Accrington Web - View Single Post - Have you ever wondered where the lottery money goes? Good causes, right?

Busman747 · 07-04-2005, 22:51

I am not prone to "cut and paste" on most occasions but simply don't have the necessary speed to type this report from the Daily Mail without being up all night It is dated 03/07/03.......and it would be very interesting if it were possible to get a statement from Tessa Howell in the year '05 as to the success of her venture

03/07/03 - News section

Public get lottery spending say
by JO BUTLER, Daily Mail

A new system allowing the public to vote on how £1.5 billion of lottery money is handed out will be unveiled today.

Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell will announce sweeping changes in a bid to end the scandal over controversial grants to obscure projects.

Her National Lottery White Paper will reveal plans for citizens' panels to be set up to help decide how money is spent.

Miss Jowell says in a newspaper article today: "Why shouldn't the inhabitants of a town decide which they would rather have: a new facade for the town hall, tennis courts in the park or a new chemistry lab for the local school?"

The Government relaunch will also put an end to Camelot's monopoly, with the lottery licence being split into different games allowing other firms to sell tickets.

The Community Fund, the distributing body at the centre of the obscure payouts row, will be axed. (Our illustrious leader P. Britcliffe mentioned the Community fund only last week to pay for Dial-A-Bus)

Miss Jowell hopes the changes will "democratise" the lottery and put an end to charges that the public has felt "disconnected" from the game.

Writing in today's Daily Telegraph, Miss Jowell makes it clear that she wants people to know where the money is being spent, with grant-funded attractions bodies to hold free open days. (We will tell them on the Accyweb

)

And she is keen for more people to get involved in deciding where the money should go.

She writes: "I want (distributors) to work with their local television, radio and newspapers to put real choices to the public and ask them to decide."

The White Paper will also contain plans for "micro grants" of only £500 for smaller charities and a system for speeding up awards.

Lottery 'back to the people'

Miss Jowell will pledge that the plans will give "the lottery back to the people".

The Community Fund is to be merged with the New Opportunities Fund, as the Mail revealed earlier this year, and its work taken over by a new body. (Another quango...or two?)

This will be responsible for distributing more than half the £1.5 billion a year raised by the lottery, which the Government is to pledge will be spent on the people who buy most tickets.

Camelot's monopoly will come to an end with the new licences, expected to be handed out in 2009, covering the main draw and scratchcards as well as games played on the Internet or mobile phones.

Drop in sales

Camelot has suffered a drop in ticket sales, which have dipped over the past five years from £100 million a month to £80 million.

Other operators will hope to show that they can do better.

The relaunch will also see millions of pounds of lottery cash being poured into a new project to stop young people turning into hooligans.

An initial £200 million will be set aside for the Young Persons Fund, which is being set up in the wake of a number of scandals in which lottery funding has been given to asylum seekers and other contentious projects. (...and it still goes on....)

However, the plans are likely to provoke more rows about whether lottery cash is being used to fund work which should be paid for by central Government.

Miss Jowell will also outline new powers for the Government to seize control of any money stockpiled by the distributors.

More than £3.2 billion is waiting to be spent by the bodies, including the Sports Council, Arts Council, Heritage Lottery Fund and Community Fund.

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This was yet another half baked promise by a politician that "can talk a good game" but can't play as they have forgotten to bring their plimsolls!

Slightly off topic (but maybe a thread for the future) Why is it that National papers make these reports....and don't follow them up by viewing the results (or non results)

07-04-2005, 22:51	#18
Busman747 Always EVIL within us Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Accrington Posts: 1,568 Blog Entries: 4 Liked: 40 times Rep Power: 1669	Re: Have you ever wondered where the lottery money goes? Good causes, right? I am not prone to "cut and paste" on most occasions but simply don't have the necessary speed to type this report from the Daily Mail without being up all night It is dated 03/07/03.......and it would be very interesting if it were possible to get a statement from Tessa Howell in the year '05 as to the success of her venture 03/07/03 - News section Public get lottery spending say by JO BUTLER, Daily Mail A new system allowing the public to vote on how £1.5 billion of lottery money is handed out will be unveiled today. Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell will announce sweeping changes in a bid to end the scandal over controversial grants to obscure projects. Her National Lottery White Paper will reveal plans for citizens' panels to be set up to help decide how money is spent. Miss Jowell says in a newspaper article today: "Why shouldn't the inhabitants of a town decide which they would rather have: a new facade for the town hall, tennis courts in the park or a new chemistry lab for the local school?" The Government relaunch will also put an end to Camelot's monopoly, with the lottery licence being split into different games allowing other firms to sell tickets. The Community Fund, the distributing body at the centre of the obscure payouts row, will be axed. (Our illustrious leader P. Britcliffe mentioned the Community fund only last week to pay for Dial-A-Bus) Miss Jowell hopes the changes will "democratise" the lottery and put an end to charges that the public has felt "disconnected" from the game. Writing in today's Daily Telegraph, Miss Jowell makes it clear that she wants people to know where the money is being spent, with grant-funded attractions bodies to hold free open days. (We will tell them on the Accyweb ) And she is keen for more people to get involved in deciding where the money should go. She writes: "I want (distributors) to work with their local television, radio and newspapers to put real choices to the public and ask them to decide." The White Paper will also contain plans for "micro grants" of only £500 for smaller charities and a system for speeding up awards. Lottery 'back to the people' Miss Jowell will pledge that the plans will give "the lottery back to the people". The Community Fund is to be merged with the New Opportunities Fund, as the Mail revealed earlier this year, and its work taken over by a new body. (Another quango...or two?) This will be responsible for distributing more than half the £1.5 billion a year raised by the lottery, which the Government is to pledge will be spent on the people who buy most tickets. Camelot's monopoly will come to an end with the new licences, expected to be handed out in 2009, covering the main draw and scratchcards as well as games played on the Internet or mobile phones. Drop in sales Camelot has suffered a drop in ticket sales, which have dipped over the past five years from £100 million a month to £80 million. Other operators will hope to show that they can do better. The relaunch will also see millions of pounds of lottery cash being poured into a new project to stop young people turning into hooligans. An initial £200 million will be set aside for the Young Persons Fund, which is being set up in the wake of a number of scandals in which lottery funding has been given to asylum seekers and other contentious projects. (...and it still goes on....) However, the plans are likely to provoke more rows about whether lottery cash is being used to fund work which should be paid for by central Government. Miss Jowell will also outline new powers for the Government to seize control of any money stockpiled by the distributors. More than £3.2 billion is waiting to be spent by the bodies, including the Sports Council, Arts Council, Heritage Lottery Fund and Community Fund. nnnnnnnnnnnnnn- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This was yet another half baked promise by a politician that "can talk a good game" but can't play as they have forgotten to bring their plimsolls! Slightly off topic (but maybe a thread for the future) Why is it that National papers make these reports....and don't follow them up by viewing the results (or non results) __________________ Pray that there is intelligent life somewhere up in space, 'Cause there's Bu""er all down here on Earth - (Eric Idle) Last edited by Busman747; 07-04-2005 at 23:21.