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18 Mar 2010 : Column 1044W—continued
The figures represent both expenditure on NMS programmes and payments related to the construction of new accommodation for the National Physical Laboratory, initially under a PFI contract, and consequential demolition and remediation works. In addition, prior to 2003/04, the budgets for the Materials Measurement and Government Chemist programmes were not classified as part of the National Measurement System.
Post Offices
Mr. Paice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of post office branches in (a) rural and (b) urban areas in (i) England and (ii) Wales in each of the last 10 years. [323246]
Mr. McFadden: I have asked the managing director of Post Office Ltd. to respond directly to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Regeneration: West Midlands
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on Government policy for economic regeneration in Birmingham and the West Midlands. [312774]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In the normal course of business I have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues on economic regeneration, including but not limited to Birmingham and the West Midlands. These conversations have included meetings with the Regional Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley, North (Mr. Austin). The Government remain committed to economic regeneration in the West Midlands, as evidenced by the Early Advantage Fund, a new £8 million early stage venture capital fund set up in December 2009 by Advantage West Midlands which will make investments of up to £250,000 in young businesses alongside private sector investors, and the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry, funding for which was agreed by Government on 29 October 2009 and contracts were signed earlier this week.
Regional European Offices
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 February 2010, Official Report, column 1128W, on regional European offices, which bodies audit the accounts of the regional European offices in Brussels; and whether regional European offices are deemed to be public authorities for the purposes of UK (a) equality, (b) freedom of information and (c) human rights legislation. [319797]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows:
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 February 2010, Official Report, column 1128W, on regional European offices, if he will place in the Library a copy of the accounts of each of the regional European offices that are held by each regional development agency. [319798]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is as follows.
The latest accounts West Midlands in Europe are publicly available on the West Midlands in Europe website:
East of England Development Agency (EEDA)
The East of England Development Agency does not manage the East of England European Office and therefore does not hold this information.
The East of England European Office is managed by the East of England Regional Assembly on behalf of the East of England European Partnership. This is a region-wide partnership of mainly local authorities, EEDA, and the Government Office for the East of England. All members subscribe to the running costs of the office.
East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA)
The East Midlands European Office is a partnership organisation, with 21 contributing partners, line-managed by the East Midlands Development Agency. As such it is not a legally recognised entity and does not have independent accounts. The budget for the office is managed through the EMDA financial systems and not reported separately. EMDA's accounts are held in the Library and can be found on the EMDA website:
London Development Agency (LPA)
The LDA does not manage the London European Office and as such does not hold accounts for the office. In financial year 2008-09 the LDA contributed £50,000 to the London European Office which is part of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and represents the Mayor of London and the GLA's functional bodies-Transport for London, the London Development Agency, the Metropolitan Police and the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority-to the EU institutions.
This contribution is included within the 'Reduce Disparities in Labour Market' expenditure line of the segmental analysis on page 26 of the annual statement of accounts for 2008-09:
http://www.lda.gov.uk/upload/pdf/LDA_Statement_ of_Accounts_2008_2009.pdf
North West Development Agency (NWDA)
NWDA does not manage the North West England Brussels Office and as such does not hold accounts for the office. Information on NWDA's contribution to the office is contained in NWDA's accounts and is available online:
ONE does not hold the separate accounts for the Brussels office as the figures are incorporated into ONE's annual accounts. Management Accounts have a completed Income and Expenditure account for 2008-09 which are available online:
http://www.onenortheast.co.uk/lib/liReport/15127/One%20North%20East%20Annual%20Report%20 and%20Accounts%202008-9%20with%20annex%2010.7.09% 20small.pdf
South East of England Development Agency (SEEDA)
SEEDA's Brussels office forms part of a facility that is managed by Kent county council. SEEDA does not manage the Brussels office and therefore does not hold its accounts. SEEDA is one of a range of partners that contribute to the running costs of the premises. SEEDA does not show expenditure for the Brussels office separately in the annual accounts-this expenditure is included in the figure for 'Other administrative costs' on page 48 of the annual accounts and 'Office and rent costs' under note 5 on page 57.
SEEDA's 2008-09 annual accounts can be accessed online:
http://www.seeda.co.uk/_documentbank/annualReport Accounts20082009.pdf
South West Regional Development Agency (SWRDA)
The South West UK Brussels Office (SWUKBO) is a partnership organisation, with 17 contributing partners. The South West RDA does not hold the accounts for
SWUKBO as Somerset county council currently manages them on behalf of the partnership.
The South West RDA's contribution to the South West Brussels Office is funded by a project that falls under the "Vision and Leadership" accounts budget line. Programme expenditure for Vision and Leadership is published in our Annual Report and Financial Statements 2008-09, p63. This can be accessed online:
This information cannot be distinguished from Yorkshire Forward's main accounts. Yorkshire Forward's annual accounts are available online:
Venture Capital: Wales
Hywel Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much was spent from the (a) UK High Technology Fund, (b) Regional Venture Capital Funds, (c) Community Development Venture (Bridges) Funds, (d) Early Growth Funds, (e) Enterprise Capital Funds, (f) Aspire Fund and (g) Capital for Enterprise Fund in Wales in each year for which figures are available. [321953]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 12 March 2010]: As at 31 December 2009 four SMEs located in Wales had received investment support totalling £2.1 million as follows:
| Investment | Fund | Year | Amount invested (£) | Comment |
|
SME relocated to Wales post initial investment of £100,000 in 2003, follow on investments of £100,000 in 2005, 2006, 2007 | ||||
Children, Schools and Families
Building Schools for the Future Programme: Buckinghamshire
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much funding has been allocated to each school in Buckinghamshire under the Building Schools for the Future scheme; and when he expects each grant to be paid to the local education authority. [322935]
Mr. Coaker: The indicative funding allocation for Buckinghamshire's top priority project is set out in the following table:
| £ | ||
| School | Capital value | ICT |
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