§ Baroness Buscombeasked Her Majesty's Government:
How much money schools currently spend on digital learning resources; and to what extent this figure is likely to change in light of the BBC's digital curriculum proposal; and [HL5647]
What plans they have to make the N M Rothschild and CEPA reports available; and what the reports say about the likely impact of BBC's digital curriculum proposal on competition in the digital learning resources market; [HL5648]
Whether they will consider the likely impact on competition in the digital learning resources market when considering the BBC's digital curriculum proposal. [HL5649]
§ Baroness Ashton of UphollandThe department does not routinely collect data on total spend on software. However the 2001 ICT in Schools Survey did report that in 1999–2000 schools in England spent an average of £800 per primary school and £5,230 per secondary on software and online content. As part of the Curriculum Online programme we are providing schools in England with £50 million for the year 2002–03 to spend on digital learning resources198WA showcased by a range of commercial providers on the Curriculum Online portal.
My right honourable Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport is considering the BBC's digital curriculum proposal in accordance with her department's published guidelines on proposed new BBC public services. The matters taken into account under the guidelines include the likely impact of the service on commercial services already in the market and on potential future services.
The main points of the Rothschild report were included in the Curriculum Online consultation paper issued by the department in April 2001. The rest of the report, which reviews the future development and financing of the National Grid for Learning, is commercial in confidence and cannot therefore be made public. The work is Rothschild's intellectual property.
Research Machines filed a judicial review claim with the Government over the BBC's digital curriculum activities in April 2002. The Rothschild report was made available as part of the litigation brought by RM on litigation disclosure terms for the purposes of that litigation only.
CEPA's report on the market on digital learning materials draws on discussions and commercially sensitive information provided in confidence by the organisations interviewed. This report was commissioned as an internal document to inform the policy relating to Curriculum Online and its findings were never intended for publication.
There are no plans for further dissemination of either report.