Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to his letter of 3 July 2013 to the Chairman of VisitBritain, which organisations funded by his Department are required to hold a five per cent contingency which at any point may need to be drawn back into the Department; and what the total amount of such contingency funds held by those organisations is.

No contingency budgets are held by this Department and it does not require contingency budgets or funds to be held by any of its Arm's Length Bodies. This contingency planning approach was taken in order to maximise the amount of funds going to front-line services while remaining sufficiently flexible to meet government targets for reducing public sector net borrowing.