To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies are in transition prior to being managed out; how long on average the transition window between notification and exit has been in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies in each of the last five years; what estimate he has made of the salary costs of staff in transition in each such year; and what proportion of employees in transition were classed as being so for more than six months in each year. (313243)

The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

My Department manages its surplus staff by using a Redeployment Pool (RDP). This service enables those who are or who will become surplus to be given priority consideration for vacancies. Staff in the RDP usually continue working in their last directorate or are redeployed to cover short-term tasks. As at 1 January 2010, there were 1,525 employees in the RDP. Some 85 per cent. have been in the RDP for less than six months and only 5 per cent. have been there for more than two years. On average, staff spend six months in the RDP before finding a post or leaving the Department. The majority move into new jobs rather than take early release.