Written Answers
Civil Service Recruitment: Eec Languages
asked Her Majesty's Government:How many civil servants fluent in one or more of the official languages of the EEC, other than English, have been recruited in each of the last ten years by each Ministry or Department.
A total of 756 members of the Home Civil Service fluent in one or more of the official EEC languages, other than English, joined the Service in the ten years 1966 to 1975 and are still serving. As the full tabulation by Department and year of entry is somewhat large for inclusion in the Official Report I am sending it to the noble Lord separately.
Government Car Service: Former Prime Ministers
asked Her Majesty's Government:
All the then former Prime Ministers were in February 1975 offered the use of a Government Car Service car and driver for journeys in and around London. No charge is made for journeys to attend official engagements and on Parliamentary business in their capacity as former Prime Ministers. Use for other purposes is subject to a charge at the current Civil Service mileage rate. Very infrequent use is made of this facility and the cost is correspondingly low. The arrangement is intended to continue indefinitely. It is regarded as an extension of the normal practice of providing cars for use by Ministers, which does not require specific Parliamentary authority.In addition, the personal use of an official car and driver for all journeys was given to Mr. Heath in December 1975, and to Sir Harold Wilson in April 1976. The average annual gross cost of providing each car is £10,600. Use for private or party purposes is again subject to a charge at the Civil Service mileage rate. The arrangement is subject to review in the light of the security situation.
Boarding School Allowance
asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they can supply, for the most recent convenient year, a table of the number of boarding pupils assisted by Government Departments at different categories of school in England and Wales, as in Table 26 of the First Volume of the First Report of the Public Schools Commission.
Information in the form requested is not available and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. Approximate numbers of children for whom boarding school allowance was claimed for the autumn term 1975 are as follows:—
Diplomatic Service | 1,850 |
Home Civil Service and Overseas Aid Personnel | 1,900 |
Armed Forces | 22,000 |
25,750 |
Diplomatic Service: Children's Educational Allowances
asked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the present educational allowances for children of members of the Diplomatic Service serving overseas; whether these allowances persist for five or more years before or after service overseas; and how these allowances are treated for tax purposes.
Members of the Diplomatic Service are paid allowances in respect of their children at boarding school in the United Kingdom within specified maximum rates per child. At present the maximum rates per annum are as follows:—
Boy's Public School | £1,404 |
Girls' Public School: | £1,348 |
Boys' Preparatory School: | £1,264 |
Girls' Preparatory School: | £1,213 |
Government Office Cleaning
asked Her Majesty's Government:The Percentage of Government offices:
cleaned by contract cleaning companies for each year since 1970 and if they will detail the cost.
The information requested is not available centrally and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. However, a survey carried out in 1970 on behalf of the National Board for Prices and Incomes in connection with their investigation into Pay and Conditions in the Contract Cleaning Trade (NBPI Report No. 168) indicated that approximately two-thirds of the total area of Government offices was then cleaned under contract and one-third by directly employed labour. I have no evidence to suggest that these proportions have altered significantly since 1970.The NBPI report gives the cost of cleaning Government offices by contract in 1970 as approximately £4 million. Information readily available centrally about the cost of contract cleaning is incomplete and in any case shows only the Estimates provision for the years 1975–76 and 1976–77. These figures are:
Department | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 |
(Full-time equivalent staff in post as at 1st April each year) | |||||||
Agriculture, Fisheries and Food | 239½ | 244 | 236½ | 233 | 230 | 238 | 243 |
Customs and Excise | 198½ | 200 | 207 | 211½ | 234 | 252 | 274 |
Defence | 60½ | 65 | 75 | 124 | 121 | 137 | 146 |
Employment | 687 | 677 | 554 | 620½ | 525(d) | 328 | 366 |
Environment/PSA (a) | 320 | 270 | 157 | 115 | 120 | 155 | 169 |
Health and Social Security | 749 | 741½ | 726½ | 699½ | 601 | 641 | 685 |
Home Office | 88 | 87½ | 64 | 84½ | 79 | 96 | 99 |
Inland Revenue | 377 | 385 | 407½ | 398½ | 389 | 398 | 405 |
Lord Chancellor's Office | (c) | (c) | 173 | 148 | 172 | 172 | 190 |
National Savings | 336 | 306½ | 278 | 199 | 182 | 132 | 129 |
Trade and Industry | (c) | 90 | 82 | 78½ | 60 | 56 | 53 |
Scottish Office (Central Services)(b) | 171½ | 95½ | 100½ | 158 | 154 | 152 | 150 |
Other Departments | 577 | 539 | 591½ | 437½ | 430 | 432 | 704(d) |
3,804 | 3,701 | 3,652½ | 3,507½ | 3,297 | 3,189 | 3,613 | |
NOTES: | |||||||
(a) Department of the Environment established on 12 November 1970, incorporating the former MPBW, MMLG and Ministry of Transport. | |||||||
(b) Scottish Office established on 1 April 1970, incorporating the former SDD, DAFS, SED and SHHD. | |||||||
(c) Separate figures not available. | |||||||
(d) The Manpower Services Commission, Employment Service Agency and Training Services Agency were hived off from the Civil Service in 1974 (204 staff) and returned on January 1, 1976 (273 staff). |
1975–76 | £11·2 million (including Supplementary Estimates) |
1976–77 | £12·4 million (excluding Supplementary Estimates) |
asked Her Majesty's Government:The number of directly employed cleaners in each of the main Government Departments:
for each year since 1970.
Departmental returns for the years in question do not differentiate between staff employed n London and elsewhere. The following numbers of non-industrial cleaners are expressed as full-time equivalents, with two part-time cleaners counted as on; full-time cleaner:House adjourned at five minutes past eleven o'clock.