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Mr. Horam: The average gross cost of printing, publishing and distributing each edition in the 1994 95 financial year was approximately £12,800.
The cost of producing "Management Matters" is met from the Cabinet Office-- Office of Public Service and Science--budget.
Organisations which wish to place a looseleaf insert in the magazine are charged at a rate of £38 per 1,000 leaflets. Revenue raised is used to offset the magazine's production costs.
Mr. Mike O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on whose and on what authority the Government publication for civil servants, "Management Matters" included looseleaf advertising for insurance and life assurance. [24585]
Mr. Horam: Each looseleaf advertisement that is inserted in "Management Matters" is approved by the magazine's editorial board prior to publication. The board, which comprises officials from the Cabinet Office-- OPSS--and HM Treasury, examines each proposed advertisement against pre- determined criteria.
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what assessment has been made as to whether the insertion of looseleaf advertising for private organisations selling financial and other services in "Management Matters" might be understood by readers as implying an endorsement of particular commercial products, not withstanding disclaimers; and if he will place in the Library the reports which have evaluated such matters. [24586]
Mr. Horam: There are precedents for civil service publications carrying advertising. The editorial board gave careful consideration to the decision to insert looseleaf advertisements in "Management Matters". Taking into account the strict criteria it would apply and the disclaimer included in each edition--on which it took legal advice--the board took the view that such advertisements could not reasonably be regarded as bearing official endorsement.
Civil Service Pension Scheme
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what plans he has to market test the management of the civil service pension scheme; and if he will make a statement. [24371]
Mr. Horam: The 1992 efficiency scrutiny identified administration of the principal civil service pension scheme as suitable for market testing. New information technology for administration of the scheme, which will start to become operational towards the end of this year, will facilitate the market-testing process. This will also enable service standards to be raised and costs reduced. It will however first be necessary for Parliament to approve an order under the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act which will remove the legal impediment that at present exists to market testing PCSPS administration.
Occupational pension arrangements for civil servants will continue to be provided through the PCSPS. The PCSPS will be managed and controlled by the Office of Public Service and Science.
AIDS
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the research work his Department sponsors on HIV/AIDS which incorporates international co-operation. [24694]
Mr. Horam: A list of current research work into AIDS/HIV funded by my Department through the research councils, and involving international co -operation has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. This list show the titles of the projects, by whom they were carried out and, where information is available, the resources allocated.
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the research work sponsored by his Department and the amount spent on each project for AIDS/HIV treatment and prevention for the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [24693]
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Mr. Horam: The Medical Research Council provided data in answer to a similar question on 11 May 1995, and this was placed in the Libraries of both Houses. Equivalent information for the other research councils
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funded by my Department which have undertaken research into AIDS/HIV treatment and prevention is as follows:Column 315
Grant Holder |Grant Title |Duration |Cost
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Research supported by the Economic and Social Research Council
Dr. M. Lyons University of London |AIDS and women-the history of sexually transmitted |1 November 1992 to
|disease and epidemic of HIV/AIDS in East Africa |1 October 1995 |£129,460
Dr. P. G. Forster Hull University |AIDS, the local community and traditional health |30 June 1993 to
|practitioners in Malawi |30 September 1995 |£2,790
Dr. J. Bujra Leeds University |Gender relations as a key aspect of the fight against |1 September 1994
|AIDS/HIV in Tanzania |to 1 September 1996 |£150,000
Dr. N. P. McKeganey Glasgow University |An Ethnography of a late teenage population exposed to |1 February 1988
|intravenous drug misuse and HIV |to 31 January 1991 |£137,690
