§ 3.10 p.m.
§ Baroness Elliot of HarwoodMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government what education grants have been awarded by the EEC to the United Kingdom since June 1979.
§ The Earl of SwintonMy Lords. because of the way in which EC education grants are disbursed, the information is most conveniently given for the academic years August 1979 to July 1984.
Grants have been made tinder the education cooperation programme agreed by EC Education Ministers in 1976 to United Kingdom pilot projects designed to assist the development of national policies in the area of the transition from school to adult life. Over £1.2 million has been received since 1979. The sum of £500,000 has been made available for projects in the United Kingdom on the education of the children of migrant workers.
The Community have also given small grants to British universities under a scheme for the development of joint programmes of study between institutions of higher education in different member states designed to assist student mobility. British institutions participate in 70 per cent. of the programmes and have received about £800,000. About £150,000 has been made available to United Kingdom participants in various EC study visit schemes. In addition, the commission at their own discretion have distributed other small scale grants to various bodies and individuals for studies or other purposes.
Although the education service receives few resources directly from the European social fund, there is substantial indirect funding through participation in schemes sponsored by the Manpower Services Commission.
§ Baroness Elliot of HarwoodMy Lords. I thank the noble Earl very much for his most interesting Answer. It comes as news to quite a number of people. Too few 1187 people realise that the United Kingdom receives grants. I did not realise that they are so varied. I hope that the) will continue.
§ The Earl of SwintonMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for not asking a supplementary question.
§ Baroness DavidMy Lords, if I may ask the Minister for a little more information, are there any particular regions of the country which have received most of the benefit from the many grants which he mentioned?
§ The Earl of SwintonMy Lords, I do not, I am afraid, have that information. Either I can write to the noble Baroness or, if she wishes to put down a Question for Written Answer, I shall be happy to reply.
§ Lord AveburyMy Lords, can the Minister give an assurance that when funds are received from the EEC in respect of education—as, for example. in the case of migrant workers—an equivalent sum is not deducted from the amounts available through the Department of Education and Science—for example, by a reduction of the money that they would have received under Section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966?
§ The Earl of SwintonMy Lords, I imagine that is the case; but if I am wrong, I shall write to the noble Lord about it.
§ Baroness LockwoodMy Lords, can the Minister give an indication of what proportion of the funds which have been distributed have come to the United Kingdom in the way he has just described? Is he further aware that there is a certain amount of concern in this country about the fact that the money which is available for activities of this kind is not shared out in the way that the United Kingdom would like?
§ The Earl of SwintonMy Lords, the United Kingdom participates fully in the EEC's education co-operation programme and receives its full share of the allocations.