asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many civil servants are currently employed in his Department on cleaning and catering; when he expects to put a proportion of these jobs out to contract; and what estimate he has of the number of jobs in this area which will remain in the Civil Service.
There are some 18,400 Civil Service cleaning and catering posts in Ministry of Defence establishments throughout Great Britain. Detailed examination of the practicability of contracting out more cleaning and catering work will be phased over the next two years or so. This will determine the balance of advantage on a case by case basis and will lead where appropriate to the placing of contracts. There will be full consultation with the staff interests involved. I am not yet able to give an estimate of the number of jobs which will remain in the Civil Service, but my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State expects reductions in this area to contribute significantly to the savings of 7,500 staff, already announced, which he intends to make by 1 April 1982.