To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what due diligence was carried out by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority regarding the commercial record and reputation of the company Educational Testing Service before the 2007 contract for standard assessment tests was agreed; (209819)

The procurement and award of contracts for national curriculum assessment delivery services is the responsibility of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). They carry out this function independently of Government.

I am satisfied that they have carried out their responsibilities in relation to the contract with ETS Europe with all due diligence. The QCA Board, on which my Department has an observer, received the report on the conduct of the procurement for this contract which has successfully passed Office for Government Commerce (OGC) scrutiny. I have asked David Gee, managing director of the National Assessment Agency, to write to the hon. Member setting out the checks that were made. A copy will be placed in the Library.

Letter from David Gee, dated 9 June 2008:

I have been asked to write to you in response to your parliamentary questions about the due diligence carried out by the QCA prior to the Board's decision to select ETS Europe as our delivery partner for national curriculum assessment.

An independent expert consultancy conducted a complete and thorough financial due diligence exercise on Education Testing Services. Their recommendation was that ETS was in a fit and proper financial state to be awarded the contract.

All tenderers were required to identify referees. These referees were approached independently for an in-depth interview covering key aspects of the tenderer's record of delivery and reputation. The QCA's examination of ETS's referees gave us full confidence in appointing ETS as our delivery partner for national curriculum assessment services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he had with the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority on Educational Testing Service's contract prior to 19 May. (209824)

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) kept the Department fully informed about its programme of procurement for services in respect of the delivery of national curriculum assessments. In securing key services, the QCA takes account of the Department's policy objectives. As usual with a major procurement exercise, officials from the Department observed the process at key points. The QCA is responsible for the development and delivery of national curriculum assessment. Its Board took the decision to award the test operations contract to ETS Europe in December 2006.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions his officials have had with the Educational Testing Service on 2008 Key Stage tests. (209825)

The administration of national curriculum tests, as part of the process for maintaining standards, is a function of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) that is delivered independently of Government. The National Assessment Agency (NAA) manages the delivery contract with ETS Europe on the QCA's behalf. The Department's officials are involved in meetings with the QCA, NAA and with ETS Europe, but they do not have direct dealings with the QCA's contractors.