§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how many staff employed in his Department are(a) on short-term contracts, (b) employed for less than a year, (c) employed in the press office and (d) employed in his private offices. [1514]
§ Mr. Lang[holding answer 22 November 1995]: On 1 October 1995 my Department employed 435 staff on short-term contracts—employed on a casual basis for up to a period of 12 months, but exceptionally up to two years. There are currently 243 staff who have been employed for less than a year, including staff on loan from other Government Departments but excluding staff in this category who transferred from the Department of Employment and Cabinet Office as part of the machinery of Government changes announced on 5 July 1995. There are currently 28 staff employed in the press office and 53 staff employed in Ministers' private offices.
§ Mr. ByersTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how many staff his Department employs on a regional basis in each standard English region, what is the cost of running these regional operations, what was the total budget for each region in 1994–95; and what are the main purposes for which the budget is used. [269]
§ Mr. Lang[holding answer 22 November 1995]: Disaggregated information on the basis of standard English regions is not available. However, information on the Department of Trade and Industry's regional staff in Government offices for the regions and related budgets and activities is provided in GO MINIS 1, copies of which were placed in the Library of the House in July 1995.