§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what progress has been made in meeting targets for the proportion of people with disabilities in senior posts in the Department. [110525]
§ Mr. LeslieAlong with other Government Departments, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is taking steps to increase the number of people with disabilities in its senior posts by making greater use of open competition to provide a wider pool of diverse applicants from which to recruit to senior posts. The latest Office of the Deputy Prime Minister disability survey showed that 1.9 per cent. of its Senior Civil Service (SCS) have a declared disability (against the corporate SCS target of 3 per cent. by 2005).
Two the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister participants are currently participating in the two year Cabinet Office Bursary Scheme for Talented Civil Servants with Disabilities and one other will begin in the next round.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Equality and Diversity Unit have commissioned an internal project to develop a statistical model to assist in the setting of employment targets for people currently under-represented in the organisation (both SCS and below). It does this by taking account both of internal manpower planning and the profile of the wider population.
665WThe Office of the Deputy Prime Minister also participates in the Cabinet Office Disability Working Group which is looking at issues around data collection and culture change.