HC Deb 22 May 2000 vol 350 cc329-30W
Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the cost of hosting the Europe Day Open Day at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 9 May. [123088]

Mr. Vaz

The Foreign and Commonwealth Open Day on 9 May, "Europe Day", was the first of a series of 12 open days the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is holding between May and July this year as part of the London String of Pearls Millennium Festival. The costs of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's participation in the Festival will be spread over the 12 open days and it is therefore not possible to calculate the cost of individual open days.

The Diplomatic Missions in London of almost all the EU member states and all the applicants participated in the event and met their own costs.

Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the non-parliamentarians invited to participate in Europe Day events; for what reason they were invited; and if he will make a statement. [123089]

Mr. Vaz

We invited several celebrities to join Europe Day events, including Tony Robinson and Frank Bruno. We also invited several MEPs drawn from each of the main parties to join our celebration of Europe's cultural diversity.

Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the(a) nature and (b) substance of the European Debate which took place during the Europe Day Open Day at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 9 May. [123091]

Mr. Vaz

The schools debate held at the FCO's "Europe Day" was a parliamentary-style debate. Six students, each from a different school, spoke for or against the motion: "This House believes there will never be a United States of Europe".

Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what criteria were used in the selection of schools invited to participate in the Europe Day Open Day at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 9 May. [123090]

Mr. Vaz

In deciding which schools to invite to our Open Europe Day at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office we took a number of practical considerations into account, such as ease of travel and distance from the FCO. On that basis we contacted all secondary schools in Greater London and the Home Counties.