Ms Estelle Morris: The vast majority of households in Bridgwater can, with the appropriate equipment, receive digital television services via digital satellite. However, according to Ofcom, digital terrestrial coverage in and around the Bridgwater area is patchy; this cannot be improved before switchover, due to topography and technical constraints on the Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) transmissions. We...
Ms Estelle Morris: The vast majority of households in Solihull can, with the appropriate equipment, receive digital television services via either digital satellite, digital terrestrial or cable. However, according to Ofcom, digital terrestrial coverage in and around the Solihull area is patchy; this cannot be improved before switchover, due to the technical constraints on Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT)...
Ms Estelle Morris: This process will begin by switching off one analogue channel, which will immediately be made available on a digital multiplex, also carrying other digital services. Then at a later date the other analogue services will be switched off and immediately replaced by the remaining digital services.
Ms Estelle Morris: The Government are committed to creating a sustainable, stable and successful film industry. The UK Film Council, our strategic body for film, allocates Lottery money for film making, and works with Government support to promote the widest possible enjoyment and understanding of cinema throughout the UK. The Government itself continues to make available generous and appropriately-targeted tax...
Ms Estelle Morris: None. Lottery distributors do not exclude applications from geographic areas on the grounds of affluence. Lottery tickets do indicate that further information about the National Lottery is available at www.national-lottery.co.uk and this includes details of how to apply for a Lottery grant and the many awards which have been made since the Lottery was established in 1994. Lottery...
Ms Estelle Morris: Lottery funding is not denied to specific geographic areas in the UK on the grounds of perceived affluence. Policy directions issued to distributors by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport require them to take into account the need to ensure that all parts of England have access to lottery funding". There is extremely strong competition for lottery funding and some...
Ms Estelle Morris: The BBC has statutory responsibility for the administration of the television licensing system and TV Licensing carries out the day-to-day administration under contract to the Corporation. I have therefore asked the BBC's Head of Revenue Management to write to the hon. Member direct, placing a copy of the letter in the Libraries of both Houses. Based on the currently available information,...
Ms Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, which administers free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agent for the BBC, is not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in the Leicester, South constituency in 2003–04 was 4,660, according to Department for Work...
Ms Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, which administers free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agent for the BBC, is not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in the Wallasey constituency in 2003–04 was 5,445, according to Department for Work and...
Ms Estelle Morris: I have been asked to reply. The BBC has statutory responsibility for the administration of the television licensing system and TV Licensing carries out the day to day administration under contract to the Corporation. The BBC has advised that this information is not available as the Corporation does not collect any data on a constituency level.
Ms Estelle Morris: I have been asked to reply. The BBC has statutory responsibility for the administration of the television licensing system and TV Licensing carries out the day to day administration under contract to the Corporation. The BBC has advised that this information is not available as it does not split licence fee revenue by nation or region.
Ms Estelle Morris: I have been asked to reply. The BBC has indicated that the data required to produce accurate estimates is not available for the nations and regions. However, as the hon. Member may be aware, the National Audit Office's 2002 report The BBC: Collecting the Television Licence Fee" indicated that the estimated evasion rate for Northern Ireland at the end of March 2001 was 17.6 per cent.
Ms Estelle Morris: We have no present plans to amend the 1963 Act as the hon. Member suggests. However, should the Gambling Bill achieve royal assent we do envisage using the powers in clause 166 to set default conditions for betting premises licences which will include longer opening hours in the winter months than is currently allowed.
Ms Estelle Morris: The responsibility for ensuring that everyone gets all the information they need about the digital switchover process, including information on what equipment will work after switchover, will primarily be one for Switchco, broadcasters and the supply chain. The Government will continue to take responsibility for communicating its switchover policy.
Ms Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in the Hartlepool constituency in 2003–04 was 4,900, according to Department for Work and...
Ms Estelle Morris: The works of art purchased by the Government Art Collection (GAC) since 2 May 1997 are listed in a separate document. I am arranging for copies of the document to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses. The information about prices paid is commercially sensitive. It is not the GAC's practice to publish the prices paid for individual works of art purchased directly from the artist,...
Ms Estelle Morris: Figures for the number of foreign nationals who visit all museums in England each year are not available. The number of visits from overseas residents to museums and galleries sponsored by DCMS, which include the national museums and galleries in England, is set out in the following table. They represented just under a third of all visits to DCMS-sponsored museums in 2003–04. Overseas...
Ms Estelle Morris: In 1999, DCMS published in a review of efficiency and effectiveness of national museums and galleries a set of potential performance indicators. Working with the National Museums Directors Conference, these performance indicators have been refined to a set of key indicators. The measures include the number of visits by C2DEs to a sponsored museum, the ethnicity of the visitors, and whether...
Ms Estelle Morris: The additional grant in aid paid in compensation to DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries which formerly charged for admission or which opened free in the period 1999–2000 to 2003–04, is shown in the following table. From 2004–05 onwards, a separate amount is not paid, but funding for free admission is taken into account in the allocation of all funds to all DCMS-sponsored museums. Level...
Ms Estelle Morris: The number of visits from (a) UK residents and (b) overseas residents to museums and galleries sponsored by DCMS, which include the national museums and galleries in England, is set out in the table. Visits by UK residents Visits by overseas residents 1997–98 (17)n/a (17)n/a 1998–99 13,530,904 10,429,096 1999–2000 13,871,594 10,508,406 2000–01 19,013,790...