§ Mr. MorleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what level of funding is provided by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee to the British Trust for Ornithology; and what this figure is as a proportion of the British Trust for Ornithology's total expenditure for each of the last four years.
§ Mr. AtkinsThe Joint Nature Conservation Committee's contract with BTO will be worth £414,000 731W this year. Figures comparing the value of the contract and the trust's expenditure over the last four financial years are as follows:
£ thousands 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 BTO Expenditure 1,024 1,660 1,225 N/a Value of JNCC contract 301 365 399 393 Contract as percentage of BTO expenditure 29.4 22.0 32.6 — N/a—Not available.
Figures for 1990–91 are for BTO's contract with the former NCC.
§ Mr. MorleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the annual cost of administering the statutory bird-ringing scheme and licensing activities which are contracted out to the British Trust for Ornithology in 1993–94 and 1994–95.
§ Mr. AtkinsThe British Trust for Ornithology operates a national bird-ringing scheme under contract from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. This scheme is not statutory. In 1993–94, funding from the JNCC amounted to approximately £112,000. In 1994–95, funding will be about £138,000. The BTO is licensed by English Nature, the Countryside Council for Wales and Scottish Natural Heritage to issue permits for ringing or marking birds or examining any ring or mark.
§ Mr. MorleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received concerning the funding of the British Trust for Ornithology.
§ Mr. AtkinsMy Department has received three written representations about the Joint Nature Conservation Committee's contract with the British Trust for Ornithology for the provision of bird-ringing data, including one from the hon. Member.