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WALES
IT Contracts
Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England and Wales, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a). [33688]
Mr. Paul Murphy: Since it was established on 1 July 1999, the Information Technology requirements of the Wales Office have been met, by means of a service level
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agreement, through the PFI contract which the National Assembly for Wales holds with Siemens Business Systems. The costs are as follows:
- 1999–2000 (July to March)
- £180,250
- 2000–01 (full year)
- £216,300
- 2001–02 (April to December)
- £162,220.
Prior to 1 July 1999 the cost of the Siemens Business Systems PFI contract to the former Welsh Office was:
- 1997–98 (full year)
- £7,829,546
- 1998–1999 (full year)
- £12,903,892.
No contracts have been let by the Secretary of State for Wales since July 1999. Before that date 14 contracts were let in the calendar year 1998 of which:
- (i) 14 were companies registered in England or Wales.
- (ii) 0 were companies registered in Scotland.
- (iii) 0 were companies registered in Northern Ireland.
- (iv) 0 were companies registered in Foreign Countries.
The companies at (i) above were:
- Anite
Cable and Wireless
Cardiff University
Cathedral Consortium
Hedra
SEMA ( two contracts)
ICL
Level-7 Ltd. (since renamed to ECsoft)
Lorien
Parity
W. S. Atkins (three contracts).
- Notes:
- All the information above relates solely to IT systems and support. Telephone costs are not included.
Departmental Publications
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the publications issued by his Department in each of the last four years; and what the (a) circulation, (b) cost and (c) purpose of each was. [34196]
Mr. Paul Murphy: This information is not available in the form requested.
Departmental Events
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the (a) conferences, (b) seminars, (c) workshops, (d) exhibitions and (e) press conferences which have been sponsored by his Department and which took place on non-Departmental premises in each of the last four years giving the title, purpose, date and cost of each. [34277]
Mr. Paul Murphy: This information is not held in the form requested.
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Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the expenditure of his (a) Department, (b) agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies on newspaper advertising by title in each year since 1997. [26980]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The Wales Office does not exercise any functions which ordinarily require it to place advertisements. Information for the former Welsh Office is not readily available.
HOUSE OF COMMONS
Fair Trade Fortnight
Mr. Lazarowicz: To ask the President of the Council what steps he is taking to encourage participation by his Department in Fair Trade Fortnight from 4 to 17 March. [33543]
Mr. Robin Cook: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development on 5 February 2000, Official Report, column 917W.
My Department is not responsible for major purchases of goods and services.
None the less, we will endeavour to use Fair Trade products for official entertaining directly provided by my Department, subject to this being good value for money.
Information about Fair Trade Fortnight will be drawn to the attention of all departmental staff.
Departmental Retirement Ages
Mr. Webb: To ask the President of the Council if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of his Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement. [32818]
Mr. Robin Cook: The Cabinet Office is responsible for setting the retirement age for all members of the Senior Civil Service. This is age 60. Three members of my Department fall into this category. However, Heads of Departments and Agency Chief Executives have flexibility to retain members of the Senior Civil Service beyond age 60 if they judge it in the public interest and they are satisfied about the fitness and efficiency of the individual to carry out his or her duties.
For staff in my Department below the Senior Civil Service, the normal retirement age is 60. Nineteen members of my Department fall into this category. Subject to departmental needs and the continued health and efficiency of the individual concerned, staff may be allowed to continue working to a maximum age of 65.
IT Contracts
Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the President of the Council what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England
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and Wales, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a). [33673]
Mr. Robin Cook: My Department placed no IT contracts during the period mentioned. IT services are provided via the Cabinet Office's IT contract. (The contractor is COMPAQ Computers Ltd., Worton Grange, Imperial Way, Reading, Berkshire, RG2 0TD.) My Department is re-charged on a per capita basis for each member of staff, plus a charge for any extra software or special services. The available information (dating from when my Department joined the Cabinet Office network) is:
| Period | £ |
|---|---|
| 1 July 1998 to 31 March 1999 | 24,391 |
| 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2000(6) | 16,557 |
| 1 April 2000 to 31 March 2001(6) | 172,570 |
(6) The charge for 2000–01 includes £68,000 for a database used by the Business Co-ordination Unit (who have since been transferred to the Cabinet Office).
