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North-West Konver Working Group
Mr. Dover: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the members of the North-west Konver working group. [15612]
Mr. John M. Taylor: Members of the North-west Konver working group are as follows:
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Iraq (Trade Restrictions)
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assistance has been given by his Department to British companies attending trade fairs in Iraq in 1996. [10748]
Mr. Nelson: The DTI offered no support for British companies to attend trade fairs in Iraq in 1996 under the trade fairs support scheme. However, following the limited lifting of UN sanctions in 1996, four licences were issued to a UK exhibition organiser to assist British companies participating in exhibitions covering the water industry, medical equipment, oil and gas and an international trade fair.
Prohibited Weapons (Export)
Mr. Cohen: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make it his policy to monitor separately the export of those weapons prohibited under the term of the Firearms (Amendment) Bill. [14111]
Mr. Nelson: My Department does not monitor the subsequent export of licensed goods.
Privatised Utilities (Information)
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what redress is available to shareholders who believe that information given by them to a utility has been revealed without their consent; and if he will make a statement; [15346]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the circumstances in which a utility may divulge information given by shareholders for one purpose to a third party to be used for another purpose. [15344]
Mr. John M. Taylor:
The privatised utilities are subject to the same laws concerning data protection as any publicly quoted company. Data protection legislation is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department. I understand from him that the use
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of computerised personal data, including its disclosure, is governed by the Data Protection Act 1984. Responsibility for supervising and enforcing the Act lies with the Data Protection Registrar, to whom a complaint may be made if there is thought to have been a breach of the law.
Mrs. Roche:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) pursuant to his answer of 7 November, Official Report, column 277, when he expects the completion of the criteria for potential lenders to the loan guarantee scheme; [13000]
Mr. Page
[holding answer 27 January 1997]: Following detailed consideration, the criteria for new lenders for the loan guarantee scheme have been agreed. We will shortly be writing to potential lenders seeking information, particularly about their experience and expertise in lending within the technology sector.
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many contracts his Department has had with consultants; and what has been the total cost in each year since 1979-80. [15370]
Mr. John M. Taylor
[holding answer 11 February 1997]: The number of external consultancy contracts let centrally by the Department of Trade and Industry, 1995-96, plus value--including contract amendments--is as follows:
(2) when he expects new specialist lenders in the technology sector to be added to the loan guarantee scheme's list of approved lenders. [12956]
| Year | Number | Value (£) |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 81 | 5,600,000 |
| 1996 | 45 | 1,368,000 |
For information on contracts let centrally in 1990 to 1994, I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member on 18 July 1995, Official Report, column 1219.
Details for the years 1979 to 1989 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The information given does not include contracts let by the Department's executive agencies, and I have asked the chief executives to reply separately to this question.
Letter from Peter Joyce to Mr. Alan Milburn, dated 13 February 1997:
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The President of the Board of Trade has asked me to reply to your question about the number of contracts The Insolvency Service has let to consultants and their total cost in each year since 1979-80.
Prior to 1994 contracts for consultants were let by the Department of Trade and Industry, and information relating to 1992 and 1993 was provided in the answer to Parliamentary Question No.146 put down by Ms Diane Abbott MP and dated 25 January 1994 (Columns 211-217). Information on consultancies prior to 1992 can only now be provided at disproportionate cots.
Details of those consultants The Service has engaged in each financial year since 1 April 1993, together with their costs, are:
| Year | Organisation | Value (including VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| £ | ||
| 1993-94 | KPMG | 45,000 |
| Ernst and Young | 107,800 | |
| BDO Stoy Hayward | 76,670 | |
| 1994-95 | Price Waterhouse | 124,800 |
| BDO Stoy Hayward | 94,154 | |
| Coopers and Lybrand | 60,000 | |
| Bond Pearce | 10,100 | |
| Ernst and Young | 14,776 | |
| Shreeveport | 129,000 | |
| 1995-96 | Shreeveport | 460,492 |
| Bevan Ashford | 35,653 | |
| Bond Pearce | 6,392 | |
| Ernst and Young | 7,284 |
Letter from Jim Norton to Mr. Alan Milburn, dated 13 February 1997:
EXTERNAL CONSULTANTS ENGAGED BY THE RADIOCOMMUNICATIONS AGENCY
You recently tabled a Parliamentary Question to the President of the Board of Trade on consultancy contracts. I am replying as Chief Executive of Companies House Executive Agency.
Mr Taylor, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Corporate and Consumer Affairs, has asked me to reply on behalf of the Radiocommunications Agency to your Parliamentary Question about external consultants.
The number, and cost, of contracts let by the Agency to external consultants since it assumed responsibility from the DTI for doing so is as follows:
FY 94/95 six contracts valued at £238k;
FY 95/96 eight contracts valued at £256k;
FY 96/97 six contracts (to date) valued at £380k.
Letter from John Holden to Mr. Alan Milburn, dated 13 February 1997:
In my letter in response to your similar question tabled on 14 October 1996, I set out the cost, at 1996/97 prices, of consultancy services provided to Companies House since 1992/93. The amounts in cash terms (ie money of the day) were as follows:
| Year | £ thousand |
|---|---|
| 1992-93 | 293 |
| 1993-94 | 172 |
| 1994-95 | 122 |
| 1995-96 | 199 |
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Letter from Seton Bennett to Mr. Alan Milburn, dated 13 February 1997:
I regret that the information for earlier years can only be provided at disproportionate cost, since 1992/93 was the first full year for which Companies House operated its own free standing accounting systems. Companies House's use of consultants is mainly for specialist IT design and implementation and structural building matters. The expenditure is incurred with varying numbers of diverse specialists and the number of contracts with consultants (as opposed to the actual expenditure itself) cannot be determined with any accuracy within the time available. For example, in 1995/96 alone, some 90 payments are recorded on the accounting system. The overall pattern is one of a large number of relatively small payments, and it would take disproportionate effort to allocate each of these to particular contracts over the period.
The President of the Board of Trade has asked me to reply on behalf of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory (NWML) to your question about the contracts his Department has had with consultants.
1990/91 is the first year for which separate figures for NWML are available and the figures for the years since then are as follows:
| Year | Number of contracts | Total cost (£000) |
|---|---|---|
| 1990-91 | 0 | -- |
| 1991-92 | 0 | -- |
| 1992-93 | 1 | 7 |
| 1993-94 | 1 | 20 |
| 1994-95 | 0 | -- |
| 1995-96 | 1 | 4 |
| 1996-97 | 0 | -- |
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