To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what evidence he has collated on the difference in the cost of employing accountants in (a) Worcestershire County Council, (b) Warwickshire, (c) Gloucestershire County Council and (d) Birmingham, (e) Coventry, (f) Dudley, (g) Sandwell, (h) Solihull, (i) Walsall and (j) Wolverhampton Metropolitan District Councils; and if he will make a statement. [109223]

The New Earning Survey (NES) contains information on the occupation and workplace of participants. Management accountants and chartered or certified accountants are two of the occupations into which NES participants are categorised. At a more aggregate level, information on the occupation of NES participants is one variable that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister analyses in calculating each area cost factor. Full details of the ACA calculation are available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister website at http://www.local.odpm.gov.uk/finance/0304/ acatechs.pdf