To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what total amount was paid to Capita as (a) service payments and (b) performance-related payments during each year of the Criminal Records Bureau’s operation. (75298)

Capita do not operate the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB). The disclosure service operates as a contract between the Criminal Records Bureau and Capita Business Services based upon a public private partnership agreement. Under this agreement, Capita are required to perform contractually specified services and to develop, deliver and maintain the technical infrastructure of the disclosure service. This is to enable the Home Office to discharge its responsibilities under part V of the Police Act 1997 and other supporting legislation, including the Protection of Children Act 1999, to make available to approved organisations information regarding the criminal or related background of individuals.

Other services carried out by the Criminal Records Bureau that are not undertaken by Capita are carried out by civil servants and include the sensitive matching of an applicants personal details to records held on the Police National Computer (PNC) and other lists held by the Department of Health and the Department for Education and Skills.

A contract schedule sets out the service levels for Capita to meet. A further schedule sets out the service credits that apply should Capita fail to meet the agreed service levels. There is provision within this contract for liquidated damages to be charged in the event of late delivery to agreed changes in the service.

In each year since financial year 2001-02, the following payments have been received from Capita for service credits and liquidated damages:

The hon. Member will appreciate that with a contract of this size and complexity, the CRB would not be able to list and explain the context of each occasion when service credits and liquidated damages have occurred without employing disproportionate resources.

However, as an illustration, between August 2001 and November 2001, liquidated damages were applied due to the delays in launching the disclosure service and some of the associated services. Subsequent service credits were also applied in 2003 for operational delays within the disclosure process. These payments relate to the early years of the service.

The contract was originally estimated at £400 million to run over 10 years. In each year since financial year 2001-02, CRB have paid Capita the following as service payments:

There have been no performance related-payments made in any of the above financial years.