§ Mr. GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Education how many private security firms have been employed by his Department for each of the last 10 years; what has been the annual value of the contracts; and if he will estimate how many guards have been employed for each of those years.
§ Mr. BoswellDay security in the Department's London offices has been provided by two different private security firms since it was contracted out in 1988. Night security at the Department's Darlington office has been provided by two companies over the past 10 years.
The approximate annual value of these contracts has been:
Financial Year £000's 1984–85 8 1985–86 20 1986–87 22 1987–88 23 1988–89 103 1989–90 128 1990–91 163 1991–92 244 1992–93 334 1993–94 95 Between 1988–89 and 1992–93 security was provided, or part-funded, for more than one London site pending consolidation of London-based staff into a single headquarters building.
On average five guards have been employed for each year since 1988.