§ Mr. WatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what initiatives his Department has taken to promote millennium celebrations in southern England; and if he will make a statement. [45440]
§ Mr. Chris SmithIn Bristol on 27 February, I launched a series of eight Regional Millennium Conferences, which culminated on 16 April in London. The conferences were designed to explain the Government's vision for the Millennium celebrations; publicise the Millennium Commission's various programmes, including the £100m nationwide Millennium Festival; give details of the New Millennium Experience Company's national programme of activities; provide guidance for events organisers on how to apply for funding under the various schemes; and promote co-ordination and the sharing of good practice. 82 organisations attended the South Western conference and 213 the South Eastern, a good coverage which effectively spread useful information about the Millennium to local authorities and other organisations throughout the South of England.
The Millennium Commission (of which I am Chairman) has to date offered grant totalling nearly £210 million to capital projects in the South East and South West regions, ranging from international-scale projects like the Millennium Seed Bank in Sussex and the Eden Project in Cornwall, to small Village Halls from Ashurst to Avon.