HC Deb 16 March 1998 vol 308 cc942-5
29. Mr. Robathan

What representations he has received about the contents of the millennium dome. [32926]

32. Mr. Clappison

What representations he has received about the proposed content of the millennium dome. [32929]

The Minister without Portfolio (Mr. Peter Mandelson)

I have received a huge quantity of correspondence on all aspects of the millennium experience. I am particularly pleased about the many letters of support that I have received following the hugely successful presentation of contents launched by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 24 February.

Mr. Robathan

I understand that the millennium experience is to feature an androgynous figure with a baby at its feet, which is an unlikely, if happy, event. I have been abroad, but I understand that there has been much newspaper speculation about whether the baby is to wear nappies. Is not the Minister concerned, as I am, that the event is becoming an object of ridicule in the press, and that, far from setting up a great exhibition such as the one in 1851, his lasting legacy to the millennium will be known as Mandelson's baby?

Mr. Mandelson

If I were the hon. Gentleman, I should be slightly more concerned that I had no more intelligent question to ask. As for the conception of the millennium experience, he has only to look to the brilliant vision shown by his party when in government to recall that it was the Conservative party's idea in the first place.

Mr. Clappison

Has the Minister given thought to seeking the views of our splendid Lord Chancellor on what to put inside the dome? Better still, has he thought about an exchange of jobs with the Lord Chancellor, who is, as he tells us, in charge of everything in this Government? Would not the Lord Chancellor relish the opportunity to fill the dome with the best of British art and workmanship so as to create a fitting monument to himself, in the style of Wolsey with Hampton Court and Christchurch? Would not it be better for the contents to be the best of British, and to have Lord Irvine and rule Britannia, rather than the tacky cool Britannia contents that seem to have been chosen?

Mr. Mandelson

The contents of the millennium dome will be the best of British and demonstrate considerable pride in our past as well as enormous confidence in our future. It is extraordinary to listen to Conservative Members, who seem to begrudge the progress that we are making; our success is a source of disappointment to them. That is extraordinary, given the importance of this great national event.

Mrs. Dunwoody

I hope that my hon. Friend will not be too dismayed if I ask a serious question. Many of us are disturbed to hear that large numbers of the general public do not associate the millennium with the birth of Christ. Would not it be appalling if such an important link were not central to the exhibition, because giving the general public the idea that it was not directly connected with a core reason for its existence would set a dangerous precedent?

Mr. Mandelson

I share my hon. Friend's sentiments. The millennium marks a hugely significant moment in the Christian calendar. It is a time for Christian celebration and reflection, and this must and will be reflected in the spirit zone and many other aspects of the millennium celebrations. We must remember that the millennium is a movement for the whole nation. It will bring Christians together, but not just Christians—people of all faiths and none will be involved. In that spirit, it will receive considerable support from the whole country. In that context, I would like to pay tribute to the Churches for generating a proper focus on the significance for them of the millennium experience and its associated activities.

Mr. Pike

May I assure my hon. Friend that although there were many concerns about the festival of Britain and the contents of the dome of discovery, people such as myself enjoyed their visits to the festival in 1951? Is it not likely that people who go to the millennium celebration will enjoy what they see and will remember that occasion for the rest of their lives?

Mr. Mandelson

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. A recent Gallup poll in The Daily Telegraph showed that, even without the dome having been built and without the contents having been installed, some 35 per cent. of the population approved of what they had heard so far. Some 60 per cent. showed tremendous confidence that we would get it right on the night. That is a typically British attitude, and people's confidence will be well merited in the final result.

Mr. Baker

Will the atmosphere zone—where we are expected to experience the wonders of our planet—feature the air conditioning system chosen for the millennium dome, which will be powered by a greenhouse gas 1,000 times more effective than carbon dioxide? Why has not a greener gas been used, as recommended by the Deputy Prime Minister and Greenpeace, among others? When will the Minister reply to my written parliamentary question, tabled on 10 February, about this matter?

Mr. Mandelson

The hon. Gentleman will not have to wait much longer for his answer. I recognise, as does the New Millennium Experience Company, the need for environmental protection and integrity in the dome's construction and operation. We acted on that basis in switching from PVC to Teflon for the dome's roofing fabric. The company is doing so again by rejecting CFCs and HCFCs in the chiller system of the dome, and by keeping environmentally harmful HFC emissions down to 1 per cent. That is well within the letter and spirit of the declaration of intent agreed with the refrigeration industry in 1996.

Ms Abbott

Now that there is more clarity about the contents of the dome, when does my hon. Friend intend to make public the business plan for the dome, in line with the recommendation by the Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport?

Mr. Mandelson

The company will make its business plan public when it said it would in presenting evidence to the Select Committee. It will not be before too long.

Mr. Maude

What responsibility does the hon. Gentleman take for the fact that the Gallup poll to which he referred showed that nearly one in three people thought that the dome was a complete shambles, that nine out of 10 felt uninvolved and excluded and that, so far, only one in five planned to attend—less than half the proportion who planned at an equivalent stage to visit the 1951 festival, which baulks so large in the Minister's mind? Is it not a shocking indictment of his management of the project that three out of four people in that survey believed that this great national project was a complete waste of money? If he can bring his attention back to his own responsibilities for a second, will he acknowledge that he is now the major part of the problem?

Mr. Mandelson

No, I will not. The right hon. Gentleman refers to a similar poll being undertaken at a similar time prior to the 1951 exhibition. That is not the case. The opinion poll was taken at the back end of 1950, so we still have a long way to go before the right hon. Gentleman's equivalence is discovered in any opinion poll. I am sorry if he thinks that the public have been excluded. Perhaps if the Conservative Government had done more to consult them when they hatched the idea, there would be no sense of exclusion.

As for the so-called shambles to which the right hon. Gentleman refers, all that I can do is to point again to the opinion poll's important finding that 60 per cent. of the population have every confidence that we, at least, shall get it right on the night. I am very sorry that he cannot find it in himself to express a little more confidence or to display a slightly less curmudgeonly attitude than we have seen recently.

Mr. Skinner

Will my hon. Friend not make too many comparisons with 1951, when a totally different culture was abroad? Very few people had a chance to travel; they regarded visiting the festival on the bus from Derbyshire as a day out and, if they had a few bob, they would go in their posh frocks. This time, there will not be bus loads of people going down in the middle of the summer. When my hon. Friend opens the millennium experience, there may be 3 deg of frost or 3 ft of snow. He should understand that he has a problem in convincing the same groups that there is something to be more excited about than a boot sale or walking round DFS.

Mr. Mandelson

I thank my hon. Friend for what I think was a helpful question. In the years before the millennium dome opens, many activities will take place under the umbrella of the national programme that is associated with the millennium experience—it will be called the millennium challenge. The activities—sporting, educational, environmental and cultural heritage—will take place in all parts of the United Kingdom, and will involve people from all backgrounds and of all ages. As people learn more about the contents of the dome and associate themselves more with the national programme, the anticipation and excitement will grow and grow. Our problem will not be attracting people, but finding enough space and opportunity for them all to enter the dome to have the time of their lives.