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CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Civil Servants
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many new entrants to the Civil Service were employed in her Department in each of the last five years; and how many in each year were aged 50 or over. [119812]
Mr. Caborn: The total number of new entrants to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in each of the last five years and the number of those aged 50 or over is shown in the following table:
| Year | Total | Aged 50 or over |
|---|---|---|
| 1998–99 | 17 | 3 |
| 1999–2000 | 35 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | 27 | 2 |
| 2001–02 | 41 | 2 |
| 2002–03 | 54 | 4 |
Departmental Annual Reports
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost was of publishing her Department's annual report in each of the past five years; and if she will provide a breakdown of the costs incurred. [118723]
Mr. Caborn: The cost of publishing the Department's annual report for each of the past five years was as follows:
| Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design, typesetting, pdfs etc | 46,142 | 40,212 | 45,144 | 56,105 | 45,524 |
| Print (Buy back of copies from the Stationery Office(1)) | 25,000 | 18,310 | 24,648 | 24,774 | 18,140 |
| Proof reading | — | 648 | 533 | 570 | 80 |
| Total | 71,142 | 59,170 | 70,325 | (2)81,449 | 63,744 |
(1) DCMS was responsible for print and distribution for the 2003 annual report as this was found to be a more cost effective option than going through The Stationery Office.
(2) The costs for 2002 included the development of a new design template which the Department plans to follow for the next three years.
Departmental Budget
Mr. Greenway: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the Department's Exchequer Budget for sport and related projects was in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; how much underspend there was in the Exchequer Budget; and how much funding was carried over under end-year flexibility arrangements. [119575]
Mr. Caborn [holding answer 16 June 2003]: For 2001–02 I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 2 December 2002, Official Report, columns 541–42W. The information for 2002–03 will be published in the Department's 2002–03 Resource Accounts in the autumn.
HMS Vengeance
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received from groups and individuals seeking to bring the former HMS Vengeance back to the UK as a naval heritage museum; what plans she has to assist this venture; and if she will make a statement. [119682]
Estelle Morris: The right hon. Member for Suffolk, Coastal (Mr. Gummer), wrote to the Secretary of State in June 2002 about the 'Save the Vengeance Appeal', seeking guidance and support on behalf of campaigners for the return of the vessel to the UK. Two letters seeking support for this vessel have also been received from members of the public. The Government welcomes the efforts of those involved in the preservation of the country's maritime heritage. However, we do not provide direct financial support for the acquisition, movement or conservation of historic ships, other than through the provision of grant-in-aid to those museums, funded by the Department, which hold vessels of historic significance in their collections.
Landmarks
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment she has made of the conservation of literary landmarks. [118002]
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Estelle Morris: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has made no assessment of the conservation of literary landmarks. However, English Heritage offers grants for the repair and conservation of historic buildings, monuments, areas and historic parks and gardens. The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) distributes money raised by the National Lottery to support all aspects of heritage in the UK, from historic buildings and museums to archives, nature conservation and oral history. The HLF provides both capital grants (for buildings and equipment) and time-limited activity grants. Further information is available from both organisations.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent on conserving landmarks broken down by (a) type and (b) region in each of the last 10 years. [118003]
Estelle Morris: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, information about the types of grant available for conservation of this historic environment is available at the English Heritage (EH) and Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) websites. The HLF are also developing a searchable database of Heritage Lottery Fund grants on their site.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many landmarks have been identified by her Department for conservation broken down by region in each of the last 10 years. [118004]
Estelle Morris: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is not responsible for identifying landmarks for conservation. Planning Policy Guidance Note 16 issued by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister makes clear that detailed development plans (i.e. local and unitary development plans) should include policies for the protection, enhancement and preservation of sites of archaeological interest and of their settings.
Official Spelling
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make it her policy that all official (a) correspondence, (b) reports and (c) documentation from her office use the English spelling of words where this differs from the US version. [118858]
Mr. Caborn: DCMS follows guidance on the Handling of Ministerial and Other Correspondence issued by the Cabinet Office which emphasises that the quality of all written material and correspondence is of a high standard and in line with guidance on Plain Written English.
DCMS Departmental publications are also prepared in line with Guidance on the Work of the Government Information and Communication Service.
Regulatory Bodies
Mr. Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the (a) number of staff employed by and (b) budget of each regulatory body for which her Department is responsible in each year since 1997. [117776]
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Mr. Caborn: Information about the number of staff and financial details for my Department's sponsored bodies since 1997 are contained in the Cabinet Office's annual publication "Public Bodies". Copies of "Public Bodies" for 1997 to 2002 are available in the Libraries of the House.
Rural Proofing
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she last met the Chairman of the Countryside Agency to discuss rural proofing. [115577]
Dr. Howells: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 12 June 2003, Official Report, column 1017W, by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Rural Affairs.
Tourism
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was spent by (a) domestic and (b) foreign tourists in the UK in each quarter for each of the last 10 years. [119143]
Mr. Caborn: The available data on quarterly expenditure by domestic and foreign tourists in the UK over the last 10 years are shown in the table.
(3) Quarterly data from the UK Tourism Survey is only available back to the start of 2000 due to a significant change in the survey methodology in 1999. Annual totals from 1995–99 were subsequently reworked to allow comparison with the data for 2000 onwards.
Sources:
International Passenger Survey, UK Tourism Survey
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Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to reverse the recent fall in monthly tourism nights taken by holiday makers in England. [119354]
Mr. Caborn: The most recent statistics from the UK Tourism Survey show that UK residents took more monthly tourism nights in the UK in January and February this year than they did in the same period in 2002.
Statistics from the Office for National Statistics show that the total number of international visits to the UK, including all types of visits rather than just holidays, fell around the time of the recent war in Iraq. However figures for new arrivals in the UK in April 2003 indicate that visitor levels are recovering quickly following the end of the war.
VisitBritain is responsible for promoting Britain overseas and England domestically. On St. George's Day a new campaign called 'Enjoy England' was launched, to promote England as a tourist destination to the domestic market. A US advertising campaign was launched in June targeting key American 'gateway' cities; this campaign is a unique partnership between the public and private sectors. VisitBritain is also currently planning a European 'British Cities' campaign to be launched in autumn 2003, marketing British cities, including some 'Capital of Culture' candidates.
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