§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment which non-departmental public bodies within the responsibility of his Department are subject to scrutiny by(a) the ombudsmen, (b) the National Audit Office, (c) the Audit Commission and (d) other monitoring officers; which are covered by citizens charters; in which performance indicators apply; and in which members are liable to surcharge. [23969]
§ Miss Widdecombe[holding answer 15 May 1995]: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Cannock and Burntwood (Dr. Wright) on 25 April 1995, Official Report, column 477. In addition to the executive non-departmental public bodies listed in that reply, the Department sponsors the following NDPBs:
- The National Advisory Council on the Employment of People with Disabilities;
- Committees for the Employment of Disabled People, around 60 local committees;
- Supported Employment Consultative Group;
- Race Relations Advisory Group.
These advisory bodies are convened to advise the Department on the impact of Government employment policies on people with disabilities and ethnic minorities. They have no grant in aid are supported within the Department's running costs. None of them provides a service direct to the public. They are therefore all potentially subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office but not by the Parliamentary Commissioner or the Audit Commission. None is covered by citizens charters or performance indicators. In none of the NDPBs for which the Department is responsible are the members liable to surcharge and none is subject to scrutiny by monitoring officers other than those referred to above and those carrying out normal audit functions.