§ 41. Mr. HayesTo ask the Minister for the Civil Service what steps he is taking to improve and extend the training available to civil servants to enable them to take advantage of the "next steps" initiative.
§ Mr. RentonIn line with the principles of "next steps", it is for Departments and agencies, in the light of their business objectives, to ensure that their staff are properly trained and developed for the job. My own Department supports them in this, particularly through the Civil Service college.
§ Mrs. GormanTo ask the Minister for the Civil Service if he has any plans to encourage contracting out as part of the "next steps" programme; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. RentonAgencies are intended to deliver better quality public services within available resources. One important way of doing this, in accordance with Government policy, is by testing wherever possible the costs of having work done by the private sector compared with in-house costs, and selecting the option which gives best value for money. As with the question of privatisation, the scope for contracting out the whole of the activity is addressed before each agency is set up and will be kept under review subsequently.