§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
On what basis and with what information and advice they agreed to the cut in the budget for 2003 for the Cross Border Language Implementation Body; with whom there was consultation; on what date; and what was the result of the consultation. [HL2778]
§ The Lord President of the Council (Lord Williams of Mostyn)The agreed budget for the North/South Language Body for 2003 was £11.33 million, £1.31 million less than the indicative budget of £12.64 million. This reduction was as a result of pressure on public expenditure in the Republic of Ireland. The budget was agreed by the two governments following consultation between them.
As the noble Lord is aware, work is now underway to increase the budget of the North/South Language Body.