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10 Sep 2008 : Column 1892W—continued


Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of overtime payments paid to staff in his Department was in each of the last 12 months, broken down by pay grade. [221293]

Mr. Bradshaw: The costs in pounds of overtime payments to staff in Department for each of the last 12 months, broken down by pay grade, are presented in the following table.

Grade

AO EO HEO FS SEO G7 G6 SCS Total

2007

April

1,366

10,258

7,498

1,144

10,801

14,869

181

46,116

May

647

8,723

5,254

4,296

17,554

11,499

1,361

49,334

June

1,748

9,761

5,592

5,024

11,918

13,355

199

556

48,153

July

708

10,130

6,444

3,585

8,252

11,152

875

41,146

August

837

13,779

7,403

4,210

12,371

6,277

426

894

46,198

September

1,335

3,480

3,489

717

5,452

2,717

841

18,030

October

543

5,057

2,688

1,111

8,075

5,504

393

1,462

24,833

November

1,202

8,934

8,936

4,395

9,563

5,790

1,305

1,341

41,467

December

1,414

12,284

8,237

3,438

6,900

10,021

1,303

1,158

44,754

2008

January

2,135

8,901

8,324

4,459

6,846

8,606

2,748

1,694

43,712

February

1,481

9,825

12,294

3,980

10,732

7,025

1,513

988

47,838

March

477

8,205

6,338

1,693

8,773

1,851

3,309

2,376

33,022

Total

13,893

109,337

82,496

38,052

117,238

98,666

14,453

10,469

484,606

Key to grade abbreviations:
AO—Administrative Officer
EO—Executive Officer
HEO—Higher Executive Officer
FS—Fast Stream
SEO—Senior Executive Officer
G7—Grade 7
G6—Grade 6
SCS—Senior Civil Service

Departmental Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of paper used (a) for photocopying and (b) in printed publications by his Department was from recycled sources in each of the last two years. [220725]

Mr. Bradshaw: For photocopying purposes the Department uses 100 per cent. recycled paper.

For printed publications use of recycled paper accounts for 50 per cent. of the paper used.

Departmental Pay

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was claimed in reimbursable expenses by press officers in his Department and its agencies in each of the last three financial years. [221178]

Mr. Bradshaw: The amount claimed in reimbursable expenses by Departmental press officers in each of the last three financial years is detailed in the following table.

Amount claimed (£)

2005-06

5,046.98

2006-07

3,329.47

2007-08

2,495.45


Figures for the amount claimed by agencies are not held centrally.

Departmental Postal Services

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to monitor the cost of its mail services in the last 12 months. [221482]

Mr. Bradshaw: The Department monitors the cost of its email services using the Royal Mail Online Business Account.


10 Sep 2008 : Column 1893W

Departmental Procurement

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's policy is on requesting discounts from its suppliers in return for swift payment of invoices. [220434]

Mr. Bradshaw: The Department's standard terms and conditions state that the contractor shall be paid monthly in arrears within 30 days upon receipt of a properly prepared invoice. The Department does not have a standard policy regarding discounts for early payments.

Departmental Public Participation

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) listening exercises and (b) public forums his Department has held in each of the last two years; and what the (i) purpose, (ii) cost, (iii) private contractor and (iv) amount paid to the private contractor was in each case. [221352]

Mr. Bradshaw: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Sick Leave

Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average length of single periods of sick leave taken by staff in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which it has responsibility was in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [215977]


10 Sep 2008 : Column 1894W

Mr. Bradshaw: The average length of single periods of sick leave, in days, for the Department and its agencies in each of the last three years are presented in the following table.

Days
Organisation 2007-08 2006-07 2005-06

Department of Health

4.03

5.84

6.73

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

2.76

4.25

6.55

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency

4.55

3.83

4.00


Information is not available before 2005. Cabinet Office reporting changed from calendar years to financial years between 2005 and 2006.

Providing information for the other bodies reporting to the Department would incur disproportionate costs.

Departmental Sick Pay

Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was paid in sick pay to staff in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which it has responsibility in each of the last five years; what proportion of the staffing expenditure of each body this figure represented in each such year; and if he will make a statement. [216143]

Mr. Bradshaw: Estimates of the amounts paid in sick pay to staff in the Department and its agencies in the last three years, and the proportion of staffing expenditure this represents for each body, are presented in the following table.

Department of Health Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Sick pay (£) Proportion (percentage) of staffing expenditure Sick pay (£) Proportion (percentage) of staffing expenditure Sick pay (£) Proportion (percentage) of staffing expenditure

2007-08

2,386,000

2.36

1,166,000

3.07

212,000

2.09

2006-07

2,926,000

2.89

1,116,000

2.93

249,000

2.44

2005

3,151,000

3.11

490,000

1.29

701,000

6.89

Notes:
1. The figures for 2007-08 are based on the average number of working days lost per member of staff due to sickness absence in that year, the average salary of staff at the middle of the year (September 2007) and the number of staff at the middle of the year (September 2007). Figures for 2006-07 and 2005 use the same average salaries and numbers of staff, but actual working days lost for the year in question. The use of average salaries will overestimate payments and expenditure since more senior (more highly paid) staff take less sickness absence than more junior (lower paid) staff, based on analysis of absence by grade in 2007-08.
2. The change from calendar years to financial years between 2005 and 2006 represents a change in Cabinet Office sickness absence reporting periods. Information is not available for years before 2005.
3. Providing information for other bodies reporting to the Department would incur disproportionate costs.

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