§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the running costs of the Learning and Skills Council are in 2002–03; what the estimated figure is for(a) 2003–04 and (b) 2004–05; and if he will make a statement. [99813]
§ Margaret HodgeThe Learning and Skills Council (LSC)'s core administration budget in each of the three years, 2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05 is £218 million. In addition, a further £17.9 million has been made available in 2002–03 mainly to cover one-off transition costs associated with establishing a new organisation. The LSC's core administration costs represent 2.9 per cent. of its total current budget from the Department for Education and Skills of £7,606 million, falling to 2.5 per cent. of its planned total budget in 2004–05. This represents good value for money and a saving of over £50 million on the cost of predecessor organisations.