Dr. D. V. McQueen Edinburgh |An integrated study of AIDS-related behaviour |1 August 1988
|to 31 December 1990 |£264,850
Dr. H. A. Klee Manchester Polytechnic |The potential for HIV transmission among amphetamine |1 July 1989
|users in the North West: a study of sexual and social lifestyles |to 31 December 1991 |£79,550
Dr. G. M. Breakwell Surrey University |Social and behavioral consequences of HIV/AIDS for 16-21 year olds |1 October 1988
|to 31 March 1993 |£308,621
Dr. R. Ingham Southampton University |Social aspects of risk reduction in the light of the threat of HIV infection|1 January 1989
|to 31 December 1991 |£136,182
Dr. M. J. Bloor |A sociological study of the context of AIDS media |1 September 1988
|messages and audience responses |to 31 August 1991 |£198,590
Dr. M. A. Plant |HIV/AIDS risks, alcohol and illicit drug use and young adults |1 July 1992
|to 30 September 1992 |£3,260
Dr. G. Semin Sussex University |The transmission and formation of AIDS-related |1 December 1987
|representations in adolescence |to 31 January 1991 |£136,980
Dr. J. Holland London University |Young women, sexuality and the limitation of AIDS |31 October 1988
|to 30 September 1990 |£70,926
Research supported by the Natural Environment Research Council (all at the Institute for
Virology and Environmental Microbiology, Oxford)
Dr. P. A. Nuttall |Aids diagnosis |1 October 1987
|to 31 September 1990 |£60,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Expression, purification and in vitro activity of the |1 January 1988
|HIV encoded regulatory protein ART/TRS |to 31 December 1990 |£86,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |AIDS vaccine development |1 April 1988
|to 31 March 1991 |£125,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Expression of simian immunodeficiency virus proteins |1 September 1989
|to 31 March 1993 |£200,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Structure and function of recombinant HIV antigens |1 May 1990
|to 30 April 1993 |£114,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Analysis of CD4 binding repertoire of natural GP120 molecules |1 July 1992
|to 30 June 1995 |£194,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Furin and maturation of lentivirus glycoproteins |1 January 1993
|to 31 December 1996 |£111,000
Dr. P. A. Nuttall |Virology and environmental microbiology |12 March 1993
|to 1 September 1995 |£65,000
Dr. I. M. Jones |Fundamental and comparative studies on the structural |1 October 1993
|proteins of HIV and SIV |to 30 September 1995 |£359,000
Dr. P. Roy |Development of virus-like particle (VLP) candidate |1 January 1994
|vaccines for human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV) |to 31 December 1996 |£58,000
|produced by baculovirus multigene expression vectors
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
EU Fishing Industries
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the (a) Government construction grants, (b) fuel subsidies, (c) enforcement of minimum/maximum catch sizes, (d) enforcement of log book reporting and (e) elimination of secret fish holds in each of the other fishing nations of the EEC. [23986]
Mr. Jack: On construction grants and fuel grants, I refer the Hon. Member to the answer that I gave on 6 February 1995, Official Report, column 84.
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Latest information on the results of inspections on member states' vessels is provided in the summary tables for 1993, produced by the Commission in accordance with Commission regulation (EEC) No. 3561/85: a copy of which is in the Library of the House.Fish Imports
Mr. Sykes: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received from east coast fishermen regarding the importation of cheap fish from Russia, Norway and Iceland. [24152]
Mr. Jack: I regularly consult producers' interests on the question of imports from outside the European Union
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and this was one of the issues raised with me by fishermen's leaders on my recent visit to Tynemouth earlier this month. Subsequent to that, I have not heard directly on this matter from east coast fishermen.Mr. Sykes: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will impose quota restrictions on the importation of cheap fish from Russia, Norway and Iceland. [24151]
Mr. Jack: Mechanisms already exist within European Union legislation to take action against imports from outside the EU where they can be shown to be having a disruptive effect on the market over a period of time. Unqualified restrictions on imports would serve only to prevent UK processors from obtaining the raw material supplies that they need to maintain the range of fish products available to the consumer. I believe that there is scope for better communication within the industry to help match supply and demand. I hope shortly to call a meeting of interested parties to explore the issue further.
