranged for copies of the prospectus to be placed in the House Library.
Transport
A1(M): Hertfordshire
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when he expects the roadworks on the A1(M) in the vicinity of junction 4 to be completed; and if he will make a statement. [291144]
Chris Mole: The roadworks in the vicinity of A1(M) junction 4 are to carry out a major refurbishment of the Hatfield tunnel. Works are programmed to be completed in April 2010.
A1: Nottinghamshire
John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when the (a) Blyth fly-over and (b) associated A1 improvements in Nottinghamshire will be open. [291009]
Chris Mole: The new two-level junction on the A1 at Blyth was fully opened to traffic in October 2008.
The associated A1 improvements in Nottinghamshire at Apleyhead and Markham Moor junctions were fully opened to traffic in October 2008 and March 2009 respectively.
The scheme replaces the roundabouts at Blyth, Apleyhead, Markham Moor and Gonerby Moor with two-level full grade separated junctions, and provides two-level compact junctions at Colsterworth and Carpenters Lodge. The scheme separates A1 traffic and local journeys thereby reducing congestion and delays, improving safety and journey time reliability. The project which has improved and upgraded six junctions between Blyth and Peterborough will be substantially completed on 7 October 2009.
A14: Kettering
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when physical construction work on widening the A14 between junctions 7 and 9 around Kettering is scheduled to (a) start and (b) finish. [291066]
Chris Mole: The construction work on widening the A14 between Junctions 7 and 9 is currently scheduled to start in autumn 2011 with completion expected by spring 2013.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the (a) average and (b) peak daily traffic volumes for the A14 between junctions 7 and 10 around Kettering were in the latest period for which figures are available; and what they are forecast to be in (i) 2010, (ii) 2015 and (iii) 2020. [291070]
Chris Mole: A table providing information on the average and peak daily traffic volumes for the A14 between Junctions 7 and 10 around Kettering for the latest period and for 2010, 2015 and 2020, has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Bus Services: Concessions
Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what steps his Department plans to take to assist local authorities to meet the cost of freedom passes for pensioners and the disabled. [291158]
Chris Mole:
Local authorities receive the bulk of their funding for concessionary travel via the formula grant system, which is administered by the Department for Communities and Local Government. Since April 2008, local authorities have also received funding from the Department for Transport in the form of a special
grant to meet the additional cost of the extended England national bus concession. The special grant was £212 million in 2008-09, has risen to £217 million this year and will increase to £223 million in 2010-11. The Government are confident that there are sufficient funding, in total, for statutory concessionary travel.
In addition, the Government paid a grant of around £31 million in 2007 to local authorities outside London to replace existing bus passes with new ITSO smartcard passes. Over eight million of these have now been issued. London has received a grant of £4.8 million in 2009 to facilitate the replacement of existing freedom passes with new smartcard passes from April 2010.
Corby Station
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport further to his letter to the chair of the Transport Select Committee dated 6 July 2009, how many passengers (a) boarded and (b) alighted from trains at Corby railway station on each day since 14 June 2009. [291065]
Chris Mole: A table of the number of passengers originating and terminating their journey at Corby each day since 14 June 2009 has been placed in the Library of the House.
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