§ Mr. Eggarasked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the occasions on which his Department has used from outside the Civil Service (a) accountants, (b) management consultants and (c) other consultants since June 1979, giving in each case the dates and nature of the assignment, together with the names of the individuals, partnerships or institutions involved.
§ Mr. LawsonThe Department of Energy makes use of accountants, management consultants and other consultants from outside the Civil Service whenever it is felt that their expertise would usefully enhance or complement in-house expertise. Recent examples where this has been310W done are the Armitage Norton study of investment in energy conservation in industry, the use of S. G. Warburg & Co. Ltd. in relation to the privatisation of Britoil plc, and of N. M. Rothschild & Sons Ltd., in relation to the privatisation of Amersham International plc, the engagement—jointly with the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority—of Peat Marwick Mitchell & Co. to carry out an efficiency study of the authority, the use of Coopers and Lybrands to assist the Department in its work on electricity prices, and the employment of W. S. Atkins Group Consultants currently on the 3MW wind turbine project on Orkney and in the development of the Wind R & D programme. A complete list of every assignment is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.