HC Deb 26 May 1994 vol 244 cc319-21W
Mr. Cousins

To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) of 16 May,Official Report, columns 302–4, if he will distinguish in the case of the Laboratory of the Government Chemist, the National Physical Laboratory, the National Engineering Laboratory and the National Weights and Measures Laboratory between consultancy used for management advice, consultancy used for marketing advice, and consultancy used for technical advice.

Mr. Heseltine

I have asked the chief executive of the agencies concerned to reply to this question, as it falls into the category of day-to-day operational matters.

Letter from R. D. Worswick to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 26 May 1994: I have been asked to answer with respect to the Laboratory of the Government Chemist your question to the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his Answer to the honourable Member for Darlington of 16 May, Official Report, columns 302–4, requesting that he distinguish between consultancy used for management, marketing and technical advice. Over the last five years (up to and including 1993–94) the Laboratory of the Government Chemist has let two consultancy contracts for management advice at a cost of £32,000; two for marketing advice at a cost of £44,000 and 9 for technical advice at a cost of £366,000.

Letter from W. Edgar to Mr. Jim Cousins dated 26 May 1994: I would refer to your question to the President of the Board of Trade, requesting that he distinguish in the case of the DTI Research Establishments between consultancy used for management advice, marketing advice and technical advice. The split of consultancy costs over the past five years for the National Engineering Laboratory is:

£
Marketing 222,582
Management 119,541
Technical 18,324
TOTAL 360,447

Letter from Seton Bennett to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 26 May 1994: I have been asked to reply in respect of this Agency, to your recent question to the President of the Board of Trade concerning the nature of consultancy contracts let in the last five years. All of the consultancy contracts let by the National Weights and Measures Laboratory between April 1989 and March 1994 were for management advice.

Letter from P. B. Clapham to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 26 May 1994: I am writing in respect of the National Physical Laboratory in response to your question to the President of the Board of Trade asking for a breakdown of consultancy contracts let by the DTI Laboratories. Of the 82 consultancies referred to in my letter of 16 May 1994 to Mr. Alan Milburn MP, 7 were for consultancy used for marketing advice, at a total cost of £151,267 excluding VAT. The other 75, at a total cost of £1,321,058 excluding VAT, related to management advice in the widest sense. (This goes considerably wider than "management consultancy" as generally understood and includes, for example, software development in connection with new financial management information systems.) Technical consultancy is not included in these figures, but is subsumed within the wide range of extra-mural research, technical and other assistance which NPL commissions in connection with its scientific programmes.