§ Mr. Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what expenditure has been incurred by his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies(a) in 1996–97 and (b) since 1 May 1997 on (i) opinion polling, (ii) focus groups and (iii) other forms of market research; if he will list the surveys commissioned and the purpose of each; and if he will make a statement. [26611]
§ Mr. Ron Davies[holding answer 5 February 1998]The following expenses have been incurred by my agencies and non-departmental public bodies:
Energy and Environment Office (EEO): Business and Environment Campaign
- Period: January to September 1997
- Cost: £1,0259 (+ VAT)
- Purpose: Telemarketing research exercise to 250 decision makers within Welsh SMEs to gauge their awareness of the Department's Business and Environment Campaign.
Wales Environment Centre Mori Survey
- Period: February to April 1997
- Cost: £20,000 (Environment Agency contribution = £15,000)
- Purpose: To determine Managing Director and Finance Director (within Welsh companies) views of environmental issues.
Welsh Development Agency
- Period: 1996–97
- Environmental Goods and Services Market Research
- Cost: £10,000
- Purpose: To identify the size of this sector in Wales in order for the WDA to develop appropriate support measures.
Inward Investment Evaluation Survey
- Cost: £33,056 excluding VAT
- Purpose: To undertake a formal evaluation of the Agency's inward investment.
Welsh Omnibus Survey
- Cost: £1,530
- Purpose: The inclusion of additional questions to the Evaluation survey to assess resident expectations of Welsh economic prospects.
Information Society benchmarking study
- Cost: £12,760 excluding VAT
- Purpose: To identify the use of information and communication technologies by Welsh firms.
Cadw
Tracking survey
670W
- Period: August/September 1996
- Cost: £11,750
- Purpose: To gain market profile data about visitors to the monuments in the care of the Secretary of State for Wales.
Cardiff Bay Development Corporation
- Period: 1996–97
Inner Harbour Study
- Cost: £2,400
- Purpose: To survey the attitudes of visitors and to establish whether the attractions and facilities in the Inner Harbour are meeting the needs of these visitors.
Visitor/Leisure Monitor
- Cost: £3,085
- Purpose: To assess trends in leisure visiting, to gauge levels of visiting and to assess satisfaction amongst visitors to Cardiff Bay as a leisure destination.
Corporate, Commercial and Regional Monitors
- Cost: £5,645
- Purpose: Opinion survey to provide the basis on which sound decisions can be taken and to highlight problems and opportunities as they arise and develop.
Technology Marketing Study
- Cost: £5,000
- Purpose: To establish the competitive position of Cardiff Bay relative to other competing locations in the UK and to identify sectors that the Bay could attract on the basis of the infrastructure and service provision.
Digital Development Research
- Cost: £20,000
- Purpose: To measure the impact of the introduction and development of Digital Technology on the media sector in Wales.
Multi-media Centre Consultancy
- Cost: £2,500
- Purpose: To put together a European Regional Development Fund bid for a multi-media centre to be based in Cardiff Bay.
Telecoms Sectoral Analysis
- Cost: £13,375
- Purpose: An analysis of sectors and firms which may be interested in the telecommunications technology available in Cardiff Bay.
- Period: 1997–98
Inner Harbour Study
- Cost: £1,296
- Purpose: To survey the attitudes of visitors and to establish whether the attractions and facilities in the Inner Harbour are meeting the needs of these visitors.
Cultural Quarter Feasibility Study
- Cost: £9,990
- Purpose: To determine appropriate marketing and development strategies and initiatives to promote the Mount Stuart Cultural Quarter concept.
Wales Tourist Board
Research Programme
- Period: 1996–97
- Cost: £333,000
- Period: 1997–98
- Cost: £317,000
(It is not possible to isolate funding specifically for focus groups because most research studies involve a range of different qualitative/quantitative research techniques. An approximate estimate for expenditure incurred specifically on focus group research would be £30,000 in 1996/97 and £50,000 in 1997/98).671WDevelopment Board for Rural Wales
Customer Satisfaction Survey
- Period: May 1997 cont.
- Cost: £31,502
- Purpose: To determine the current strengths and weaknesses of the customer services offered by the Board, and identify opportunities to improve customer service delivery operations. The survey forms an integral part of the Board's continuous improvement strategy, building on the achievement of ISO 9001.