§ Mr. McAllionTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the terms under which the Treasury civil service jobs unit was established; how many civil servants work in it and for how long; and what is the annual cost of the unit's operation.
§ Mr. NelsonThe purpose of the unit is to help surplus Treasury staff to find jobs in other parts of the civil service. It takes up part of the time of a grade 5 and a personal secretary who both have other duties. The unit was set up in November 1994 and will remain in being, although not necessarily with the same staff, while there are staff surpluses to resolve. The annual cost is approximately £20,000.
§ Mr. McAllionTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is the annual cost of the career decision seminars, the career transition or self-marketing workshops and the career centres which his Department has established for civil servants leaving the Treasury;
(2) what contract his Department has given to Focus Ltd., professional outplacement consultants; how long the contract will last; and how much it is costing the Treasury.
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§ Mr. NelsonFollowing a competition, a two-year contract was let with Focus Ltd. in September 1994 to provide a range of services, including counselling, career decision seminars, self-marketing and other job-search training on a call-off basis. As use of the contract depends on demand, it is not possible at present to give costs on an annual basis. Expenditure to date is £23,546. The career centre is staffed by a member of the Treasury at an annual cost of approximately £17,000.