§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what guidelines are operated by his Department as regards the use of executive search agencies to fill vacancies within his Department and his Department's executive agencies; and in what circumstances his Department employs executive search agencies instead of relying fully on departmental resources to fill vacant posts.
§ Miss WiddecombeOnce a decision has been made to fill a senior vacancy by open competition the decision whether to use an executive search agency is taken on a case-by-case basis, depending on the nature of the post, the type of person being sought and whether advertisement alone would produce a satisfactory field of candidates.