(2) pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2007, Official Report, column 591W, on the Delivery Unit, how many joint reviews the Delivery Unit has carried out in each financial year since 2001-02;
(3) pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2007, Official Report, column 591W, on the Delivery Unit, what the subject was of each of the joint reviews;
(4) what criteria are used to decide whether the Delivery Unit conducts a joint review with a department of a particular programme or area;
(5) whether the Delivery Unit produced guidance for its staff on procedures to follow when carrying out joint reviews with other Government departments.
Reports arising from joint reviews conducted by the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit and Departments are policy advice to the Prime Minister and Ministers. Reports contain advice including recommendations for actions to be carried out by Departments. It is for the Prime Minister and Secretary of State to decide how these should be taken forward.
Since its inception, PMDU has conducted joint reviews with Departments as follows:
Reviews 2001-02 1 2002-03 5 2003-04 8 2004-05 14 2005-06 14 2006-07 32 2007-08 4
In the past 12 months, PMDU has carried out the following joint reviews with
Departments:
Home Office
Asset Recovery
Antisocial Behaviour
Reducing Reoffending,
Citizen Focused Policing
Respect Action Plans
High Crime Causing Drug Users
National Offender Management
Non-Custodial Sentences
New Asylum Model
Department’s Capability Review.
Education
Primary and Secondary School Standards National Strategy
Teenage pregnancy
Pupil attendance
Pupil behaviour
Targeted Youth Support
Building Schools for the Future
14-19 local delivery policy
Department’s Capability Review
Health
18 weeks
Choice of four providers
Practice-based commissioning
NHS reform programme
Childhood obesity
PCT Capability
Childhood and Adolescent Mental Health
Department’s Capability Review
Other projects
Access to the Arts
Review of Government Offices
Sustainable Procurement
Cross Government Delivery of Local Area Agreements
Decisions on whether to conduct a review are taken jointly by PMDU and the Department concerned in consultation with No. 10.
PMDU has produced guidance on conducting joint reviews for use in training staff.
The unit is led at Permanent Secretary level, and its staffing profile at 31 March 2007 was 46 full-time equivalent staff, breaking down as the following mix of grades:
Number Senior civil service 2 3 Senior civil service 1 11 Cabinet Office Band A 22 Cabinet Office Band B2 5 Cabinet Office Band B2 (faststream) 3 Cabinet Office Band B1 2
The size of the unit and mix of grades at 31 March 2008 is in the process of being determined.