§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will direct industrial training boards to itemise payments made to public relations consultants in the annual reports submitted to him by the respective industrial training boards, with explanatory information being conventionally provided as to how and why the item of expenditure was incurred.
§ Mr. Dudley SmithThe form in which the audited and certified accounts of industrial training boards are published with the annual report adequately shows their financial performance and position, and it is not necessary for this purpose to direct that expenditure on a par-484W ticular item such as that suggested by my hon. Friend should be specified.
§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the industrial training boards which employ public relations consultants.
§ Mr. Dudley SmithThe employment of public relations consultants by industrial training boards is a matter of day-to-day administration within boards' own responsibility, but I understand that they have from time to time been employed by the engineering, food, drink and tobacco, and rubber and plastics processing boards.
§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons were employed by industrial training boards as at 30th September in each of the years 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1972; and what were the gross emoluments paid and the total of income of the industrial training boards for these years.
§ Mr. Chichester-ClarkThe staffing of the 27 industrial training boards is a matter for the boards themselves, but I understand that, at 31st December 1971, the number of staff in post was 4,744. The information relating to the gross emoluments of staff and to boards' incomes is contained in the table below:
Year ended 31 March Total ITB income Gross Emoluments of ITB Staff £ £ 1968 133,585,255 3,319,178 1969 132,773,232 5,295,197 1970 180,037,844 7,464,898 1971 209,884,141 9,266,203 1972 223,004,667 9,510,581
§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Employment what regulations define the nature of work done by, and the amount of expenditure permitted on, public relations consultants employed by industrial training boards; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Dudley SmithArrangements and expenditure of this kind are regarded as matters of day-to-day administration within the responsibility of a board itself, over which my Department does not seek to exercise special control.