Access to the Countryside
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will set out for (a) the countryside access scheme allowing public access to set-aside land and (b) the scheme allowing access for land in environmentally sensitive areas (i) its number and direction of such agreements, (ii) the location and size of these sites, (iii) what steps have been taken to inform the public of these access opportunities, (iv) the payment made to the landowner of each site, (v) the administrative costs of these schemes, (vi) whether public access was available on each site prior to designation under the schemes. [24618]
Mr. Jack: The information requested is as follows:
(a) Countryside Access Scheme
(i) There are currently 78 agreements in England. There are similar schemes in Wales and Scotland.
(ii) Details of access agreements have been lodged in the library of the House. The following table gives a summary of the position by county.
County |Size (in hectares) --------------------------------------------------------- Bedfordshire |91.3 Cambridgeshire |93.63 Essex |126.93 Hertfordshire |22.05 Norfolk |111.06 Buckinghamshire |21.57 Suffolk |142.52 Cumbria |4.45 Wiltshire |41.09 Warwickshire |16.7 Gloucestershire |14.33 Yorkshire |52.04 Humberside |14.74 Devon |15 Cornwall |15 Oxfordshire |42.55 Surrey |7.21 Hampshire |6.89 Kent |26.27 Northamptonshire |75.5 Nottinghamshire |21.78 Shropshire |1.68
(iii) Participants are asked to send a map of the land opened to public access provided by the Ministry, to their local parish council. Further copies of maps are sent to the Countryside Commission, the
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Rambler's Association and, where appropriate, the local national park authority. Members of the public can request free copies of these maps.(iv) The first payments to participants will be made early in 1996. Participants will receive an annual rate of £90 per hectare of route opened and £45 per hectare of open field opened to public access for a period of five years. Participants can normally only claim up to a maximum of 15 hectares of public access on any one farm.
(v) In 1994 95 administrative costs were £300,000 in England. This figure includes significant start-up costs as the scheme only opened for applications in September 1994.
(vi) Project officers inspect every potential public access site, any land where there is evidence of existing de facto public access will not normally be accepted into the scheme. Similarly, land which is designated as a public right of way or land to which public access has been secured under another publicly funded scheme is not eligible.
(b) Environmentally Sensitive Areas Scheme
(i) 26 management agreements with access tier.
(ii) Details of the access agreements have been lodged with the library of the House. The following table provides a summary by Environmentally Sensitive Area.
ESA |Number of agreements|Total length (in
|kilometres)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Broads |4 |4.62
Pennine dales |2 |0.91
Somerset levels and moors |1 |0.31
South Downs |1 |1.38
Suffolk river valleys |1 |0.98
Exmoor |2 |1.01
Lake District |10 |7.55
South West Peak |1 |1.25
Dartmoor |3 |5.84
Upper Thames tributaries |1 |0.48
(iii) Maps of completed access routes are sent to the relevant parish councils, the Countryside Commission, the National Park Authority (Where applicable) and the Rambler's Association. These maps may also be sent to other organisations and members of the public, on request.
(iv) Agreement holders receive £170 per kilometre of access route.
(v) Unlike the countryside access scheme, it is not possible to disaggregate the costs of administration of the public access tier from the total costs of administering the ESA scheme.
(vi) Only land which offers new or additional access opportunities is eligible for the scheme. Land which is subject to an existing right of way is not accepted.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about bovine spongiform encephalopathy. [25536]
Mrs Browning: A further report on BSE in Great Britain is available today. I have arranged for copies to be placed in the Library of the House.
The report provides information about the continuing decline in incidence of the disease, further proposed changes to the controls and the on-going research programme.
The number of cases of BSE being reported at present is 45.3 per cent. fewer than at the same time last year and there is continued downturn in incidence of BSE in five-year-old and younger animals. Both changes are attributed to the ban on feeding ruminant protein to ruminant animals which was introduced in 1988.
