§ Dr. WrightTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage which of the advisory non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department are under a statutory requirement to(a) publish their advice to the Government, (b) publish an annual report and (c) lay an annual report before Parliament; and if he will list those bodies with a statutory base. [21159]
§ Mr. Dorrell[holding answer 27 April 1995]: The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art publishes an annual report which includes any advice given by the committee to Government on matters connected with the export of cultural goods. Reports from the Advisory Council on Libraries may also include details of its advice to Government.
The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and the Advisory Council on Libraries are the only advisory bodies for which my Department is responsible which are required to report annually and whose reports are laid in Parliament. The committee's report is presented as a Command Paper and the council's report forms part of the Secretary of State's annual report on the public library service, published as a House of Commons Paper. Reports from the Royal Fine Art Commission are also presented to Parliament as Command Papers, although there is no requirement for it to report annually.
On 4 April 1995, the Advisory Council on Libraries took over from the Library and Information Services Council (England) the statutory responsibilities established under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964. The Theatres Trust was established under the Theatres Trust Act 1976.