asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the total sum of grants made available to local museums during the financial year ended 31 March from the fund for acquisitions by them which is administered by the Victoria and Albert museum and for which £1 million was provided in the Supply Estimates for 1981–82; and what was the unallocated balance, if any, standing on 31 March to the credit of the fund administered by the Victoria and Albert museum for the purpose of making grants towards acquisitions by local museums.

The total paid to local institutions during the financial year ending 31 March 1982 was £1,612,890. The balance in the fund on that date was £181,819, of which £61,313 was provisionally earmarked for particular grants. The sum available for payment in 1981–82 was £1,794,709, comprising the grant-in-aid of £1 million for that year, a balance of £787,914 carried over from the previous year in accordance with normal grant-in-aid practices, and a sum of £6,795 repaid during the year from grants previously made.