§ Mr. Steen asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Wavertree on 27 October, if he will set out in detail the questions to be asked in the study to monitor enterprise zones; why the estimated cost will be £273,130, excluding value added tax; and for what purpose the information obtained will be used.
§ Mr. King:As my hon. Friend is aware, the enterprise zones initiative is an experiment. We shall wish to check on its progress, and to assess the importance of the various factors influencing any changes that take place. In the absence of many of the standard data sources in the zones, this study has been devised to obtain information while minimising inquiries to firms.
The study will establish the extent and nature of economic activity in the zones. It will look at whether this activity would have happened anyway; whether it is genuinely new, or relocated; the relative contribution of different policy measures; and the specific effects of the relaxed planning regime, and the other non-fiscal measures.
The figure of £273,130 relates to the three years of the contract. The main expenditure is on the detailed physical surveys to be made each year in all 10 British zones. The consultants will also carry out each year interview surveys with a limited sample of firms in and around each zone; and in addition they will complete a number of special studies on specific issues and particular areas.
The consultants have prepared a note on the study; I have arranged for a copy to be placed in the Library of the House.