§ Mr. MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will make a statement on the outside consultancy practice assisting the inquiry into the links between the Association for Business Sponsorship of the Arts and Welsh Fourth Channel Authority S4C; what remit they have been given; on what date the inquiry started; when it is anticipated to be completed; and if he will make a statement. [17299]
§ Mr. DorrellAs I told the hon. Member on 27 February,Official Report, column 680, my Department has commissioned a report from a senior Treasury official, Mr. John Beastall. The terms of reference of the review are:
To review the circumstances of the applications for matching funding under the business sponsorship incentive scheme made by Pengwyn Pinc and certain other Welsh bodies. In particular, the review will consider:
- (a) the reports already produced by the Association for Business Sponsorship of the Arts and the Welsh Fourth Channel Authority;
- (b) the financial and other relationships between S4C and the bodies which applied to BSIS; between S4C and Teledwyr Annibynnol Cymru; and between S4C and organisations which applied to them or to TAC for sponsorship;
- (c) the understanding, in S4C, TAC and the bodies which applied to BSIS, of rules for applying to BSIS, including any guidance and procedures they may have circulated;
- (d) the understanding of BSIS rules within ABSA and the information and advice that ABSA and its staff provided to S4C and the other bodies involved about the rules and operation of BSIS;
- (e) the criteria adopted by S4C, TAC and the bodies which applied to BSIS for supporting an application for sponsorship; and
- (f) the action that was taken by S4C and ABSA in response to the discovery of irregularities in applications and in the operation of their internal procedures.
The report will make recommendations about action to be taken.Mr. Beastall commenced his review on 20 February and expects to deliver his report to my Department shortly after Easter.