§ Mr. JannerTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he has taken to recruit members of ethnic minorities in top grades of employment at his Department.
§ Mr. EggarWhen, very occasionally, the DTI recruits senior grades directly the advertisements make it clear that the Department is an equal opportunities employer. However, it is normal practice for recruitment to senior grades to be undertaken by the Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency on behalf of the Civil Service Commissioners. A number of steps have been taken in this context to aid the recruitment of members of ethnic minorities including the use of validated selection procedures to ensure that selection is fair and non-discriminatory.