§ Mr. Michael Brownasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will ask the director of Action on Smoking and Health what proportion of his budget is made up of his departmental grant;
(2) if he will list in the Official Report details of his Department's grant to Action on Smoking and Health since its inception, and state the criteria which govern the annual change in grant;
(3) if he will ask the director of Action on Smoking and Health to submit proposals for increasing the proportion of his budget provided by voluntary and private sources;
(4) what steps he proposes to take to appraise the effectiveness of his Department's grant to Action on Smoking and Health.
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§ Mrs. CurrieAction on Smoking and Health submits detailed financial estimates and audited accounts annually. In 1986 about 67 per cent. of total income was made up by this Department's grant. Before grants are finalised, discussions are held with the organisation which include its proposals for increasing its income from voluntary and private sources. At the Department's request the organisation is developing a system of performance indicators by which its effectiveness can be measured.
Since its inception in 1971, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) has been allocated the following sums by this Department:—
Year Grant (£) 1971–72 19,000 1972–73 6,000 1973–74 3,000 1974–75 6,400 1975–76 18,500 1976–77 31,000 1977–78 41,500 1978–79 59,500 1979–80 70,000 1980–81 80,000 1981–82 90,000 1982–83 115,000 1983–84 118,000 1984–85 136,000 1985–86 150,840 1986–87 177,000 The change in grant reflects the growing demand on Action on Smoking and Health's services and the Government's continuing commitment to support activities which help to reduce the incidence of smoking.