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8 Feb 2010 : Column 660W—continued
Departmental Written Questions
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2010, Official Report, column 88W, on departmental written questions, by what mechanisms his Department monitors its responses to parliamentary questions; what its target time is for responses; and how its performance against that target is measured. [316503]
Mr. Simon: My Department aims to answer all ordinary written parliamentary questions within five working days and give all named day parliamentary questions a substantive reply on the specified named day.
However, when this is not attainable then we endeavour to give an answer as soon after the named day as possible.
My Department has a parliamentary question database which allows us to monitor how we are working to these deadlines.
Recognising that my Department needs to improve on our figures, significant measures have been put in place across the Department ensuring that all staff are aware of the importance we must place on answering parliamentary questions in a timely manner. As such, the statistical figure for January 2010 show a marked improvement. Of 253 ordinary written parliamentary questions during this period 220 (86.95 per cent.) were answered within a working week. 25 named day parliamentary questions were also tabled with 15 (60 per cent.) given a substantive reply on the named day.
With effect from the current session of Parliament, each Department will provide the Procedure Committee with sessional statistics on the time taken to answer written questions. This implements recommendation 24 of the third report from the Procedure Commission, session 2008-09.
Digital Broadcasting: Vulnerable Adults
Mr. Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assistance (a) his Department and (b) the Digital Switchover help scheme offers to vulnerable people whose needs are not met by the standard offer of a free digital box, with particular reference to vulnerable people with sight difficulties. [316001]
Mr. Simon [holding answer 5 February 2010]: My Department is providing assistance with the digital switchover with the BBC through the Digital Switchover Help Scheme.
The scheme offers practical support to make the switch to digital on one television set to people who are aged 75 or over, disabled, visually impaired, or care home residents. The help scheme will provide equipment suited to needs, help with installation, fit a new dish or aerial where necessary and possible, give demonstrations and ensure that further help is accessible.
One button access to audio description (AD) is mandatory for equipment supplied through the help scheme standard offer. Freesat and Freeview equipment supplied by the help scheme outside of the standard offer also has AD functionality, though not necessarily with one button access.
Recent trials of a talking electronic programme guide (EPG) developed by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) appear promising, and will be kept under consideration by the Department with a view to its possible inclusion in scheme equipment.
Football Foundation: Gloucester
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding has been provided by his Department through the Football Foundation in Gloucester since 1997. [316005]
Mr. Sutcliffe [holding answer 5 February 2010]: The Football Foundation has advised that it has approved £1,316,871 worth of grants into projects with a total value of £2,260,390 to Gloucester since its launch in 2000.
Government Art Collection
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much his Department has budgeted for the Government Art Collection in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12. [316396]
Mr. Simon: In 2009-10 the Government Art Collection's budget is £1,186,000. For 2010-11 the budget is still under consideration. Budgets for 2011-12 will be decided following the next spending review.
Hotels
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how many separate bookings for stays at five star or above hotels were made through the Expotel contract by his Department in the last year for which figures are available.; [315212]
(2) how many separate bookings for stays at five star or above hotels were made through the Expotel contract by his Department in the last year for which figures are available; and at what cost. [315216]
Mr. Simon: The number of trips booked, hotel night stays and total cost for hotels booked through Expotel in the period 1 April 2009 to 31 January 2010 is as follows:
| Number of trips | Number of nights stayed | Total cost (£) | |
Licensed Premises: Opening Hours
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate his Department has made of the change to the average daily number of opening hours of bars and public houses in England and Wales since the entry into force of the 24-hour licensing provisions of the Licensing Act 2003. [315640]
Mr. Sutcliffe: My Department produced an evaluation of the impact of the Licensing Act 2003 (the 2003 Act) in March 2008, and this is available on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport website:
http://www.culture.gov.uk/images/publications/Licensing evaluation.pdf
The report revealed that the average closing time, across all on-licensed premises has increased by only 21 minutes since the Act came into effect. We have carried out no further evaluations on opening hours.
On 4 February 2009, I announced that we do intend to give licensing authorities power to restrict the sale and supply of alcohol between 3 am and 6 am where that is necessary for the promotion of one or more of the statutory licensing objectives. Amendments were tabled to the Crime and Security Bill on 4 February to give effect to this policy and will now be scrutinised by Parliament.
Museums and Galleries: Finance
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 25 January 2010, Official Report, column 539W, on museums and galleries: educational visits, how much of the £32 million had been spent on the latest date for which figures are available. [314202]
Margaret Hodge [holding answer 29 January 2010]: For the period of 2003-04 to 2009-10, the Department has invested a total of £27.21 million in the strategic commissioning programme. The remaining £4.79 million of the £32 million will be spent during 2010-11.