HOME DEPARTMENT
James Ashley
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has received a report from the Sussex Police Authority concerning the fatal shooting of James Ashley in 1998. [35969]
Mr. Denham: I required the Sussex Police Authority to report under section 43 of the Police Act 1996 on the events surrounding the shooting and the action taken by Sussex police to ensure that they have responded appropriately. I have now received that report. I am placing a copy in the Library. The report gives an account of the circumstances leading up to the shooting, the subsequent investigations, and the action which has been taken in Sussex to improve policing and to restore public confidence. Three officers are currently facing disciplinary proceedings in connection with the shooting. The Police Authority have informed me that they have not included any material which in their view could be prejudicial to the proceedings.
Police Officers
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers below pensionable age left the police force in England and Wales in 2001, broken down by police authority area. [30453]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 29 January 2002]: There is no single set retirement age from the police service. All officers may retire upon completion of 30 years service or upon completion of 25 years service after the age of 50. Officers may continue to serve up to the age of 55, or until 60 for ranks above sergeant. Chief officers, or the Police Authority in the case of the chief officer, have discretion to extend the compulsory retirement age for any officer by up to five years.
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary collect information annually about the number of officers who have left the police service. The table shows the most recent figures, which are for 2000–01.
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| Force | Ordinary retirements | Other wastage(7) |
|---|---|---|
| Avon and Somerset | 67 | 67 |
| Bedfordshire | 13 | 38 |
| Cambridgeshire | 32 | 34 |
| Cheshire | 40 | 41 |
| City of London | 18 | 20 |
| Cleveland | 33 | 18 |
| Cumbria | 29 | 34 |
| Derbyshire | 27 | 25 |
| Devon and Cornwall | 94 | 37 |
| Dorset | 42 | 25 |
| Durham | 27 | 23 |
| Dyfed-Powys | 25 | 22 |
| Essex | 65 | 78 |
| Gloucestershire | 28 | 22 |
| Greater Manchester | 128 | 175 |
| Gwent | 27 | 26 |
| Hampshire | 95 | 91 |
| Hertfordshire | 40 | 72 |
| Humberside | 68 | 51 |
| Kent | 74 | 82 |
| Lancashire | 75 | 56 |
| Leicestershire | 29 | 48 |
| Lincolnshire | 41 | 13 |
| Merseyside | 79 | 80 |
| Metropolitan Police | 451 | 703 |
| Norfolk | 39 | 22 |
| Northamptonshire | 25 | 22 |
| Northumbria | 62 | 67 |
| North Wales | 32 | 43 |
| North Yorkshire | 27 | 41 |
| Nottinghamshire | 59 | 28 |
| South Wales | 45 | 105 |
| South Yorkshire | 74 | 60 |
| Staffordshire | 42 | 25 |
| Suffolk | 38 | 27 |
| Surrey | 34 | 59 |
| Sussex | 89 | 64 |
| Thames Valley | 71 | 120 |
| Warwickshire | 25 | 21 |
| West Mercia | 50 | 47 |
| West Midlands | 142 | 141 |
| West Yorkshire | 116 | 90 |
| Wiltshire | 28 | 24 |
| England and Wales | 2,645 | 2,885 |
(7) medical retirements, resignations, dismissals and deaths
David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there are per head of population in (a) the West Mercia Constabulary and (b) on average in England and Wales. [32543]
Mr. Denham: This information is published in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin in the form of police officers per 100,000 population. In West Mercia there were 173.9 police officers per 100,000 of population as at 30 September 2001 and 240.3 per 100,000 of population in England and Wales.
Mr. Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many full-time police officers (a) are employed by East Sussex Constabulary and (b) were employed in 1997. [33917]
Mr. Denham: On 30 September Sussex police had 2,837 police officers. On 31 March 1997 the force had 3,085 officers. I understand that the former Chief Constable allowed police numbers to fall because he civilianised a substantial number of operational support jobs that could more effectively be undertaken by civilian support staff. The reduction was not in front-line officers.
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Between March 1997 and September 2001 civilian support staff numbers increased by 357 to 1,506 full- time equivalents.
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