§ Mr. WillettsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what checks are applied to confirm the identities of new employees in his Department and its agencies. [117705]
§ Mr. RookerThis Department undertakes rigorous recruitment checks on all staff prior to employment. The checks undertaken confirm not only identity, but character, nationality, right to work and employment suitability. Work is currently ongoing to identify, as part of the recruitment checking process, any possible conflicts of interest with new recruits.
To confirm identify, the checks follow the Cabinet Office guidance. The documentation required to do this vary according to nationality.
British Nationals require a full 10 year passport, or combination of two other identification documents.
EC nationals require either a full EC passport or an identity card issued by the EC country.
Commonwealth citizens require either a full passport issued by the country concerned or a document issued by the Home Office establishing the individual's immigration status in the UK.
Steps are taken to examine the documentation to verify its authenticity.
Assurance mechanisms for pre-appointment checks are built into our recruitment process. These include management checks to ensure they are being carried out and our internal audit team regularly carry out their own checks.