§ 6. Andrew Mackinlay (Thurrock)What proportion of lottery money has been (a) raised and (b) spent in Thurrock. [2425]
§ The Minister for Sport (Mr. Richard Caborn)Up-to-date information on the proportion of lottery money raised is not available. As of 5 July 2001, the total number of grants awarded to Thurrock is 79, and they are worth just over £2.5 million.
§ Andrew MackinlayThe last figures that I had showed that the number of lottery tickets purchased in my constituency was twice the national average. When I listen to such replies, I am reminded of the song:
It's the same the whole world over,It's the rich wot gets the pleasure,It's the poor wot gets the blame"—and the Minister knows what follows—Ain't it all a ruddy shame?There needs to be discrimination in terms of geography and class in the distribution of resources. The marketing policy is aimed at some of the poorest and most disadvantaged people in the country, which is wrong. However, if it is going to happen, there has to be funding discrimination in favour of the poorest places in our constituencies, too. What is the Minister going to do about it?
§ Mr. CabornI thank my hon. Friend for that kind question. Camelot has carried out only one survey of ticket sales in each constituency, which it conducted on the fifth anniversary of the lottery. My hon. Friend is right: sales in his constituency were £60 million compared with the mean of about £30 million, and those figures are in the Library. The lottery distributors must develop a strategy to assess the needs of different areas. However, we must be careful if we are going to dispute the money based on the sales of lottery tickets. It is not entirely true that the better-off do not participate, because they do, and we would have to consider those figures as well.
On 27 June, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced £150 million for initiatives to secure a fairer share of lottery money for the 50 most deprived areas. We are trying to address the questions that my hon. Friend raises.