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Heathrow Terminal 5

Viscount Goschen asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, following the statement of Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 20 November (HL Deb, col. 1036), they can now confirm whether or not

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they released or authorised the release of any information to the media concerning the Secretary of State's decision to grant approval to the development of Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport prior to the announcement to Parliament.[HL1585]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: I can confirm that no information was released or authorised for release to the media by the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions concerning the Secretary of State's decision to grant approval to the development of Terminal 5 at Heathrow prior to the Secretary of State's announcement to Parliament.

London Underground: Financing

Baroness Hanham asked Her Majesty's Government:

With what regularity Ministers at the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions have had meetings and communicated with the financial institutions involved in financing the proposed public private partnership deal for the London Underground; and when prior to 14 November was the last time that any such meetings or communications took place.[HL1618]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: Ministers from the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions have had occasional meetings with representatives of bidders for the modernisation of London Underground. My right honourable friends the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions and the Minister for Transport most recently met representatives of each preferred bidder and their financial supporters in October and November.

Baroness Hanham asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether any of the financial institutions involved in financing the proposed public private partnership deal for the London Underground expressed reservations to Ministers at the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions about their continued involvement in the period from 7 October to 14 November; and, if so, what was the substance of such reservations. [HL1619]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: My right honourable friends the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions and the Minister for Transport most recently met representatives of each preferred bidder and their financial supporters during the specified period. They reaffirmed the Government's commitment to the use of private finance for transport infrastructure projects and, in particular, for the Tube modernisation plans.

Baroness Hanham asked Her Majesty's Government:

When Ministers at the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions became aware

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of the concerns recently expressed by Land Securities as to its continued involvement in the proposed public private partnership deal for the London Underground. [HL1620]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: Land Securities Trillium is one of the bidders for the London Underground property partnership. The conduct of the competition is a matter for London Regional Transport and London Underground Limited.

Baroness Hanham asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they are confident that potential bidders for the proposed public private partnership deal for the London Underground will be able to make sense of the 135 volumes and 2,800 pages which to date comprise the contracts for it. [HL1621]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: The preferred bidders have had detailed negotiations with London Underground about the contracts for the modernisation of the Tube. The Government are satisfied that the contracts make sense and are comprehensible to both London Underground and the bidders.

European Elections Voting System

Lord Greaves asked Her Majesty's Government:

What research and advice they are seeking on the advantages that may be obtained in the next round of European elections by switching to a voting method (such as open list system or single transferable vote) which, while maintaining proportionality, would allow voters to choose between the candidates nominated by a particular party. [HL1634]

Lord Falconer of Thoroton: A Home Office review of the 1999 European Paliamentary election, published in May 2000 and available on the DTLR website, included a review of the closed list voting system and concluded that the introduction of this system appeared not to affect voter motivation in that election. We are currently undertaking no further research on the voting system for the next European elections.

Research Council System

Lord Peston asked Her Majesty's Government:

When the outcome of the second stage of the quinquennial review of the six grant-awarding research councils will be announced and what its principal conclusions are. [HL1831]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville): I am pleased today to announce the outcome of the second stage of the quinquennial review of the six grant-awarding research councils. I shall be placing a copy of the stage 2 report in the Libraries of both Houses.

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Quinquennial reviews are conducted in two stages. I announced the outcome of stage 1 on 19 July. It concluded that the six grant-awarding research councils should continue to be executive non-departmental public bodies.

I welcome the thrust of the stage 2 report and its recommendations and accept the review's main conclusions that:

the research council system is working reasonably well;

to deal with the increasing pace of scientific change and complexity of national and international arrangements, the councils need to be capable of acting and speaking as one, and of promoting new and increasingly multidisciplinary science;

they also need to do business with their key stakeholders in more convergent ways and in line with Modernising Government principles;

there should be a new strategy group comprising the council chief executives and the Director General of the Research Councils to achieve these aims, and to provide a framework for cross-council working at all levels;

with a clearer identity and mission, the councils as a group will be able to develop closer links with the other major science funders, including the funding councils, government departments and the major charities;

they will also be able to work more closely with other key stakeholders, including the universities and the business and public service organisations which use their research and trained people;

to capitalise on these stronger relationships and closer working, and to ensure delivery of key objectives, the research councils and DTI need to develop a stronger strategic framework for science and a long-term strategic road map towards which the full range of players in science can direct their efforts.

It will be for the research councils, working closely with my department, to implement the review's detailed recommendations. Once this is completed, I am confident that the effectiveness of science budget expenditure will be enhanced.

I am grateful to all those who contributed to this quinquennial review, in particular the members of the review steering group, working groups and research council staff.

Royal Armouries: Long-term Loan of Items

Lord Freyberg asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they were consulted over the Royal Armouries' plans to make long-term loans of items from their national collections to a private museum in Louisville, Kentucky, United States; and; (a) whether they can confirm that the Louisville Museum has received a personal commitment to this effect from Her Majesty the Queen, as reported

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in the American press; (b) whether the loan items bound for the Louisville Museum are from store or are usually on display at its three sites; (c) how many items will be on loan to the Louisville Museum, and how long they will be loaned for; and (d) how much money the Royal Armouries will receive from this loan; and[HL1600]

Whether they are aware of any government-sponsored museums or galleries which are considering entering into arrangements with private institutions either within or outside the United Kingdom similar to the arrangements between the Royal Armouries and the Louisville Museum, Kentucky, United States.[HL1601]

The Minister of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Blackstone): The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has been consulted about the Royal Armouries' plans for an arrangement with the Owsley Brown Frazier Historical Arms Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, involving the long-term loan of items from the Royal Armouries under Section 21 of the National Heritage Act 1983, in exchange for payments.

DCMS has informed the Royal Armouries that we will need to be satisfied that the business case which the armouries is preparing is sound financially and legally before we give approval for the project to proceed.

I can confirm that:

(a) no commitment has been given by Her Majesty the Queen to the Louisville Museum;

(b) it is likely that any loan items would come from the museum's reserve collection; although the armouries has yet to determine this;

(c) the number of loans envisaged by the Royal Armouries is around 350, although this has yet to be determined; and that

(d) the amount of money that the Royal Armouries would receive in respect of the loan has yet to be determined.

I am not aware of any other national museums and galleries sponsored by my department which are considering entering into arrangements similar to those the Royal Armouries propose with the Frazier Historical Arms Museum in Louisville involving the long-term loan of objects from their collections in exchange for payments.

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