§ Mr. RedwoodTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the new public bodies established by his Department since May 1997. [112671]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Government are committed to keeping the number of NDPBs to a minimum, and to ensuring that those which remain are open, accountable and effective.
The annual Cabinet Office publication "Public Bodies" provides information on a range of public bodies. The 1997 edition lists those public bodies in existence prior to May 1997. The 1998 and 1999 editions list bodies in existence in subsequent years. Copies of these publications have been placed in the Library of the House. Copies are also available on the Cabinet Office website (www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/quango).
Since the 1999 edition was published, the Statistics Advisory Committee was disbanded on 4 May 1999. The Statistics Commission will come into being on 1 April 2000.
The Policyholders Protection Board and the Financial Services Tribunal will be disbanded, subject to enactment of the Financial Services and Markets Bill now before Parliament. The Bill provides for the creation of a Financial Services and Markets Tribunal under the Lord Chancellor's Department, and a Financial Services and Markets Compensation Scheme.