HC Deb 26 July 1993 vol 229 c542W
Mr. Burden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if her Department was consulted by West Midlands regional health authority in 1989 on(a) the content of the Wraith and Casey market research report into the potential west midlands customer base for Qa Business Services and (b) the West Midlands regional health authority's own estimates of potential redundancies in the management services division consequent upon its privatisation.

Mr. Sackville

We are not aware that any such consultation took place.

Mr. Burden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what further consideration her Department will give to making available financial assistance to the ex-employees of Qa Business Services on the lines of those given to civil servants transferred to TICC Ltd. on the privatisation of the Skills Training Agency;

(2) what representations her Department has received regarding the announcement by West Midlands regional health authority on 15 July that it had no legal or moral responsibility to provide financial compensation to the ex-employees of Qa Business Services; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Sackville

We regret that individuals have experienced financial loss following the collapse of Qa Business Services Ltd. in 1991. West Midlands regional health authority has examined the issue carefully; they have met with a group of former Qa employees on several occasions and invited them to submit any information they held which could substantiate a claim for compensation. After a full and exhaustive review of this evidence, West Midlands regional health authority concluded on the 15 July 1993 that, on present evidence, there was insufficient grounds for the regional health authority to accept responsibility for making compensatory payments. We have been kept fully informed on this issue and on the basis of the evidence available to us at this time we have accepted the region's conclusion. We have recieved no representations on this issue since 15 July.

Mr. Burden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information her Department held on the future commercial viability of Qa Business Services when it announced that Qa Business Services had been given the waiting list initiative contract on 27 February 1991.

Mr. Sackville

This contract was awarded to Qa Business Services on the basis of its previous work for the Department on the management of waiting lists.