HC Deb 11 May 1983 vol 42 cc340-1W
Mr. Murphy

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much money, in total, he has made available to the Welwyn-Hatfield district council in the form of loans and grants since May 1979.

Mr. King

The available information is given in the following table.

the year 1981–82; and if he will request the management of the agency to seek a further reduction in the total number of employees.

Sir George Young

The total cost of wages, salaries and general administrative expenses of the Property Services Agency in 1981–82 was £322 million, which comprised £101 million for industrial staff, £198 million for non industrial staff and £24 million for PSA supplies. The number of staff in the Property Services Agency at 1 April 1983 of 28,631 was 5 per cent. below the 1 April 1982 figure and 27 per cent. below the comparable figure for 1 April 1979. The agency will continue to seek economies in the use of its staff and resources.

Mr. Arthur Lewis

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the composition of (a) the executive board of the Property Services Agency and (b) the advisory board; how the composition of each was determined; how many other directors there are; what are their functions; what was the total of their salaries and expenses for the year 1981–82; and whether he will take steps to reduce the numbers and costs of these executives.

Sir George Young

Membership of the executive and advisory boards of the Property Services Agency together with a list of its directors is contained in the "PSA Annual Report 1981–1982", a copy of which was sent to all hon. Members on 25 April 1983. The term "director" is an organisational title which carries no other connotation.

The composition of the executive board reflects the responsibility for the overall management of the Property Services Agency. The chief executive has responsibility for executive management of the Property Services Agency and the other members are the senior staff with direct responsibility to him for the agency's main functions. The advisory board has no executive functions. Its members are appointed by the Secretary of State to widen the range of outside experience available to Ministers and management. They receive no salaries and expenses are limited to payments for travel and subsistence.

In 1981–82 the agency was responsible for an expenditure of £1.9 billion of which the costs of the salaries and general administrative expenses of the executive board and all the other directors totalling 27 persons was £950,000 and the expenses of the advisory board were £2,731.

Staff numbers and costs throughout the agency including directors, are continually under review.