§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much is unallocated in the National Lottery Distribution Fund; and what steps she is taking to reduce this sum. [123827]
§ Estelle MorrisAccording to the latest figures available, up to March 2003, there is a balance in the National Lottery Distribution Fund (NLDF) of £3.26 billion, and of this £136 million is unallocated. Over £4.2 billion has been committed to projects by distributors with varying degrees of firmness.
The National Lottery Funding Decision Document, published on the 3 July, sets out a number of proposals aimed at reducing the balances held by distributors. These include issuing guidance on balance management to distributors, and revising the Financial Directions distributors operate under in order to speed up the funding of smaller, low risk projects. Copies of this has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.