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I have also arranged for copies of the BSE progress report presented to the Office International des Epizooties this week to be placed in the Library of the House.Countryside Stewardship Scheme
Mr. Clappison : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has for the future of the countryside stewardship scheme. [25537]
Mr. Waldegrave: The Government are publishing today a public consultation document which seeks views on the development of the Government's strategy for environmental land management schemes in England. The consultation document results from a review of the future role of the countryside stewardship scheme and of ways of better integrating and focusing all environmental land management schemes in England, announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment last year on 21 June 1994, Official Report, column 106. The review was carried out by a working group comprising officials from my Department, the Department of the Environment, the Countryside Commission, English Heritage and English Nature. Copies of the consultation document are available in the Library of the House.
The Government believe that environmental land management schemes are one important means of promoting environmental and amenity benefits in the countryside. The conclusion of the pilot phase of countryside stewardship and the decision that it should be transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in 1996 represent a landmark in the development of such schemes and an opportune moment to review their strategic development.
The main proposals of the working group are that:
the countryside stewardship scheme should continue to be based on the key principles established during the pilot phase;
subject to the availability of resources, the full range of stewardship options should be retained;
countryside stewardship and the environmentally sensitive areas scheme should be developed into the Ministry's two core environmental schemes when I take over responsibility for stewardship from April 1996;
the farm and conservation grant scheme should not continue as a separate scheme in England but capital grants for conservation purposes should be integrated into other schemes, principally countryside stewardship;
further scheme mergers should be considered once the new agri-environment schemes have been operating long enough to be evaluated;
subject to resources being available, the focus of countryside stewardship should be broadened to include two new options targeting traditional stone walls and banks and the remaining unimproved areas of old meadow and pasture on neutral and acid soils throughout lowland England;
the ministry should develop a fuller information service to act as a first stop shop for information and basic advice on the range of environmental schemes for farmers and land managers.
In addition, I have decided in consultation with my right hon. Friend that a national steering group should be set up to advise the Ministry on the objectives, targets and priorities of all its environmental incentive schemes, their effective development and deployment and their monitoring and evaluation, and that liaison arrangements should also be made regionally.
The objective of these proposals is to improve the integration and focus, and hence the effectiveness and
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efficiency of the Government's range of environmental land management schemes. They are designed to improve the service provided to land managers and to yield greater environmental benefits in the countryside. As such, they would represent a major development of the Government's strategy for such schemes.My right hon. Friend and I look forward to receiving the responses to this consultation document, which will be fully taken into account in the Government's preparation of the forthcoming rural White Paper.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Museum Entry Charges
Mr. Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what is his estimate of the revenue accruing to the Exchequer from charges for entry to museums. [22400]
Mr. Dorrell: Of the 17 museums and galleries directly sponsored by my Department, seven charge for admission to their collections and exhibitions. During 1994 95, the income generated by these organisations for admissions is estimated at £11.39 million. Information about revenue raised from admissions to local authority and independent museums is not held centrally.
ENVIRONMENT
Urban Programmes
Sir Irvine Patnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the total amount of resources available for local authorities for urban programmes for the last year for which figures are available; and if he will list the allocations to individual authorities. [24359]
Mr. Curry: Urban initiatives by local authorities are supported through main programme expenditure by several Government Departments. This is supplemented by targeted programmes which have been brought together into the single regeneration budget. SRB resources are made available to local authorities and other organisations, reflecting the partnership-based approach of many schemes. In total the SRB will fund more than £1.3 billion of regeneration work in 1995 96 in urban and other areas. The Department's 1995 annual report, a copy of which is in the Library, provides detailed information about the programmes supported.
Sheltered and Supported Housing
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he and his ministerial colleagues have made of the savings to the Exchequer that voluntary organisations provide with sheltered and supported housing. [24026]
Mr. Robert B. Jones: Two of the key voluntary providers of sheltered and supported housing are the Abbeyfield societies and almshouses. In 1990 their housing stock represented 1 per cent. and 3 per cent.
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respectively of the total sheltered and supported rented housing available for elderly people. Research published last year by the Department found that 28 per cent. of Abbeyfield societies and 100 per cent. of almshouses capital costs were met from non-exchequer sources. Seven per cent. of Abbeyfield and 25 per cent. of almshouses revenue costs were also met from non-exchequer sources.1 "Living Independently--A study of the Housing Needs of elderly and disabled people", HMSO 1994.
