§ Mr. McWilliamTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the number of civil service jobs which he proposes to devolve to(a) Leeds and (b) Newcastle upon Tyne, indicating to which Departments these jobs apply, together with the original location of these jobs.
§ Mr. RyderDecisions on relocation venues rest with departmental Ministers. I would refer the hon. Member to 297W the statements made by the Secretaries of State for Social Security and for Health on 14 November 1989, at columns 170 and 197, about the relocation of DSS and Department of Health posts to Leeds; and to the statement by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on 1 May 1990, at column 466, concerning the relocation of intervention board posts to Newcastle. In addition, the Secretary of State for Social Security announced on 25 April during a visit to the north-east that 1,000 jobs dealing with national insurance contributions work would be transferred to Newcastle from other regions over the next 12 months.