§ Mr. McMasterTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what percentage of the total work force of the civil service are registered as disabled; what steps he is taking to encourage the employment of disabled people within the civil service; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WaldegraveA total of 1.4 per cent. of civil servants are registered as disabled. This is above the proportion —1.2 per cent.—of people registered disabled in the work force as a whole. In addition, the civil service employs many people with disabilities who have chosen not to register. Progress on the employment of people with disabilities in the civil service is reported on annually in the OMCS publication "Independent", copies of which are placed in the Library of the House.
My Department issues a revised code of practice on the employment of people with disabilities in the civil service in 1990 and will continue to develop and spread best practice and to monitor progress. A recent initiative is the development by the Civil Service college of positive action training for staff with disabilities.