HC Deb 05 December 1975 vol 901 cc351-2W
Mr. Robert Taylor

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what steps he is taking to halt the increase in staff of the Government Economic Services Department, in view of the fact that it has shown a compound 28 per cent. annual growth since 1964.

Mr. Charles R. Morris

Staff in the Government Economic Service are employed by several Departments. The numbers of economist posts in each Department are kept under close scrutiny by my Department, in consultation with the Head of the Government Economic Service, to ensure that they are no larger than are required to meet essential needs.

Mr. Robert Taylor

asked the Minister for the Civil Service whether any Government Department shows a comparable growth rate to that of the Government Economic Services Department, which is averaging 28 per cent. compound growth between 1964 and 1975.

Mr. Charles R. Morris

There is no Government Economic Services Department. There is a professional group known as the Government Economic Service distributed between some 20 Departments and other Government bodies. This group has grown faster than any individual Department largely because there were only 21 economists, almost entirely in the Treasury, in 1964 and new departmental functions acquired since then require to be performed by professionally qualified staff, especially in the fields of overseas aid, transport economics, housing and environmental economics and health economics.