Compulsory Competitive Tendering
Mr. McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the Government's conclusions following the completion of consultation on their proposals for extending compulsory competitive tendering to information technology, finance and personnel services. [25561]
Mr. Robert B. Jones: We have been discussing how best to give effect to the Government's decision to extend compulsory competitive tendering to white collar professional and corporate services with local authority representatives and other interested parties since early 1993. That consultation has proved valuable to all parties and I am grateful to all those who play a part.
Last summer we put in place statutory instruments which extended CCT to legal and construction and property services. In the autumn we issued consultation papers setting out the proposed regime for information technology, finance and personnel services. Those attracted between them over 600 responses to my Department, together with 112 to the Scottish Office and 54 to the Welsh Office. I have considered all the points made carefully with colleagues in all the departments with an interest in the services concerned and am now able to announce the Government's final decisions on CCT for these remaining services.
IT Services
Taking first IT services, we have concluded that both the percentage competition requirement of 70 per cent. for this work and the implementation timetable set out in the consultation paper are reasonable and do not intend to alter either, save that English shire authorities remaining unchanged following review by the Local Government Commission will now be expected to follow the timetable I announced on 29 March at column 644 . There is no case for any other substantive change to the proposals put forward in last year's consultation paper. On matters of detail, I am now able to: confirm that we intend to make an exemption for fire brigade mobilisation and communications systems. The precise wording of this is being discussed with fire service representatives and a specific exemption order will be brought forward in due course. The defined activity does not include fire brigades' radio systems;
confirm the proposed credit for in-house IT support to contractors who have taken on other work on behalf of a defined authority, allowing the authority to count this work towards satisfying its CCT obligations, provided it had been the contractors decision to use the IT in question.
confirm the proposed amendment to guidance on the avoidance of anti- competitive behaviour which will allow an authority to require that contractors use specified software or hardware, including the authority's own systems, where this can be justified on operational grounds.
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I have decided to reject arguments for a short term exemption from CCT for project work underway at the time competition bites. Finance ServicesWe have given very careful consideration to the competition percentage for finance services. The Government wish to put real pressure on authorities to market test theses services and I am confident that all authorities can achieve the competition requirement of 35 per cent. proposed in the consultation paper. We do not, therefore, intend to change this figure.
In reaching this conclusion we have had in our minds the Government's commitment that there should be no pressure for compulsory testing of housing benefit or council tax benefit administration. Similarly, the Government have made clear that we are not seeking to compel market testing of those revenues tasks which are to be the subject of an order under the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 permitting the work to be undertaken by third parties. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary for Social Security and I consider that authorities can achieve this figure without necessitating the market testing of benefits work or the revenues tasks I have mentioned.
We accept that there are some statutory constraints to contracting out aspects of revenues or benefits work, and many of the services are sensitive. Nevertheless a number of authorities have already shown that, even with these limitations, market testing of this work can improve the quality of the service they are able to offer, and we would encourage them to explore this option on a voluntary basis. Should they choose to do so, this can be counted towards satisfying their obligations under the CCT regime.
Should the percentage chosen in the event be at such a level as to compel any authority to market test benefits administration or other work which we have said should only be exposed voluntarily, we will consider further the arguments for change. Where individual authorities can demonstrate they cannot meet the figure without being compelled to test benefits work the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Social Security and I will consider sympathetically any request they may put forward for a specific exemption.
In the case of education-related benefits service and student awards administration my hon. Friend the Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State for Education and I have concluded that this work is more closely integrated with the education service that any other part of the authority. The volume of work these services make up is small, and we have concluded there would be little benefit, and possibly some disruption of services, if they were included in the CCT regime. We will, however, wish to consider carefully other methods for improving the efficiency of these services.
Also on finance services, we intend to make two further changes to the proposed regime. The first is to allow a temporary exemption from CCT for project work on the development and implementation of financial information and management systems underway when CCT bites. This will allow internal management changes, some of which may flow from CCT, to be implemented smoothly.
