§ Ms Janet AndersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to measure and evaluate the effect of his Department's policies on women. [5490]
§ Mr. HowardPolicy appraisal guidance covering consideration of equal opportunities and equal treatment issues has been in place in the Home Office since 1989. The guidance requires officials to identify policy issues which might impact differentially on women and men, and other groups, to assess whether this is justified in policy terms, and to adjust the policy if it is not. The Department received revised guidance from the Department for Education and Employment in July this year and is currently considering how best to update existing guidance in line with this.
The recent Government report "One Year On" outlines action taken by Government, including my Department, to benefit women since the world conference on women, and also includes baseline statistics against which future progress can be measured.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women are currently employed by his Department at each civil service grade. [6446]
§ Mr. HowardThe following table shows the number of women currently employed by the Home Office at each civil service grade. The statistical information has been supplied from databases, which are currently being320W updated, held by the information technology unit of the central personnel management unit, the Directors General of Her Majesty's Prison Service and of the Forensic Science Service, and the chief executives of the United Kingdom Passport Agency and of the Fire Service College.
Number of women by civil service grade employed in the Home Office and its agencies All grades shown include Grade Equivalents where they exist Number Senior Civil Service (formerly grades 1–5) 26 Grade 6 30 Grade 7 159 Senior Executive Officer 251 Higher Executive Officer 774 Executive Officer 2,740 Administrative Officer 3,790 Administrative Assistant 2,615 Senior Forensic Scientist 48 Forensic Scientist 125 Assistant Forensic Scientist 260 Grade 4 (Prison Service) 2 Grade 5 (Prison Service) 8 Governor 1 (Prison Service) 1 Governor 2 (Prison Service) 5 Governor 3 (Prison Service) 14 Governor 4 (Prison Service) 49 Governor 5 (Prison Service) 48 Principal Officer (Prison Service) 47 Senior Officer (Prison Service) 221 Prison Officer 2,177 Prison Auxilliary 616 Nurse Grade 1 1 Nursery Manager 1 Deputy Nursery Manager 1 Nursery Assistant 1 Total 14,010
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of those employed by his Department in 1992–93 were women. [6475]
§ Mr. HowardIn September 1992—when annual monitoring data for 1992–93 were collected—of the total staff employed by the Home Office and its agencies, 26.2 per cent. were women. However, this figure rises to 50 per cent. if the Prison Service is excluded.