§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of the survey work carried out for Government Departments is undertaken by the Ordnance Survey; and what proportion of this work was obtained after competition with the private sector in the most recent year for which figures are available.
§ Mr. HeseltineGovernment Departments make separate arrangements for satisfying their survey needs and figures for the total Government survey requirement are not held centrally. As regards field surveying undertaken by the Ordnance Survey in support of other Government Departments, by far the major part—estimated to be over 95 per cent.—is for land registration, and does not involve competition with the private sector. In the case of field surveying for other Departments, I have no information on the extent of competition sought by the client Departments. The provisional figure for the total value of Ordnance Survey field survey work for clients other than the Land Registry, including clients outside central Government, is £60,000 in 1981–82.
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in his proposals for the future structure of the Ordnance Survey, he will require it to pursue a policy of contracting out survey work to private sector firms.
§ Mr. HeseltineIt is my policy that the Ordnance Survey should contract for survey work with the private sector where this is practicable and cost effective. Tenders for pilot contracts have been invited.
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the study of the long-term future of the Ordnance Survey includes all the surveying activities covered by Government Departments both as a contractor and as client.
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§ Mr. HeseltineNo. My consideration does not extend to all the survey activities of Departments for which I am not responsible. It is limited to the future status of the Ordnance Survey. I am having regard, however, to the position of the directorate of overseas surveys of the Overseas Development Administration following the Rayner scrutiny of that directorate.
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in future arrangements for the Ordnance Survey, he will ensure that there are effective safeguards to prevent any trading fund operation quoting uneconomically low prices in competition with the private sector.
§ Mr. HeseltineYes.
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if it is possible to estimate, on the basis of the statement in the Ordnance Survey's 1980–81 accounts that it earned £5.4 million by contracting for work mainly for other Government Departments, the profit made by the Ordnance Survey on undertaking this work using similar criteria to a commercial undertaking.
§ Mr. HeseltineIn accordance with Government practice, the Ordnance Survey charges full costs for work done on behalf of other Government Departments. These costs include royalty charges, depreciation provision based on estimated replacement cost of assets employed, as well as all appropriate financing charges. In the case of work done for clients other than Government Departments a commercial rate is charged and a small profit was achieved in 1980–81 in addition to recovery of full costs as defined above.
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the Ordnance Survey incurred losses in 1980 and 1981; and, if so, how much these losses were.
§ Mr. HeseltineFrom the Ordnance Survey annual report 1980–81 it will be seen that the provisional figures for total revenue and expenditure were £15.4 million and £37.1 million in 1980–81. The difference between these figures represents the public investment in the maintenance of the national mapping. The current criteria for recovery of costs are as set out in my statement of 22 July 1981.—[Vol. 9, c. 129–30.]
§ Mr. Doverasked the Secretary of State for the Environment, in his consideration of the future of the Ordnance Survey, what consideration he has given to the extent to which a trading fund basis would increase the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the organisation.
§ Mr. HeseltineMy hon. Friend may be aware from my written answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Christchurch and Lymington (Mr. Adley) of 22 July 1981 that I expect trading fund status to assist the Ordnance Survey to improve its cost effectiveness, but it is not possible to quantify this.