§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will breakdown his estimate of the £30 million for the set-up costs of an elected regional assembly by main budget heading. [162429]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe main elements are the costs of the referendums and election, the costs of preparation, including initial staff and accommodation costs, and the transfer of functions to the new Assemblies. These costs will vary between regions, in proportion to the size of the regions population and electorate, but are expected to average £30 million.
§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will publish the guidelines on the work of the Government Information and Communication Service which govern the information campaigns(a) Your Say: North East, (b) Your Say: North West and (c) Your Say: Yorkshire and the Humber. [162431]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe Government Information and Communications Service (GICS) is working to the guidelines issued by the Cabinet Office set out in the note from Mike Granatt, Director General of the GICS to Heads of Information dated 19 June 2003.
Publication of this guidance is a matter for the Cabinet Office.
§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister on what dates he(a) referred to the Cabinet Secretary and (b) copied to the Minister for the Cabinet Office his proposals for the Government publicity (i) Your Say: A new opportunity for the North East, (ii) Your Say: A new opportunity for the North West and (iii) Your Say: A new opportunity for Yorkshire and the Humber, (iv) Your Say: Business and Jobs and (v) Your Say: Assembly powers and responsibilities. [162432]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe 'Your Say' Campaign is aimed at informing the public in the North West, North East and Yorkshire and the Humber about the Government's proposal to give them an opportunity to vote on whether there should be an Elected Regional Assembly in their region.
The original concept for the campaign and the designs and texts for all three Your Say leaflets were referred to the Cabinet Office on 8 October 2003, and were approved on 9 October 2003.
The text for the information leaflets Your Say: business and Jobs, and Your Say Assembly powers and responsibilities were referred to the Cabinet Office on 19 February 2004 and received approval on 20 February 2004.
§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total cost of the public hearings on elected assemblies is estimated to be; and what the individual cost of each hearing is. [162433]
§ Mr. RaynsfordThe cost of the Berwick and Blackburn hearings, including all costs associated with the venue, overtime and advertising were £6,500 and £5,400 respectively.
The other hearings have yet to happen, but estimated costs in terms of venue related costs and advertising are: 454W
Venue Cost Sheffield 10,000 Newcastle 9,500 Hull 6,800 Liverpool 12,200 Kendal 4,900 Halifax 7,500 Middlesbrough 11,300 The estimated total cost is therefore £74,100.