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Health Information (Confidentiality)

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he will take to encourage sharing on a confidential basis of health information relating to residents of secure training centres between private contractors responsible for their medical services and the national health service. [188234]

Paul Goggins: We would encourage those involved in giving medical advice and treatment to young people in secure training centres to share information with each other as much as possible, within the requirements of the law on the confidentiality of medical records.

Pay Systems

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library the most recent review of (a) his Department's pay systems, (b) the pay systems of the non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible and (c) the departmental equal pay action plan. [181349]

Fiona Mactaggart: There is no single document that could be described as a formal review of the Department's pay systems. However, there is a regular evaluation of the Department pay systems to ensure that they meet its business needs and in response to employee representative pay claims. Changes in the reward arrangements are subject to the public sector pay policy, Her Majesty's Treasury pay remit process and the normal collective bargaining with employee representatives. These changes in pay terms and conditions are then published for staff in the Department to see.

Non-departmental public bodies have delegated authority for their pay and grading arrangements and are individually responsible for their pay systems. Again there is no single document that could be described as a formal review. Changes in pay systems are made within the context of public sector pay policy, Her Majesty's Treasury pay remit process and the normal collective bargaining with employee representatives.

A copy of the Department's equal pay action plan will be placed in the Library.

People's Mujahedin Organisation of Iran

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to remove the People's Mujahedin Organisation of Iran from his list of terrorist organisations; and if he will make a statement. [187550]

Mr. Blunkett: As a matter of policy, the Government does not comment on whether a particular organisation is being considered for proscription or de-proscription under section 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Such decisions are only taken after the most careful consideration and on the basis of the best possible security advice.
 
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Prisons

Jane Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the impact of the proposed reduction in the number of fire safety officers on the operation of the Prison Service. [187956]

Paul Goggins: The reduction of staff within Fire Safety Section is a result of reorganisation of the Section and is part of the overall headquarters efficiencies. The reduction in staff is tempered by changes in working requirements that has removed identified unnecessary work from the section. It is considered that the level of provision of advice to the Service will not be adversely affected.

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Prison Service has spent on equal pay tribunal cases since 1997. [187959]

Paul Goggins: On 9 September 2004 the Prison Service had spent

£1,034,741 since 1997 on equal pay tribunal cases.

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many job evaluation exercises have been carried out by the Prison Service in respect of (a) administrative and (b) Prison Service staff since 1997; and what the outcome was. [187960]

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service introduced Phase 1 of its review of pay and grading in July 2000. Affecting 2,500 middle and senior managers, including those in administrative and operational disciplines, it replaced more than 150 existing grades with a seven-payband common structure supported by a job evaluation system.

Development of Phase 2 of the review, which would have applied to 38,000 lower-graded staff in disciplines that included administrative and operational grades, was halted in April 2002 and the project work subsumed within pay modernisation.

In the process of developmental work, and to date, the Prison Service has carried out 507 individual job evaluations.

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many equal pay cases against the Prison Service at employment tribunals have found (a) for and (b) against the Service since 1997; and what the financial implications of those decisions have been. [187961]

Paul Goggins: On the information available, there have been findings against the Prison Service in eight equal pay claims since 1997. These findings are currently subject to appeal by the Prison Service and it is therefore not possible to provide a realistic estimate of the financial implications.

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Prison Service has spent since 1997 defending employment tribunal cases in respect of equal pay claims. [188220]

Paul Goggins: On 9 September 2004 the Prison Service had spent £1,034,741 since 1997 defending equal pay tribunal cases.
 
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Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Prison Service plans to review its job evaluation system in the light of recent employment tribunal cases. [188223]

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service uses a job evaluation system called Equate, which underpins the jobs of middle and senior managers within Phase 1 of its Pay and Grading scheme. There are no plans to review it in the light of the case of Bailey and Others v. Home Office.

However, it is proposed to explore the need for a job evaluation scheme that can be used to evaluate jobs that do not fall within Phase 1.

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Prison Service plans to appeal against employment tribunal decisions made during the last 12 months in respect of equal pay claims between administrative support and prison officer grades. [188224]

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service lodged an appeal in the case of Bailey and Others v. Home Office on 26 August 2004.

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many organisations which expressed an interest in drug rehabilitation work for the Prison Service have not tendered for the work. [188400]

Paul Goggins : Prison Service Contracts and Procurement Unit (CPU) received 57 expressions of interest in response to the public notice dated 26 November 2003. All were sent Pre-Qualifying Questionnaires (PQQ). CPU received 41 completed PQQ's by the closing date on 30 January 2004 and rejected 11 of these. Twenty-nine invitations to tender were sent on 20 May 2004 of which 24 tenders were received on 20 July 2004.

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 22 July, Official Report, column 609W, on prisons, what assessment he has made of the effects of operating with a shortfall in the operational requirement for prison healthcare staff; what steps he is taking to address the shortage; and if he will make a statement. [187476]

Paul Goggins: No such assessment has been made centrally. Prison managers and primary care trusts are responsible for ensuring that an establishment's health workforce includes people with the skills and competencies necessary to implement its prison health delivery plan.

Prostitution Initiative

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how his Department's Prostitution Initiative affects the residents of Leyton and Wanstead. [187742]

Caroline Flint: On 16 July this year the Home Office published "Paying the Price", a consultation paper on the issues related to prostitution. The consultation exercise, which runs until 26 November, will form the basis for the development of a co-ordinated strategy to deal with prostitution.
 
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The existence of prostitution in a neighbourhood can significantly affect local residents through associated noise and traffic, prostitution-related litter, harassment, anti-social behaviour and criminality. Through the civil and criminal law, environmental means and support for those trapped in prostitution to change their lives, a co-ordinated strategy for prostitution will enable local partnerships to deliver real improvements for local communities suffering the detrimental effects of prostitution in their neighbourhoods.

Copies of "Paying the Price" have been placed in the Library and are available from the Home Office website at: www.homeoffice.gov.uk/inside/consults/index

We welcome views from my hon. Friend and his constituents.

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