HC Deb 12 June 1996 vol 279 cc178-81W
Mr. Donohoe

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what measures his Department has implemented during the last 12 months to encourage the promotion of women into senior positions with his Department and its executive agencies; and what progress his Department has made in encouraging the promotion of women over the last five years. [31535]

Mr. John M. Taylor

Promotions to the senior civil service of the DTI in the past year have been minimal because of staff reductions following the implementation of the Department's senior management review. Of the four promotions that did take place, two were women.

In other grades, under both centrally managed promotion boards that operated before September 1994 and the promotion to post system now in operation, all staff involved in selection decisions have been trained in selection techniques and in avoiding discrimination. Also, all internally advertised posts offering promotion are open to part-timers unless the post is clearly unsuitable for part-time work. In the first year of the new promotion procedures, female applicants were more likely than male applicants to be selected for promotion. Over the past five years, 3.7 per cent. of female staff outside the senior civil service have been promoted compared to 3.4 per cent. of male staff.

I have asked the chief executive of DTI agencies to respond direct to the hon. Member in respect of the second part of the question.

Letter from Jim Norton to Mr. Brian Donohoe, dated 12 June 1996: I have been asked to reply to the second part of your question on behalf of the Radiocommunications Agency. To ask the President of the Board of Trade what measures his Department has implemented during the last 12 months to encourage the promotion of women into senior positions with his Department and its Executive Agencies and what progress his Department has made in encouraging the promotion of women over the last five years. The Agency received delegated responsibility for equal opportunity matters from DTI in October 1994. As part of the Agency's first programme of action on equal opportunities all members of the Agency central promotion board for engineering and technical grade staff took part in a one day refresher seminar on interviewing techniques with special emphasis on equal opportunity issues and best practice. Since September 1994 promotion in the administration group has been by promotion to specific (advertised) posts. Each individual promotion board is chaired by a representative of the Agency's personnel directorate who have had training in selection and interviewing techniques, which cover equal opportunities and best practice to avoid discrimination. The Agency also has a pool of line managers who have received similar training and who act as an independent members on each individual promotion board. From its monitoring, the Agency has identified the relative under representation in the Agency of women in Grades EO—SEO when compared to DTI centrally. Examination of the possible reasons for this relative under representation forms part of the Agency's 1996 programme for action on equal opportunities.

Letter from Peter Joyce to Mr. Brian Donohoe, dated 12 June 1996: The President of the Board of Trade has asked me to reply to your question about the promotion of women in The Insolvency Service. Mr. John Taylor MP has replied to you, on behalf of the President of the Board of Trade, with regard to employees in the DTI. Promotion of women into senior positions within The Insolvency Service is included in Mr. Taylor's reply. Until 1994, the majority of staff were selected for promotion through DTI managed promotion boards. In August 1994, responsibility for promotion up to Grade 6 level was delegated to The Insolvency Service. It is a requirement of the delegation that at least one member of staff involved in selection decisions is suitably trained and certificated. The Service's training for promotion panel members covers equal opportunities issues and best practice to avoid discrimination. All posts advertised on promotion are open to people on a career break, maternity leave and part-timers, unless the post is considered to be unsuitable for part-time work. Monitoring of the first year since delegation shows that female applicants were marginally more likely than male applicants to be selected for promotion. During the past five years, 5.6% of female staff have been promoted compared to 5.2% of male staff.

Letter from Zélie Armstrong to Mr. Brian Donohoe, dated 12 June 1996: The President of the Board of Trade has asked me to reply on behalf of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory to your question about promotion of women. The first part of your question will be answered centrally by the Department. On the second part, this Agency's policy is consistent with that followed by the Department in that all staff have always had an equal opportunity to apply for all vacancies for which they are eligible.

Letter from Paul Hartnack to Mr. Brian Donohoe, dated 12 June 1996: I am replying in relation to the Patent Office to your Parliamentary Question to the President of the Board of Trade about the promotion of women into senior positions in the Department of Trade and Industry and its executive agencies. The senior management of the Patent Office includes one woman, the Assistant Registrar of Trade Marks. Most of the other senior positions in the Patent Office are held by professional patent examiners, the grades of Principal Examiner and Superintending Examiner being broadly equivalent to Grade 5 in the general civil service. Promotion to these grades is by internal advertisement followed by interview and appointment is on merit. Over the last 12 months, due to retirement, nine vacancies at Principal Examiner and above have arisen, two of which have been filled by women. Of the 32 staff who applied for these vacancies, four were women. The Patent Office belongs to Opportunity 2000 in its own right and steps it has taken to encourage women to undertake careers in the Office include sponsorship of two women at Cardiff and Southampton universities who are studying science subjects.

Letter from John S. Holden to Mr. Brian Donohoe, dated 12 June 1996: I have been asked by the President of the Board of Trade to respond to your parliamentary question 95/2453 concerning the promotion of women into senior positions within Companies House. As an Executive Agency within the DTI, we generally follow initiatives implemented within the Department. However, you might wish to know we received delegated responsibility for Equal Opportunities in September 1994. We have appointed an Equal Opportunities Officer, who happens to be a woman, and have issued our own Equal Opportunities Policy. We have also progressed an extensive programme of training for all managers and staff which is aimed at promoting a much better understanding of Equal Opportunities issues. Within the director-level team of five persons in the Companies House organisation, two posts are occupied by women. Within our senior management group which comprises a further ten people, three further posts are also occupied by women. To encourage career development and promotion opportunities for women within all grades at Companies House, we have extensively promoted opportunities for job-sharing, part-time and other flexible working patterns. For certain grades there are also opportunities for evening work. We have a number of women employees who have taken advantage of our career break facility and during the main school holidays we have for some years provided children's crèche facilities.