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20 Jan 2009 : Column 1398W—continued
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department is taking to become an intelligent customer in IT procurement. [246680]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department re-aligned its IT contracts to enable it to procure industry standard services at market prices. This has also allowed the Department to substantially reduce its IT spend at the same time as improving the quality of the services procured.
Operational processes have been aligned with industry standard principles, ITIL (IT Information Library) or CMMi (Capability Maturity Model Integration) to maximise the efficiency of procurement and management of IT service delivery. The professional skills of the Department’s IT staff have been improved to match.
Supplier governance has been strengthened through regular meetings at a strategic and operational level to review contract performance based on contractually agreed management information requirements. Where necessary, service improvement steps are agreed as part of continuous service improvement plans.
The Department also undertakes supplier intelligence analysis to identify market trends and monitor the financial stability of its key suppliers.
These steps have delivered significant improvements in IT contract delivery; the Department’s future plans build on the realigned contracts to make further progress in service improvement and value for money for its IT investment.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how the performance of his Department’s IT contracts with (a) BT and (b) EDS are measured; and how the relevant performance data are validated. [246681]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department’s contracts with BT and EDS specify service levels and key performance indicators which measure critical and important performance parameters in line with industry best practice. They are measured and formally reported on 12 times a year at regular intervals. Following the same reporting cycle the accuracy of the reports generated by BT and EDS is formally validated and assured by the Department. These processes are underpinned by periodic audits.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance his Department issues on (a) the methodology, (b) project planning and (c) risk and issue management of its IT projects. [246683]
Jonathan Shaw: The standard project management methodology used within the Department is PRINCE2. Supporting this, the Department has developed a project delivery tool, known as the DWP Change Lifecycle. The Lifecycle, representing best practice and setting standards, is mandated for use by all projects within the Department.
The DWP lifecycle also includes guidance on project planning, with a dedicated section relating to Planning and Estimating.
Further planning and investment guidance is available to projects, such as HM Treasury’s “Green Book”, and the Department’s Investment Costing guidance.
The Risk Management Framework formally describes the Department’s approach to managing risks and issues. It incorporates internal and external good practice, from both the public and private sectors and is fully
consistent with guidance set out in the HMT “Orange Book”—Management of Risk: Principles and Concept.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department maintains a register of its software licences. [246685]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department has contracted its service providers to create and maintain software licence registers for the software it uses.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department's IT projects are required to be supported by (a) a project initiation document, (b) a documented business case and (c) a cost-benefit analysis. [246686]
Jonathan Shaw: All projects are required to document the key information needed to correctly direct and manage them, including an overview of how the project will be carried out and its governance arrangements. All the Department's major projects detail this within the Project Initiation Document, however, for smaller scale projects with low costs or short timescales this information would be contained within the Business Case.
All the Department's projects and programmes delivering change, including IT enabled projects, are required to produce a business case, which includes a cost-benefit analysis.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 15 December 2008, Official Report, column 399W, on departmental ICT, if he will place in the Library a copy of the risk management framework referred to in the answer. [246933]
Jonathan Shaw: It is not in the interests of the Department's security arrangements for details to be published of the approaches that are taken in identifying and responding to particular risks to IT systems. Such information, if published, could assist those intent on undermining the Department's IT security, and could prejudice the Department's efforts to protect information, including personal data in respect of individuals. This is not in the public interest. I refer the hon. Member to the answer in the official record for 17 December 2008, Official Report column 826W, which sets out the Department’s approach to data and information security.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 15 December 2008, Official Report, column 400W, on departmental ICT, what priorities for improvement were identified as a result of the annual user satisfaction surveys in each of the last 10 years. [246934]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department has conducted an IT and Telephony survey of staff in each of the last three years. The overall assessment of the Department's IT and telephony systems was positive in all three years. In each year scope for improvement of some IT applications and telephony were identified. Improvement programmes and better IT user guidance have been implemented as a result.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2008, Official Report, column 400W, on departmental ICT, if he will place a copy in the Library of his Department’s business contingency plans referred to in the Answer. [246935]
Jonathan Shaw: It is not in the interests of the Department or its stakeholders to publish the detailed plans that apply to the protection of its business processes. To do so could enable individuals to deduce how successful the Department is in protecting its systems and identifying vulnerabilities, which might assist such persons in testing the effectiveness of the Department’s controls, or otherwise causing mischievous disruption to the Department. This would not be in the public interest.
However the Department’s Business Continuity policy and guidance documents are publicly available on the UK Resilience website:
Mr. Harper:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 15 December
2008, Official Report, column 401W, on departmental ICT, which are the projects which have IT input. [246936]
Jonathan Shaw: All 19 of the major business change programmes are supported by IT. They are listed in appendix 1 of the report of the National Audit Office to the Work and Pensions Select Committee (Department for Work and Pensions: Information Technology Programmes), a copy of which is in the Library. They include programmes which will improve the deployment of financial information, for example the Central Payment System, and programmes to deliver efficient and effective services to the Department’s customers, for example the Department for Work and Pensions Change Programme.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what IT systems are used to process each of his Department's benefits. [249684]
Jonathan Shaw: The IT Systems used to process the Department's benefits are shown in the following table associated with the benefits they support.
In addition where a customer is already in receipt of benefit Winter Fuel Payments are also administered on the appropriate core benefit system.
Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisers
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what expert advisers have been commissioned by his Department and its agencies since 1997; on what topic each was commissioned; and whether the adviser so appointed made a declaration of political activity in each case. [246962]
Jonathan Shaw: Information on advisers since 1997 is not held centrally and to compile a list, as requested, would incur disproportionate cost. The Department does make public appointments to public and ad-hoc bodies, and appoints special advisers. Since 2003, the Government have published an annual list detailing the number and costs of special advisers and the number in each pay band. Updated information will be published in the usual way.
Departmental Telephone Services
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what use (a) his Department and (b) service providers under contract to his Department make of (i) 0844 and 0845 telephone numbers and (ii) revenue-sharing telephone numbers for calls from members of the public; for which services such numbers are used; what prefixes are used for revenue-sharing numbers; how much revenue has accrued from revenue-sharing numbers in each of the last five years; what consideration his Department has given to introducing 03-prefixed telephone numbers for calls to all such services; and if he will make a statement. [247351]
Jonathan Shaw: The information requested is as follows.
(a) (i) DWP and its executive agencies; Jobcentre Plus, Pension, Disability and Carers Service and Rent Service currently publish 129 primary 0845 numbers for calls from customers accessing their services. DWP do not have any 0844 numbers.
| Number | |
|
7 x 0845 Initial Inquiry Lines e.g. Jobseeker Direct, Employer Direct, National Insurance etc. | |
|
9 x 0845 e.g. Tracing Helpline and E-claim helpline, Forecasting | |
(ii) DWP do not have any revenue sharing numbers. We ceased any revenue sharing in December 2007. This had been worth circa £500,000 per annum. We do not have an exact breakdown for this and it would be difficult to obtain these figures.
Following detailed consideration of the advantages and disadvantages, DWP have no plans to introduce 03 numbers at this time. This decision will be kept under review.
(b) Service providers under contract to the Department—this information is not readily available and initial inquiries have shown that the cost of obtaining it would be disproportionate.
Disability Living Allowance: Children
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on disability living allowance for children in each year from 1990 to 2008; how much he estimates will be spent in 2009; and if he will make a statement. [248618]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is in the following table.
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