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Employment Service

Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will place in the Library a copy of the Ernst and Young study into the Employment Service headquarters structure. [16772]

Mr. Forth: Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Leigh Lewis to Mr. Stephen Byers, dated 20 February 1997:

The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question on whether a copy of the Ernst and Young study of the Employment Service Headquarters will be placed in the Library of the House. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.

You may find it helpful if I give you some background to the work. The Employment Service (ES) commissioned the consultants Ernst and Young to help the ES Board think through issues concerning the future role of our Headquarters (Head Office and Regional Offices) and to develop an overview of the type of Headquarters the Agency would need. We accomplished this through a series of workshops of ES Board members and senior managers, facilitated by the consultants, who provided advice and fact-finding based on their work in organisations elsewhere. Our aim is now to draw on that work to inform more detailed change projects over the next three years.

Because of the way in which the consultants worked with the ES Board there is no formal consultants' report from the Headquarters Review project, but my predecessor, Mike Fogden, wrote to all staff in Headquarters on 31 October last year summarising the ES Board's main conclusions. I set out the key strands of our thinking and proposals for further work from that communication below.

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 666

ES's field operations have previously been subject to rigorous examination of need, effectiveness and cost. The Agency has become smaller as unemployment has fallen and it is now appropriate to apply a similar approach to our Headquarters functions.

Our examination concluded that the ES could be managed better and more cost effectively by eliminating duplication of functions between Head and Regional Offices which lead to reworking and loss of economies of scale; improving our Headquarter business processes; and contracting out some support functions.

This has led us to develop a blueprint for ES Headquarters of a small directing and enabling Head Office and a regional management tier focusing on the delivery of services to our clients.

To realise this, we have commissioned more detailed work to reduce HQ activities in areas not directly related to delivery of services to our clients; rebrigade (possibly to single sites) a number of support functions, and actively explore the scope for contracting out a number of support functions.

I think it worth adding that this is essentially a management issue rather than a policy one and the changes we are proposing will not affect our services to jobseekers and employers through Jobcentres - indeed we aim by focussing our Headquarters more directly on the core business of the ES to improve the services we provide through our Jobcentre network.

I hope this is helpful in giving more information on what we are seeking to achieve.

European Social Fund

Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what advice has been issued to sector managers about the effect of exchange rate changes between the pound and the ecu on 1996 approvals for European social fund moneys; by how much allocations are to be reduced in total; and if she will make a statement. [16774]

Mr. Paice: For the objective 3 programme of the European social fund, it is currently estimated that there will be enough sterling to meet claims for existing projects approved by the Department's European social fund unit in 1996. The monitoring committee responsible for overall management of the objective 3 programme in Great Britain will make the final decision as to what extent further projects should be approved. When it has reached a conclusion on this, the Department will issue appropriate advice to sector managers.

ENVIRONMENT

Brent Spar

Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place in the Library copies of correspondence between his Department and other bodies regarding the process or content of discussions to dispose of the Brent Spar, as set out in the papers listed as Brent Spar papers 1 to 24, placed in the Library by his Department. [15650]

Mr. Clappison: Since my Department has no statutory powers to exercise in this field, it had no correspondence of the kind contained in the Brent Spar papers 1 to 24 placed in the Library by the Department of Trade and Industry, except that, as one of the UK co-ordinating points for the Oslo and Paris commissions, it received a

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 667

copy of the letter of 17 February 1995 from the secretariat of those commissions, which forms No. 18 of those papers.

Mr. Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment at what stage and on what date his Department was first consulted by the Department of Trade and Industry about Shell's wish to dispose of the Brent Spar at sea; and if he will place in the Library copies of the correspondence between the two Departments on this matter. [15651]

Mr. Clappison: Discussions were held between Departments at various levels and in various contexts. My Department was involved from at least February 1994. It is not the normal practice to publish material passing between Government Departments in the course of preparing advice for Ministers.

Energy Conservation

Mr. Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the energy conservation authorities which did not submit their first reports to the Secretary of State under the Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (a) by 30 November 1996, (b) by 31 December 1996, (c) by 31 January 1997 and (d) to date. [15883]

Mr. Clappison: The energy conservation authorities whose reports were not received by the dates referred to are in the following list:
(a) not received by 30 November 1996
Adur District Council
Allerdale Borough Council
Alnwick District Council
Ashford Borough Council
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council
Barrow in Furness Borough Council
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council
Bath and North East Somerset Council
Berwick upon Tweed District Council
Blackpool Borough Council
Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
Borough of Blackburn
Borough of Crewe and Nantwich
Borough of Macclesfield
Boston Borough Council
Bradford Metropolitan Borough Council
Brent Council
Bridgnorth District Council
Brighton Borough Council
Bristol City Council
Broadland District Council
Burnley Borough Council
Cannock Chase Council
Canterbury City Council
Carlisle City Council
Castle Point Borough Council
Chester City Council
Chorley Borough Council
Christchurch Borough Council
City of Durham
City of London

