HC Deb 15 June 1982 vol 25 cc242-3W
Mr. Eggar

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in tabular form for each Department of State how many staff from each Department have been transferred to (a) publicly-funded organisations and (b) the private sector since 1 April 1979.

Mr. Hayhoe

Information about the numbers of staff transferred out of the Civil Service since 1 April 1979 is not held centrally. However, information was collected for 1980–81 and provided to the Treasury and Civil Service Select Committee which published it in its Seventh Report for 1980–81. Similar information for 1981–82 is currently being obtained and will be made available to the Select Committee as soon as possible.

Mr. Eggar

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in tabular form for each Department of State the saving in wages and salaries of civil servants achieved through the staff reductions in the three years since 1 April 1979 together with the current annual rate of the savings for 1982–83, and an estimate of the amount of savings that have been achieved by transferring work to (a) other Departments or (b) the private sector.

Mr. Hayhoe

Information about how savings have been achieved is not held centrally. However the Treasury and Civil Service Select Committee's Seventh Report for 1980–81 contained estimates of the savings in wages and salaries resulting from all manpower reductions made in 1980–81 and from the transfer of work to other Departments and to the private sector in that year. A similar estimate of savings for 1981–82 will be made available to the Committee as soon as possible.

Up to 1 April 1982 there have been reductions of nearly 66,000 staff since we came to office, producing savings in wages and salaries estimated at some £½ billion in a full year.

Mr. Eggar

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in tabular form the number of staff in each Department of State on 1 April 1979 and 1 April 1982, together with the total change in staff between the two dates expressed as a percentage of the 1 April 1979 strength.

Mr. Hayhoe

The information is given in the following table:

Department† 1 April 1979 1 April 1982 Percentage change
Lord Chancellor's Departments 16,518 16,124 -2.4
Scottish Office 11,119 10,542 -5.2
Social Services 100,929 98,034 -2.9
Trade 9,621 8,934 -7.1
Transport 13,908 13,025 -6.3
Welsh Office 2,607 2,267 -13.0
Other Departments 4,499 4,344 -3.4
Totals (rounded) 732,300 666,400 -9.0
* Part-time staff are counted as half-units.
† The departmental analysis is based on ministerial responsibilities.
‡ Includes figures for all departments which were the responsibility of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Lord Privy Seal at 1 April 1979.

Mr. Eggar

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list in tabular form for each Department of State the annual change by number and percentage in each Department since 1 April 1977.

Civil Service Staff: Annual Changes* by Department
1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82
Department† Change Change Change Change Change
Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent. Number Per cent.
Agriculture, Fisheries and Food -899 -5.8 -141 -1.0 -160 -1.1 -764 -5.3 -480 -3.5
Chancellor of the Exchequer Department: Lord Privy Seal's Departments‡ -1,088 -0.8 -717 -0.5 -8,675 -6.1 -4,225 -3.2 -4,619 -3.6
Defence -8,306 -3.2 -2,697 -1.1 -7,880 -3.2 -10,215 -4.3 -12,644 -5.5
Education and Science -248 -6.2 0 0 -13 -0.3 -88 -2.4 -128 -3.5
Employment Group +1,214 +2.3 -61 -0.1 -2,904 -5.4 +3,096 +6.1 +4,855 +9.0
Energy -8 -0.6 -40 -3.1 -4 -0.3 -65 -5.1 -60 -5.0
Environment -4,234 -6.9 -1,236 -2.2 -4,326 -7.7 -4,688 -9.1 -4,925 -10.5
Foreign and Commonwealth -258 -2.1 -50 -0.4 514 -4.3 -131 -1.1 -344 -3.0
Home Office +566 +1.7 +296 +0.9 +605 +1.8 +1,284 +3.8 -775 -2.2
Industry -265 -2.7 +54 +0.6 -371 -3.9 -373 -4.1 -451 -5.1
Lord Chancellor Departments +478 +3.0 +243 +1.5 +129 +0.8 -302 -1.8 -221 -1.4
Scottish Office +332 +3.1 +94 +0.9 -169 -1.5 -149 -1.4 -259 -2.4
Social Services +1,243 +1.3 +1,420 +1.4 -2,072 -2.1 +1,201 +1.2 -2,024 -2.0
Trade -362 -3.6 -13 -0.1 -190 -2.0 -142 -1.5 -355 -3.8
Transport +949 +7.0 -639 -4.4 -439 -3.2 +255 +1.9 -699 -5.1
Welsh Office +926 +59.2║ +116 +4.7 -126 -4.8 -150 -6.0 -64 -2.7
Other Departments +76 +1.7 -10 -0.2 -263 -5.8 +155 +3.7 -47 -1.1
Totals -9,894 -1.3 -3,381 -0.5 -27,372 -3.7 -15,301 -2.2 -23,240 -3.4
Notes:
* Full-time equivalents ie part-time staff are counted as half-units.
† The departmental analysis is based on ministerial responsibilities.
‡ Includes figures for all departments which were the responsibility of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Lord Privy Seal at 1 April 1979.
║ In 1977–78 the Welsh Office assumed certain responsibilities, principally for agriculture, from other Departments.

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