Written Ministerial Statements
Tuesday 9 May 2006
Defence
Defence Storage and Distribution Agency
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency for financial year 2006-07. Key targets are as follows:
To meet the customers' requirements as negotiated and agreed in business agreements (BAs). This key target is broken down into the following sub-targets:
1a. For explosive materiel; to supply 95 per cent. of available maintained munitions within demand timescales.
1b. For non-explosive materiel; to supply 95 per cent. of issues to consumers, as forecast and agreed in BAs, to meet that element of the supply chain pipeline time (SCPT) for which DSDA has responsibility.
1c. To process within limits agreed with each individual customer, 98 per cent. of all receipts that conform to the specifications laid down in the contract and/or materiel regulations.
KT2 is an efficiency measure for continuous performance improvement to achieve a 2.5 per cent. (net of 2.5 per cent. inflation factor) reduction in the unit cost of output (UCO) in financial year 2005-06 (based on financial year 2004-05) while maintaining an effective level of services to the customers in accordance with the business agreements (BAs).
The value of inventory written off as a result of DSDA's actions to be less than the levels agreed within each business agreement (BA). This key target is broken down into the following sub-targets:
3a. The value of explosive materiel written off as a result of DSD A's action to be less than 0.02 per cent. of the explosives inventory. This includes associated weapons build components that are integral to the weapon system or munitions (including non-explosive components), tools, test equipment and materials that belong to the integrated project teams (IPTs), which are in the custody of DSDA.
3b. The value of non-explosive materiel written off as a result of DSDAs action to be less than levels agreed within each BA.
DTMA
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of DTMA for financial year 2006-07.
To achieve at least a “Satisfactory” rating in the provision of planning and delivery of transport and
movements support to emerging operations, an increase in the tempo of existing operations or other requirements.
To achieve at least a “Satisfactory” rating in the planning and delivery of transport and movements support to enduring operations.
To provide roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) vessel capability at the readiness states required.
To meet customers' requirements as negotiated and agreed in customer supplier agreements (CSAs) to deliver:
(1) Some 98 per cent. or more of agency transactions and services, however provided, to be within agreed time, quantity, quality and cost (TQQC) criteria.
(2) At least 96 per cent. (previously 94 per cent.) of transactions against each service to be within agreed TQQC criteria.
To reduce the average unit cost of output by 1 per cent. on the actual unit cost achieved in 2005-06, in real terms.
Defence Aviation Repair Agency
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency for the financial year 2006-07. The targets are as follows:
Key Target 1—Quality: Achieve less than 15 attributable major customer concerns annually, on average FY 04-05—06-07.
Key Target 2—Financial Performance: Achieve an annual return on capital employed of at least 3.5 per cent. (excluding DARA's fast jet and engines businesses)
Key Target 3—Business Transformation: Carry out the actions by April 2007 that are required to effectively drawdown DARA's fast jet and engines businesses
Key Target 4—Efficiency: Improve overall efficiency by at least 6 per cent. (excluding DARA's fast jet and engines businesses).
Disposal Services Agency
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of DSA for financial year 2006-07. The targets are as follows:
To achieve a disposal sales income of £63 million from sales of surplus Government-owned equipment and repayment business.
To meet the key performance standards agreed with DSA's customers and specified in internal business agreements and in customer supplier agreements with other public bodies.
To ensure that the agency is at, or above the standard of the public sector Benchmarking report for overall customer satisfaction. The agency should achieve a level of current satisfied customers of at least 90 per cent. and very satisfied customers of at least 25 per cent.
To demonstrate value recovery from 70 per cent. of surplus arisings handled by DSA through resale, recycling, composting or energy generation (or any other accepted method of landfill avoidance).
To keep within an agency administration cost of £6 million for financial year 2006-07.
British Forces Post Office
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): The key targets have been set for the chief executive of BFPO for the financial year 2006-07. The targets are as follows:
a. Key Target 1. To provide a 100 per cent. secure defence courier service (DCS) for the carriage of protectively marked material (PMM). This target is broken down into the following sub targets:
PI 1: 100 per cent. of packages to reach the required destination.
