North/South Language Body (Hansard, 11 June 2003)

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the legal status of the financial memorandum entitled The North/South Language Body—Financial Memorandum which was supplied to that body on its creation. [HL2737]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
The financial memorandum to which the noble Lord refers is the financial memorandum drawn up by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, and the two finance departments, North and South. In Northern Ireland, the North/South Language Body is required to comply with the financial memorandum by virtue of (i) the agreement of 8 March 1999 made between the British Government and the Irish Government establishing the North/South Implementation Bodies and (ii) the North/South Co-operation (Implementation Bodies) (NI) Order 1999.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Privy Seal on 12 May ( WA 1), in what form and on what date the Ulster Scots Agency was informed by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs of the change in the provision for the North/ South Language Body. [HL2857]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
The Answer given on 12 May 2003(WA 1) indicated that on 12 November 2002 the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (DCRGA) advised the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) of DCRGA's 2003 provision for the North/South Language Body and similarly advised the body a few days later. In practice, by agreement between the two departments, that advice was given to the two agencies of the body via telephone calls from DCAL to the Ulster Scots Agency and from DCRGA to the Irish Language Agency. These calls were made on 14 November.
45WA
On 17 January 2003, and with the agreement of DCAL, officials in DCRGA advised the two agencies by email of the total indicative provision for each agency for 2003.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Privy Seal on 12 May (WA 1–2) concerning the budget of the language Implementation Body, whether Unionist political advisers were consulted about the decision to cut the budget by 16 per cent. [HL2887]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
The special advisers in the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister were consulted on the budgets for the bodies prior to the British and Irish Governments approving the recommendations for those Budgets under the exchange of notes between the two governments of 19 November 2002.