Secondly, I intend to allow English metropolitan districts and London boroughs an additional six months to implement CCT extension, taking their start date to 1
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April 1997. This recognises the foreshortened timescale facing these authorities as they prepare for CCT and the need for an adequate lead-in time before new contracts can become operational. The timetable for reorganised shire authorities remains unchanged from that set out in the consultation paper, that which status quo shires will be expected to meet was explained in my announcement of 29 March.Personnel Services
Turning lastly to personnel services, we have concluded that the defined activity should be amended to reflect practical concerns raised about the difficulties of bringing certain work into the CCT regime. We intend to specifically exclude:
(i) all training undertaken by a local authority on behalf of a Training and Enterprise Council (TEC), or, in Scotland, Local Enterprise Council (LEC).
(ii) personnel work undertaken by local authorities as members of consortia (with educational institutions and others) for the pre- and post- qualification training of social workers.
(iii) operational training of fire fighters.
Colleagues in the Department for Education and I also intend to allow in- service teacher training and other education-related training funded through the grant for education support and training--GEST--to be counted towards satisfying the competition requirement in the same way as we have agreed delegated spending under the LMS initiative should count. In Wales Athrawon Bro services will similarly count.
We have also considered carefully authorities concerns that the competition percentage, which we proposed be 35 per cent., was too high and may compel them to introduce organisational changes or to tender unsuitable work. We have concluded that a reduction in the figure is necessary to accommodate these concerns and therefore intend to set the competition requirement at 30 per cent
The study of the options for setting the competition requirement undertaken by KPMG on our behalf illustrated that many authorities already actively test the market for certain aspects of personnel work. Much specialist training, for example, is already provided through contract by external organisations. Since they already have a good record in market testing, CCT should present no new difficulties to authorities, For this reason, I have concluded that no additional time is required to implement personnel CCT. All authorities will therefore be expected to meet the timetable set out in the consultation paper, with the exception of status quo English shire authorities, for which I announced a revised timetable on 29 March. Finally for personnel services we also intend to increase the de-minimis exemption for personnel work from £300,000 to £400,000 to permit smaller authorities to protect core services.
Fire Authorities
The regime I have described will, subject to certain exemptions outlined in the consultation papers, apply to all defined authorities which are subject to CCT, with the exception of police authorities, metropolitan fire and civil defence authorities, including London, and combined fire authorities. CCT for IT, finance and personnel in police authorities is the subject of separate consultation still underway.
For single purpose fire authorities my right hon. and noble Friend the Minister of State at the Home Office and I have now decided that, having exempted operational
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training the competition requirement for the remaining work within the defined activity of personnel services should be reduced to 15 per cent. For IT and finance work the competition requirements remain at 70 per cent. and 35 per cent. respectively, as for other authorities. The implementation timetable for English single purpose fire authorities will remain aligned with that applying to metropolitan districts and London boroughs, save that any new combined authority created following the implementation of local government reorganisation will have two years from the local date for reorganisation to take effect before CCT will bite.Conclusion
I will be bringing forward a draft order to add these new services to the CCT regime shortly. Once the House has had the opportunity to debate and approve this order we will bring forward further regulations to put in place the remainder of the regime I have today announced.
The regime I have described today will apply to defined authorities in England, Scotland and Wales. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales is considering comments made on the timetable for implementing CCT extension in Wales and will make an announcement in due course. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland announced the timetable which the new Scottish unitary authorities will be expected to follow on 27 January.
This announcement is intended to give all authorities a clear basis on which to plan for the extension of CCT. We will write with copies of the new statutory instruments and detailed guidance on each of the new services as soon as possible.
Following extensive consultation we have now established the statutory framework on which the extension of CCT to all of the white collar services will proceed. This is challenging but, I believe, fair and offers a flexible regime which meets many of the concerns raised with us. I urge all those concerned to strive for the successful implementation of CCT to ensure that local people receive the acknowledged benefits that competition may bring.
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