PI 2: 100 per cent. availability of the DCS capability.
b. Key Target 2. To provide a secure defence courier service for the carriage of Protectively Marked Material (PMM) operating within timescales for scheduled and special items, at not less than 98.7 per cent. of that agreed with customers.
c. Key Target 3. To provide a resilient and dependable service for the controlled and specialised handling of Defence Official Mails by operating at least 96 per cent. of deliveries within scheduled timings, agreed with customers.
d. Key Target 4. To meet 96 per cent. of the requirements negotiated and agreed with customers for the transit times for delivery and collection at defence mail centres (DMCs). This target is broken down into the following sub targets:
PI 1: Some 96 per cent. of mail delivered to DMC by defence mail service (DMS)/Parcelforce (PF)/ Royal Mail (RM) to be sorted and ready for delivery within one hour and 10 minutes of receipt.
PI 2: Some 96 per cent. of mail delivered to DMCs by DMS/PF/RM to be delivered to local customers the same day.
PI 3: Some 98 per cent. of mail delivered/collected into DMCs from local customers before 1500 hours to be sorted within one hour and ten minutes of receipt.
e. Key Target 5. To meet 95 per cent. of the agreed customer requirement for the movement of private and official mails from BFPO London to authorised overseas destinations within agreed timescales. This target is broken down into the following sub targets:
PI 1: Some 95.5 per cent. or more of deliveries of private and official mail to static locations world-wide (less British Forces Germany) within agreed timescales.
PI 2. Some 98 per cent. or more of deliveries of private and official mail to British Forces Germany within agreed timescales.
PI 3. Some 93.5 per cent. or more of deliveries of private and official mail to operational and exercise locations within agreed timescales.
PI 4. Some 95.5 per cent. or more of deliveries of private and official mail to HM ships within agreed timescales.
f. Key Target 6. Total year-on-year direct RDEL cost growth to be no more than defence inflation less 1 per cent. This is an efficiency measure for continuous improvement while maintaining an effective level of service to our customers in accordance with the service level agreements.
Defence Analytical Services Agency
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of the Defence Analytical Services Agency (DASA) for the financial year 2006-07. The targets, which build on the already high standards of service provided by the agency since its formation in 1992, are as follows:
Key Target 1: Support our MOD policy and decision making customers by meeting at least 95 per cent. of the timeliness and quality targets in our service level and project agreements, and by scoring at least 90 per cent. in our customer satisfaction survey.
Key Target 2: Increase DASA's support for policy and decision making within MOD by delivering five key new products and/or services.
Key Target 3: Support the Department's accountability by publishing the five key national statistics on time, with no major errors and in accordance with national statistics guidelines and protocols, by meeting at least 95 per cent. of the timeliness and quality targets for other defence national statistics, and by meeting timeliness targets for answering parliamentary questions.
Key Target 4: Develop and agree, by end July 2006, a DASA information strategy; implement actions planned under that strategy for 2006-07
Key Target 5: Make sufficient efficiency gains to ensure DASA can implement and manage the new DASA JPA personnel data system
Defence Communication Services Agency
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence(Mr. Adam Ingram): Key targets have been set for the chief executive of the DCSA for financial year 2006-07 as follow:
DCSA Key Targets for FY 2006-07
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture and Fisheries Council
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mr. Ben Bradshaw): My right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs represented the United Kingdom at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting in Brussels on 25 April 2006.
The Council adopted a proposal to broaden the scope of the current provision for exceptional measures in the poultry meat and eggs sectors to help them through a drop in sales caused by consumer fears about avian influenza. I supported the proposals but stressed that the measures should be limited in time and in budget. The Commission tabled a declaration saying that measures already adopted by member states would be considered for co-financing on a case-by-case basis, and that serious market disturbance would be defined at EU, not member state level.
The Council held an exchange of views on a Commission Communication on improving the economic situation in the fishing industry which proposed a range of short and long term measures. I led calls from several member states that measures should deliver a profitable industry which can pay for its own investments and which was characterised by fleet capacity to match available resources.
The Council also held an exchange of views on the Commission's action plan for simplifying the Common Fisheries Policy. The action plan focuses on efforts including process changes to improve the quality of the annual quota decision.
The Council held a policy debate on Commission proposals for a management plan for plaice and sole in the North sea, on the basis of a questionnaire drawn up by the presidency. The proposal aims to manage the fisheries exploiting the stocks of North sea plaice and sole so that they are rebuilt to—and then maintained—within safe biological limits. UK Government views have been submitted to the Commission in writing.
Under any other business, in the absence the Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection the Council took note of a written update on avian influenza H5N1 in the European Union and third countries.
The Agriculture Commissioner updated the Council on progress in the WTO agricultural negotiations. She said that the 30 April deadline agreed in Hong Kong for modalities would not be met but stressed that the EU offer from last October still remained on the table.
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