§ Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the numbers of entrants to his Department from the ethnic minorities in the years 1985–86 and 1986–87; if he will also list the monitoring procedures used to ascertain the percentage of the work force represented by ethnic minorities and their patterns of promotion; and what are his methods of recruitment of minorities into the Department.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe ethnic origins of new entrants have been surveyed since October 1985. The latest available information for the period up to December 1986 is as follows:
Total new entrants to D.E.S. in period 1 October 1985 to 31 December 1986 Number Ethnic origins white 134 black/asian 8 not stated1 74 1 Includes non respondents and those in areas not yet covered by staff-in-post surveys. A phased programme of departmental surveys of the ethnic origin of non-industrial civil servants by means of voluntary self-classification is being conducted. By the end of 1986 all non-industrial staff in London, and in the Department's provincial offices serving Her Majesty's inspectorate, had been surveyed. The remaining staff in the Department's Darlington office will he surveyed by the end of 1987. Consideration is being given to ways of using the data on the ethnic origin of staff-in-post to monitor promotion.
All Departmental recruitment is conducted on the basis of fair and open competition and selection is on merit. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend, the Minister of State, Privy Council Office on 20 February 1987 at col. 880–881 reporting the arrangements being made to encourage people from the ethnic minorities to apply to the Civil Service.