§ Mr. LuffTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent assessment he has made of the performance of Advantage West Midlands; and if he will make a statement. [127888]
§ Ms Beverley HughesMy Department has commissioned consultants to undertake an evaluation of the strategies and action plans produced by all eight RDAs, including Advantage West Midlands. Research is also being carried out by consultants into partnership working by RDAs in the development and production of their strategies. It is the aim that both pieces of research will be published and that the findings will contribute to a report on the RDAs performance in their first year of operation.
The 2000–01 research programme of my Department's Local and Regional Government Research Unit also includes provision for a long-term evaluation of the operation and effectiveness of RDAs.