Lottery consultation for 2009 funding begins

People will be able to make their views known through a dedicated website www.lottery2009.culture.gov.uk launched today.

The responses will be used to help the Government decide in June 2006 how Lottery money should be shared between the good causes after 2009 and whether the Government should change the policies affecting how the money is spent.

Tessa Jowell said:

"From the Tate Modern to the Eden Project, the Millenium Stadium to the Angel of the North, the National Lottery has made possible so many things that simply wouldn't have happened without it.

"I think it's something we should all be proud of. But every so often it's right that we ask the people that make it possible what they want their money spent on.

"That's why we've launched this consultation today. I want to hear just what kind of projects within sport, arts, heritage and film that they want to see funded.

The consultation will ask people to respond to suggestions put forward by Distributors set out in the document. It will also leave it open to the public to suggest new ideas on what Lottery money might be spent on within these good causes. It closes at the end of February 2006.

The Lottery distributing bodies referred to in this article are: Sport England; Sport Scotland; Sport Wales; Sport Northern Ireland; UK Sport; Arts Council England; Arts Council of Wales; Arts Council of Northern Ireland; Scottish Arts Council; Scottish Screen; the UK Film Council: the Millennium Commission; the Heritage Lottery Fund

The Big Lottery Fund, who give out half of all Lottery money, do not come under the remit of this consultation because they have already been subject to a separate and specific consultation as part of the National Lottery Bill.