§ Mr. Ian McCartneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many redundancies occurred in his Department over the past 12 months; how many were voluntary; and what was the total sum spent on redundancy payments. [34613]
§ Mr. Michael ForsythThere were 159 redundancies in my Department in 1994–95, all of which were voluntary.
The costs of redundancies are met from the Department's running costs provision and accounted for along with the costs of various forms of early retirement. 1511W A breakdown of the costs of redundancy alone could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
However, the gross cost to the Scottish Office in 1994–95 of all early leavers was £2.4 million including £0.9 million for the Scottish Prison Agency. This sum will be more than offset over time by consequential salary savings as staff numbers reduce.