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 668

City of Newcastle upon Tyne
City of Plymouth
City of Salford
City of Stoke on Trent
City of Worcester
Colchester Borough Council
Congleton Borough Council
Copeland Borough Council
Cotswold Borough Council
Craven District Council
Crawley Borough Council
Dartford Borough Council
Derwentside District Council
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council
Dover District Council
Eastbourne Borough Council
Eastleigh Borough Council
East Dorset District Council
East Northamptonshire Council
Eden District Council
Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council
Fenland District Council
Forest of Dean District Council
Fylde Borough Council
Gillingham Borough Council
Gosport Borough Council
Gravesham Borough Council
Guildford Borough Council
Halton Borough Council
Hambleton District Council
Harborough District Council
Harrogate Borough Council
Hartlepool Borough Council
Hereford City Council
Horsham District Council
Hove Borough Council
Hyndburn District Council
Isle of Wight Council
Islington Council
Kerrier District Council
Lancaster City Council
Lichfield District Council
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
London Borough of Barnet
London Borough of Bexley
London Borough of Camden
London Borough of Croydon
London Borough of Ealing
London Borough of Enfield
London Borough of Hackney
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
London Borough of Haringey
London Borough of Harrow
London Borough of Havering
London Borough of Hillingdon
London Borough of Hounslow
London Borough of Lambeth
London Borough of Merton

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 669

London Borough of Redbridge
London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
London Borough of Sutton
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
London Borough of Waltham Forest
London Borough of Wandsworth
Maidstone Borough Council
Maldon District Council
Manchester City Council
Mendip District Council
Mid Devon District Council
Milton Keynes Borough Council
Mole Valley District Council
Newbury District Council
Newcastle under Lyme Borough Council
New Forest District Council
Newham Council
North Cornwall District Council
North Devon District Council
North Dorset District Council
North Tyneside District Council
North Warwickshire Borough Council
North Somerset Council
North Wiltshire District Council
Pendle Borough Council
Penworth District Council
Portsmouth City Council
Preston Borough Council
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council
Redditch Borough Council
Restormel Borough Council
Ribble Valley Borough Council
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
Rossendale Borough Council
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
Rushmoor Borough Council
Ryedale District Council
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
Sedgefield Borough Council
Sevenoaks District Council
Sheffield City Council
Shepway District Council
Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council
Slough Borough Council
South Gloucestershire Council
South Herefordshire District Council
South Lakeland District Council
South Northamptonshire Council
South Ribble Borough Council
South Staffordshire District Council
South Somerset District Council
South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council
Southwark Council
Spelthorne Borough Council
Stafford Borough Council

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 670

Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
St. Edmundsbury Borough Council
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
Stockton on Tees Borough Council
Surrey Heath Borough Council
Swale Borough Council
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council
Tandridge District Council
Teesdale District Council
Teignbridge District Council
Test Valley Borough Council
Tewkesbury Borough Council
Thamesdown Borough Council
Thanet District Council
Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council
Torbay Borough Council
Torridge District Council
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council
Vale Royal Borough Council
Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council
Wansbeck District Council
Warrington Borough Council
Warwick District Council
Waverley Borough Council
Wealden District Council
Wear Valley District Council
Wellingborough Borough Council
West Dorset District Council
West Wiltshire District Council
West Lancashire District Council
Westminster City Council
Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council
Winchester City Council
Wokingham District Council
Wolverhampton Council
Worthing Borough Council
Wychavon District Council
Wycombe District Council
Wyre Borough Council.
(b) not received by 31 December 1996
Allerdale Borough Council
Alnwick District Council
Berwick upon Tweed District Council
Broadland District Council
Castle Point Borough Council
Colchester Borough Council
Cotswold District Council
Dartford Borough Council
East Dorset District Council
Fenland District Council
Fylde Borough Council
Gillingham Borough Council
Gosport Borough Council
Harborough District Council
Mole Valley District Council
North Devon District Council
North Somerset Council

20 Feb 1997 : Column: 671

Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
Sevenoaks District Council
South Ribble Borough Council
South Staffordshire District Council
Spelthorne Borough Council
Teesdale District Council
Warwick District Council
Waverley Borough Council
Wellingborough Borough Council
West Wiltshire District Council
Wyre Borough Council
(c) not received by 31 January 1997
Allerdale Borough Council
Alnwick District Council
Berwick upon Tweed District Council
Fenland District Council
Gosport Borough Council
South Staffordshire District Council
Wellingborough Borough Council.
(d) not received to date (13 February 1997)
Allerdale Borough Council
Alnwick District Council
Berwick upon Tweed District Council
Fenland District Council
South Staffordshire District Council
Wellingborough Borough Council.

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