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8 Apr 2010 : Column 1611W—continued
National Lottery
Mr. Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make it his policy to refuse consent to Camelot to offer a facility to make cash payments for utilities and other services through National Lottery terminals. [325863]
Mr. Sutcliffe: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Royal Parks Agency: Finance
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2009, Official Report, column 997W, Royal Parks Agency: finance, what revenue has been raised by the Royal Parks Agency in each Royal Park from (a) car park charges, (b) fixed penalty notices, (c) other fines and (d) other revenues in (i) 2008 and (ii) 2009. [323897]
Margaret Hodge: Revenue raised from parking charges, excess charge notices and other revenue during the 2008-09 financial year has been provided by The Royal Parks (TRP) in the following table:
| £000 | |||
| Royal Park | Car parking | Excess charge notices( 1) | Other revenue( 2) |
| (1) The excess charge figure is also included in the car parking figure (2) These figures exclude grants from agency-wide projects, which are managed centrally. (3) Parking charges are not applicable at these parks because there is no public parking. | |||
There is no charge at present for parking in Richmond or Bushy Parks. TRP does not receive revenue from fixed penalty notices or other fines, but receives revenue from catering and other concessions, from fees for events, permits and licences and from rents. The excess charge notices figure is included in the figures for car parking.
Television: Scotland
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what consultation was undertaken by his Department on the transfer of the Scottish Borders television region to the Scotland pilot scheme; when the transfer will take place; what (a) technical and (b) regulatory process will be required to effect the transfer; and if he will make a statement. [325457]
Mr. Bradshaw: As part of the announcement of the procurement process for the independently funded news consortia (IFNC) pilots the Government said they wanted to look at the option for a news service for the whole of Scotland subject to costs and technical feasibility.
The IFNC proposition is about an enhanced local news service that is relevant for audiences. The option of transferring the Scottish borders regional news service remains under review. No decisions have yet been made about whether or not a transfer will take place or the timing. If a decision is taken to transfer the news provision, then any necessary technical and regulatory processes will be addressed.
Tourism: Essex
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to promote tourism in South East Essex; and if he will make a statement. [324390]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested regarding the promotion of tourism in South East Essex is not held centrally. Responsibility for tourism in the regions was taken over by the regional development agencies (RDAs) in 2003.
I have therefore asked the chief executive of the East of England Development Agency to write to the hon. Member directly. Copies of the response will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
In 2009-10, DCMS contributed £3.4 million to the RDA single budget, in respect of tourism support in the regions. This money is not actually ring-fenced for tourism, but is intended to support the broader tourism promotion investment of the RDAs, which totalled £60 million in 2009-10.
The overall level of public sector investment in tourism from local, regional and national sources is likely to significantly exceed £2 billion in the current spending review period-2008-09 to 2010-11 (including resources made available for skills development).
In partnership with the industry and the wider public sector, the DCMS has a clear and coherent policy framework for industry growth. This includes branding and marketing; skills development; driving up product quality through accommodation grading schemes; and promoting sustainability and accessibility.
In addition a number of other DCMS programmes contribute to tourism. DCMS sponsors "Sea Change", which has allocated £38 million to 32 seaside resorts, to support projects for cultural regeneration and the visitor economy. The "Renaissance in the Regions" programme is a ground-breaking initiative to transform England's regional museums. Renaissance has seen an investment of £242.8 million from 2002-09 and it is anticipated that nearly £300 million will have been invested by March 2011.
Letter from Deborah Cadman, dated 8 April 2010:
As requested by the DCMS, I write in response your Parliamentary Question about support for tourism in South East Essex.
Support for tourism promotion in South East Essex is provided in close working partnership by Southend Borough Council, Essex County Council, and East of England Tourism (EET), which is funded by EEDA.
Essex County Council support includes:
featuring tourism businesses in guides, on their website, and in their tourism market campaigns
with EET, keeping local authorities informed about tourism issues and advising them on specific opportunities, for example hotel development
taking advantage of the Olympics to promote South East Essex, which will host the mountain biking in 2012 at Hadleigh Castle
representing South East Essex in its public relations work, including at trade shows
Southend Council support includes:
investing an additional £100,000 last year in its events programme, which aims to help extend the tourism season and promote Southend as a short-break destination as well as a day visitor destination
redeveloping its website last year and developing a new brand for Southend to help challenge perceptions and open up new markets
East of England Tourism (EET) provides regional and national level marketing for South East Essex through its marketing campaigns, successful website, and other services for tourism businesses.
For example, last year Southend featured in the following EET initiatives:
The Lets Go! promotion with National Express
a marketing campaign with C2C
Stansted guides and special offers
a double-page spread in The Independent
an Evening Standard press campaign
In addition, EEDA itself has directly invested in new cultural facilities in South East Essex, including Metal in Southend, and the Royal Opera House Production Park in Thurrock. We are also leading the region's effort to take advantage of the Olympics opportunity, which we estimate could deliver a £450 million return for tourism for the region as a whole, with South East Essex especially well-placed to benefit.
Should you wish to know more about our work supporting tourism in South East Essex please do no hesitate to contact us.
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