§ 5. Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what plans he has to increase the number of Millennium Commissioners. [364]
§ Mr. Chris SmithThe National Lottery etc. Act 1993 provides that there shall be nine members of the Millennium Commission, appointed by Her Majesty the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister. There are no plans to increase the number of commissioners.
§ Mr. VazMay I add my congratulations to the Secretary of State on his outstanding start? Does he agree that it is essential that the Millennium Commission be representative of the community? As constituted, it is not representative. I tried for four months to have a meeting with my right hon. Friend's predecessor to discuss these very issues, but she was not able to find time to see me and community representatives at such a meeting.
Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is important to look again at the membership of the commission? It would be quite easy to introduce a small Act of Parliament to change the composition of the commission to allow for more commissioners who are representative and to deal with the backlog of assessments.
§ Mr. SmithI should be only too delighted—unlike my predecessor, perhaps—to meet my hon. Friend to discuss these matters. Under the legislation, six of the nine members of the Millennium Commission are in place until 31 December 2000. Three members of the commission change with the change of Government and I am delighted to say that I am taking up the post of chairman. Of course, the decisions that the commission takes must reflect the needs of the community as a whole, including all parts of the community—all races, all ages, both genders and all regions of the country. Those are firm principles which must guide the considerations of the commissioners.