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Civil Servants: Codes of Practice

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what recent discussions he has had with the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Home Civil Service on changes to the code of conduct for civil servants and political advisers; and if he will make a statement; [271095]

(2) what recent discussions he has had with the Prime Minister on changes to the code of conduct for civil servants and political advisers; and if he will make a statement. [271096]

Mr. Byrne: Information relating to internal discussion and advice is not normally disclosed.

Damian McBride

Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what severance package has been agreed upon in respect of the departure of Damian McBride from the staff of his Department. [271804]

Mr. Byrne: Special advisers are employed under terms and conditions set out in the Model Contract for Special Advisers.

Mr. McBride received no severance package on leaving office.

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) whether the resignation of Damian McBride from his position as a special adviser had immediate effect; [274987]

(2) on what date each Minister in the Cabinet Office was informed of the emails sent by Damian McBride to Derek Draper. [275144]

Mr. Byrne [holding answer 12 May 2009]: Mr McBride resigned with immediate effect.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, on 7 May 2009, Official Report, column 379W.

Departmental Furniture

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) how much was spent by the Cabinet Office on furniture for 10 Downing Street in each of the last five years; [273708]

(2) how much was spent by (a) the Cabinet Office and (b) its agency on furniture in each of the last five years. [273709]

Kevin Brennan: The Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of Cabinet Office. The cost for the Cabinet Office for the financial year 2007-08 was £139,887.

For information for previous years I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 29 March 2006, Official Report, column 1031W, and on 23 October 2007, Official Report, columns 295-96W.

Figures for the financial year 2008-09 will be available once the Cabinet Office accounts have been audited.


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Departmental Manpower

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster who is responsible for the line management of civil servants based in 10 Downing Street; and if he will make a statement. [271098]

Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what the job title of each employee within 10 Downing Street is; [272014]

(2) what the organisational structure of the posts in 10 Downing Street is. [272012]

Kevin Brennan: Jeremy Heywood is the most senior civil servant in the Prime Minister’s Office reporting to the Cabinet Secretary. Further information on the Prime Minister’s Office is available in Dodd’s publications, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many (a) civil servants, (b) secondees, (c) contractors, (d) consultants, (e) fee-paid staff, (f) agency staff, (g) Downing Street Political Office staff and (h) other staff worked in 10 Downing Street as at April 2009. [272013]

Kevin Brennan: The total number of staff on the No. 10 payroll as at 1 April 2009 is 200. The staffing and associated costs for the Political Office are met by the Labour party. As has been the case under successive Administrations, marginal costs associated with the Political Office are met from within the overall budget for 10 Downing Street.

Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisers

Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which special advisers (a) were dismissed, (b) resigned, (c) were demoted and (d) were disciplined in each year since June 2007. [270079]

Mr. Byrne: Special advisers are employed under the terms and conditions set out in the “Model Contract for Special Advisers”. Since 2003, the Government have published, on an annual basis, a list of special advisers by Department. The next list will be published before the summer recess. Personal information about individual special advisers is not normally disclosed.

Departmental Publications

Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will place in the Library a copy of the Central Office of Information White Book, March 2009 edition. [271962]

Mr. Byrne: A copy has now been placed in the Library of the House.

Departmental Security

Nick Harvey: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on how many occasions the Cabinet Office's head of departmental security has invited the Director-General of the International Bodyguard Association to assess his Department's security in the last three years. [275268]


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Kevin Brennan: The Director-General of the International Bodyguard Association was invited, on just one occasion in 2008, to act as an independent reviewer on part of one small ad hoc review being undertaken by the Cabinet Office.

The Department has no on-going business relationship with The Director-General of the International Bodyguard Association.

Departmental Stationery

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proportion of office supplies purchased by his Department were recycled products in the latest period for which figures are available. [275352]

Kevin Brennan: The Cabinet Office purchases the majority of its office supplies through two contracts for paper and other stationery items which include a wide range of recycled products. Between May 2008 when the current contracts started and March 2009, 84 per cent. of paper and 20 per cent. of other items purchased via these contracts were recycled products.

Honours: Arts

Mr. Soames: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster who appoints the Chair of the Arts and Media Honours Committee. [273104]

Mr. Byrne [holding answer 6 May 2009]: The independent chairs of the eight honours committees are appointed by the Cabinet Secretary after a process of open advertising, written application and interview.

Members: Correspondence

Mr. Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will instruct Ministers, their Departments and Government agencies to correspond with hon. Members at their House of Commons offices unless they have been instructed otherwise by hon. Members. [272198]

Mr. Byrne: The Cabinet Office guidance ‘Handling Correspondence from Members of Parliament, Members of the House of Lords, MEPs and Members of Devolved Assemblies’ makes clear that replies to letters from hon. Members should be sent to the originating office of the correspondence unless indicated otherwise by the hon. Member concerned. Copies of the guidance are available in the Libraries of the House.

Non-profit Making Associations: Olympic Games 2012

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what steps the Government are taking to encourage social enterprises to take up commercial opportunities arising out of the London 2012 Olympics. [272602]

Kevin Brennan: The Office of the Third Sector (OTS) works closely with Social Enterprise London (SEL), as a strategic partner, whose remit is to promote the work of social enterprises to the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG), the Olympic Delivery
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Authority (ODA), and their 2012 supply chain. Under the project ‘Winning with social enterprise’, SEL promotes commercial opportunities to social enterprises across the country, encouraging them to bid for the contracts and signposting to relevant sources of business support when necessary.

Funding from the project enables SEL to engage with London 2012 to promote social enterprise as a potential contractor. SEL also delivers regional workshops about 2012 commercial opportunities to social enterprises across England. The workshops provide detailed information about how social enterprises can register on the CompeteFor system, and where they can obtain further support and guidance.

Redundancy

Mr. Vara: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many (a) men and (b) women in each age group in each local authority area in England and Wales were made redundant in each of the last five years. [275266]

Kevin Brennan: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.

Letter from Karen Dunnell:

Unemployment

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in which parliamentary constituencies the (a) number and (b) proportion of people out of work was greater in the latest month for which figures are available than in the equivalent month of 1997. [275446]

Kevin Brennan: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Karen Dunnell, May 2009:


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