§ Mr. MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list the methods of depreciation his Department will apply in the current financial year to fixed assets in the preparation of departmental resource accounting balance sheets. [96922]
§ Mr. Chris SmithIn accordance with the Treasury's Resource Accounting Manual and with Financial Reporting Standard 15: Tangible Fixed Assets, issued by the Accounting Standards Board, my Department has adopted the following methods of depreciation.
Depreciation is applied at rates calculated to write off the value of freehold buildings and other tangible fixed assets by equal instalments over their estimated useful lives. Lives are in the following ranges:
- Buildings—up to 75 years
- Leasehold Improvements—the term of the lease
- Equipment and Computers—3–10 years
- Fixtures and Fittings—3–20 years
- Intangible Assets—1 year.
Freehold land is not depreciated.