§ Mr. DowdTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in what way the current proposals for market testing of legal services avoid offending public probity as expressed by the chief executive of the management executive in a letter to the general manager of the Northern health and social services hoard dated 2 February. [5019]
§ Mr. MossThe present proposal to market test legal services will use a process and deliver a product which will comply with the full rigour of public probity. It will observe generally accepted principles of full and open competition and aim to produce a framework from which health and personal social services clients will he able to obtain value for money legal services.
§ Mr. DowdTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how the arrangements for the market testing of the798W legal services directorate differ from those applied to other public sector services in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. [5021]
§ Mr. MossThe legal services directorate of the Central Services Agency provides legal services to a range of clients operating within the health and personal social services. These clients are acting together through a project board to market test legal services. In this respect, the approach may be perceived as different from that adopted in the majority of market tests, where there is usually a single customer. In addition, the market test involves the creation of a list of firms with the requisite competency to undertake the work. This approach will give users a choice of legal representatives.
§ Mr. DowdTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland who was responsible for producing the draft arrangements for the provision of legal services to HPSS clients. [5020]
§ Mr. MossThe "Protocol for the Management of Legal Cases in the Health and Personal Social Services" was produced by the Central Services Agency in consultation with the chief executive of the management executive.