Lottery Funding

Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Culture, Media and Sport – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 27 March 2000.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mr Nick St Aubyn Mr Nick St Aubyn Conservative, Guildford 12:00, 27 March 2000

Will the Secretary of State confirm that the amount of unspent lottery charity money is now in the region of £3.5 billion, and that the amount being spent on good causes is only one sixth of the amount people spend on lottery tickets? That is less than half the proportion of lottery proceeds that it was intended would go to good causes. Does not the right hon. Gentleman realise that as long as the money stays in the Government's hands, it will be regarded—quite rightly—as yet another example of a Labour stealth tax? Does he accept that that stealth tax will damage the success of the lottery, just as the Government's other stealth taxes are damaging the British economy?

Secretary of State

Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.