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Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What measurement they have used to calculate the success of the work of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and of its individual members.[HL1804]
Lord Williams of Mostyn: The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission operates independently of government, fulfilling the role set out for it in the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and envisaged in the Belfast agreement. It would be inappropriate for the Government to be measuring the performance of an independent body.
The role of the Chief Commissioner was set out in the original advertisement, which appeared in the press on 24 November 1998:
- Providing strategic direction and leadership for the commission;
- Representing the commission in public;
- Developing and maintaining the commission's external relationships at the highest level; and
- Accounting for the expenditure of the commission.
Performance appraisal of the other commission members is a matter for the Chief Commissioner. In considering whether or not they should be reappointed, the Government sought and received an assessment from the Chief Commissioner of whether or not their performance had been satisfactory.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- During the assessment of applicants for the vacancy which occurred in the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission in early 2001, what information was required of each applicant on the monitoring form.[HL1862]
Lord Williams of Mostyn: When the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland announced his intention to make further appointments to the Human Rights Commission, applicants were asked to complete two forms:
The first form, the yellow application form, formed part of the assessment process. Completion was therefore mandatory. The form required candidates to set out how they met the criteria for the post, indicate their previous employment and public appointments history and state any political activity within the past 10 years. It also requested practical details of any special needs requirements for interview.
The second form, the pink monitoring form, did not form part of the assessment process and was processed separately. Its purpose was to monitor the impact of
the process on various groups within the nine categories specified in Section 75(1) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998. Completion of this form was not mandatory.Copies of both forms have been placed in the Library of the House.
Northern Ireland Police Service
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether they will inform applicants for the Police Service of Northern Ireland of their score and place in the recruitment pool; and if not, why.[HL1555]
Lord Williams of Mostyn: All applicants who have successfully entered the pool of qualified candidates are informed that they have achieved the fixed merit standard. Candidates who wish to know their individual score can access that from Consensia. It is not normal practice to provide individuals with access to the scores of other candidates.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
- On what date, and in what form, the tender for the proposed badge design for the Police Service of Northern Ireland was issued; by whom it was issued; how many companies were considered; who made the appointment; and why.[HL1660]
Lord Williams of Mostyn: Draft designs were commissioned by the Northern Ireland Office from a number of Northern Ireland based designers, the details of which are commercially confidential. This work was not subject to a competitive tender process.
Written Question HL753
Lord Patten asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Why they took so long to provide an Answer to HL753 tabled on 4 October.[HL1806]
The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Lord Macdonald of Tradeston): It took longer than is desirable to answer the noble Lord's earlier Question and for this I apologise.
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