HC Deb 20 January 1998 vol 304 cc520-2W
Mr. Vaz

To ask the Minister without Portfolio what meetings he has had with members of the ethnic minority communities to discuss the contents of the Millennium Dome. [23577]

Mr. Mandelson

The New Millennium Experience Company fully recognises the importance of making the Millennium Experience at Greenwich relevant and accessible to all sections of society, including ethnic minority communities, and is considering a number of proposals from ethnic minority groups. In February, I shall be attending a meeting of the Churches and Other Faiths sub-group of the Millennium Co-ordinating Group, on which all the main faith communities are represented. Various organisations which have strong ethnic minority representation, such as the Evangelical Alliance, the Inner Cities Religious Council, the Inter Faith Network and the Council of Churches for Britain and Ireland, are also members of the group.

Mr. Mitchell

To ask the Minister without Portfolio when he plans to announce the nature of the exhibition in the Millennium Experience Dome. [23715]

Mr. Mandelson

The New Millennium Experience Company plans to reveal further details of the Millennium Experience in the first quarter of this year.

Mrs. Gillan

To ask the Minister without Portfolio which British women's groups he has invited to contribute to the content of the millennium dome. [24256]

Mr. Mandelson

A number of eminent women—on the Board of the New Millennium Experience (NMEC) and within the design companies contracted to NMEC—are involved in the creation of the content of the Millennium Dome. As Ms Jennie Page—the Chief Executive of NMEC—confirmed to the Minister for Women at a meeting on 18 December 1997, the Company is convinced that the involvement of such women will ensure that women's interests are addressed.