§ 13. Mrs. Louise Ellman (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)What progress is being made in implementing the action plan for the Criminal Records Bureau in Liverpool. [155756]
§ The Minister for Crime Reduction, Policing and Community Safety(Ms Hazel Blears)The Criminal Records Bureau is now reliably delivering more than twice the number of checks undertaken by the police 16 under the old arrangements. Furthermore, since June 2003, 92 per cent. of applications for standard and enhanced disclosures have been processed within two and four weeks respectively. That substantial improvement in performance has recently been acknowledged by the National Audit Office. Significant progress has also been made in implementing the recommendations of the independent review team.
§ Mrs. EllmanThose employed at the Criminal Records Bureau in Liverpool are dedicated and work hard, but we were told that Capita would be a good private sector partner. How much has Capita been penalised for failing to deliver, and how much extra finance has been awarded to it, in addition to the amount agreed when it won the tender contract?
§ Ms BlearsMy hon. Friend will know that the contract was initially evaluated properly by an independent team, that there was little to determine the difference between the Capita bid and the other bids, and that it was deemed at the time that the contract was very good value for money. She will also know that a settlement has been reached in relation to Capita's previous performance—in the sum, I believe, of about £3.5 million; I can provide my hon. Friend with further details of the payments that have been made. We now have a contract that will in future start to deliver significantly more and better value for money, and more productivity, in the important process of carrying out criminal records checks.