Museums and Galleries: Yorkshire and Humberside
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much (a) national and (b) local museums in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) the City of York received in Government grants in each year since 1996-97. [304512]
Margaret Hodge: The table shows Government grants to (a) national and (b) local museums in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) the City of York in each year since 1996-97.
The funding provided includes grant in aid allocated to national museums and galleries by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS); grants given
since 2002-03 by the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund (of which 50 per cent. is given by DCMS and 50 per cent. by the Wolfson foundation); and funding provided by DCMS to the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) for both the Renaissance in the Regions programme for regional museums (from 2002-03) and the Designation Challenge Fund (from 2001). The core funding of local authority museums is a matter for the 22 county, district and unitary councils in Yorkshire and the Humber. The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy's (CIPFA) Statistical Information Service surveys local authority museums and the findings are available in its publication 'Culture, Sport and Recreation'.
| £000 | ||||
| Yorkshire and the Humber | City of York | |||
| Government grants to national museums( 1) | Government grants to local museums( 2) | Government grants to national museums( 3) | Government grants to local museums( 4) | |
| (1) The Government provide grant in aid to the National Museum of Science and Industry (NMSI), which allocates funding to its branch museums in Bradford (National Media Museum) and York (National Railway Museum). Individual allocations to these branches for the year 1996-97 are not available. The Government have provided grant funding to the National Coal Mining Museum of England through NMSI since 1999-2000. The figures provide the total allocation for the Royal Armouries, which includes its Leeds, Fort Nelson and Tower of London branches and grants from the DCMS/Wolfson Fund. Royal Armouries in Leeds is the headquarters. All national museums sponsored by DCMS are eligible to apply to the DCMS/Wolfson Fund. (2) Figures comprise the grants made by the DCMS/Wolfson Fund to the following eligible institutions: Cartwright Hall Art Gallery, Cliffe Castle Museum, Harewood House, Wilberforce House Museum, Leeds City Art Gallery, Temple Newsam House, Weston Park Museum, Graves Art Gallery, the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield, York Castle Museum and the Yorkshire Museum; Government funding provided to Yorkshire Hub museums through Renaissance in the Regions (Bradford Museums Service, Hull Museums Service, Leeds Museums and Galleries, Museums Sheffield and York Museums Trust), and through the Designation Challenge Fund to Harewood House Trust, Kingston upon Hull City Museums and Art Galleries, Leeds Museums and Galleries, Sheffield Galleries & Museums Trust and York Museums Trust. Figures also include the operational costs of the Yorkshire Hub and Museum Development Yorkshire. The proportion of this funding applied to the City of York is not available. (3) Government grant in aid provided through the NMSI to the National Railway Museum, and grants made to the Museum by the DCMS/Wolfson Fund. (4) Figures comprise the grants made by the DCMS/Wolfson Fund to York Castle Museum and the Yorkshire Museum, and Government funding provided to York Museums Trust through Renaissance in the Regions and the Designation Challenge Fund. | ||||
National Lottery: Sports
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 1 February 2010, Official Report, columns 10-11W, on parliamentary questions, what the reason was for the time taken to reply in (a) 2008 and (b) 2010. [316385]
Mr. Simon: The Department's decision, to respond to questions on non-departmental public bodies' (NDPBs) operational issues by asking the chief executive to write directly, has been based on the overall principles of providing responses to members within the set timescale across the full range of the Department's NDPBs. This approach also makes clearer the arm's length relationship.
Sports: Coventry
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to increase opportunities for people aged from (a) seven to 12 and (b) 13 to 18 years old in Coventry to play sport. [315941]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested regarding Coventry specifically is not held by the Department centrally, however the Youth Sport Trust would be able to supply a response. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of the Youth Sport Trust to write direct to my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, South.
Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the provision of community sport facilities in Coventry. [315942]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department has allocated Sport England over £ 480 million of Exchequer funding in the last five years, to invest in community sport both through national governing bodies and more specific local initiatives.
In addition, in 2009-10, the Department has allocated Sport England £135 million of Exchequer funding. Sport England has targets to get one million people doing more sport by 2012-13, and to make a major contribution to the delivery of the five-hour sports offer for children and young people. Coventry will benefit, alongside every area of England, from Exchequer and lottery investment by Sport England in 2010 in support of these targets.
The information requested regarding Coventry specifically is not held by the Department centrally, however Sport England would be able to supply a response. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Sport England to write direct to my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, South.
Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
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