Departmental Temporary Employment

Mr. Todd
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many full-time posts in his Department were filled on a temporary basis for a period in excess of six months in each of the last three years.

Mrs. McGuire
Information on the number of full-time posts filled on a temporary basis, for a period in excess of six months, by the Department for Work and Pensions for each of the last three years ending 31 March is set out in the following table.

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|Year end     |Temporary staff (full-time equivalent)|
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|31 March 2006|1,532                                 |
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|31 March 2007|561                                   |
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|31 March 2008|477                                   |
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For years ending 31 March 2006 and 2007, the figures include all temporary staff. For the year ending 31 March 2008, members of staff with a fixed term contract in excess of 12 months have been excluded in line with revised Office of National Statistics (ONS) definitions.