HC Deb 27 February 1978 vol 945 cc99-101W
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, in the

the equivalent of 56,288 full-time teachers were employed in education authority schools. Information about the number of teachers who had no class teaching duties was not collected in the census.

Mr. Alexander Fletcher

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will now publish the information about changes in the teaching force, following his replies to the hon. Member for Edinburgh North on 24th March and 27th April 1977.

Mr. McElhone

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave him on 14th November 1977—Vol. 939, c.94]. Returns from education authorities indicate that the numbers of full-time permanent teachers employed in education authority schools between July and December 1977 were as follows:

forthcoming discussions, if he will take into account the need to have a strong and vigorous Lyceum Theatre Company, with altogether adequate facilities, as a matter of central importance to the Edinburgh International Festival, and to the future of the arts and theatre in Scotland.

Mr. McElhone

In my discussions with the city of Edinburgh District Council I shall take all relevant matters into account.

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) when Her Majesty's Government decided to cancel a financial commitment for the project for constructing an opera house or multi-purpose theatre in Edinburgh; and for what reasons;

(2) what arrangements were made for the £4½ million which was originally pledged for the construction of an opera house or multi-purpose theatre in Edinburgh, once the project was cancelled;

(3) if he will consider transferring the £4½ million once allocated for the Edinburgh theatre, or a substantial part of it, to assist with the provision of adequate facilities for the Lyceum Theatre Company on or in the vicinity of the opera house site;

(4) when Her Majesty's Government first gave a commitment to pay half the cost of constructing an opera house or multi-purpose theatre in Edinburgh;

(5) when Her Majesty's Government gave a commitment to pay £4½ million towards the cost of constructing an opera house or multi-purpose theatre in Edinburgh; and whether this sum at that time represented half of the total cost.

Mr. McElhone

On 20th August 1971 the then Secretary of State offered Edinburgh Corporation, subject to certain conditions, a grant not exceeding £2.25 million, or 50 per cent. of the approved expenditure, whichever was the less, towards the cost of providing on the Castle Terrace site a new theatre capable of presenting grand opera, in view of the national importance at that time of securing adequate facilities for staging opera in Scotland. On 26th January 1973, in view of rapidly rising costs, the offer was increased effectively to £4.5 million or 50 per cent., whichever was the less. The offer expressly excluded any grant towards expenditure on the Lyceum Theatre which was regarded as a project of local importance only.

On 3rd October 1975, when the estimated cost had risen to about £20 million, the city of Edinburgh District Council was informed that in view of the need to contain demands on resources made by public expenditure programmes, the Government could not make any commitment in the foreseeable future to the payment of grant on any expenditure incurred in developing the project beyond the scheme design stage. Subsequently the council decided not to proceed with a new theatre capable of staging grand opera. The Government made a grant of £439,994 towards the cost of bringing the project to scheme design stage and there was no occasion to make provision in the parliamentary estimates for the remainder of the original offer of £4.5 million.

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