To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) black and Asian and (b) other people are employed in his Department’s press office. (74352)

The Department collects data, on a voluntary basis, on the ethnic origin of its staff. Such data, relating to small individual business units, are not available for publication for reasons of confidentiality.

Note:

Civil Service Statistics contains information on the numbers of staff who have declared their ethnic background. The latest available information at April 2004 is available in the Library and on the civil service website at the following address:

http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/statistics/index.asp