§ Mr. SteenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the annual budget for his departmental deregulation unit; how many staff it employs; and of these how many(a) are career civil servants and of what grades, (b) have been seconded from business, and (c) have experience of the private sector. [30057]
§ Mr. Howard[holding answer 21 May 1996]: The annual staff budget of my Department's deregulation unit, which co-ordinates the deregulation activities of the Department, is £62,870. The unit has one full-time and one part-time member of staff dedicated to deregulation: one higher executive officer and one senior executive officer, respectively, who report to a head of unit. All three members of staff are career civil servants. None has been seconded from business or has had any direct experience of the private sector. Many other officials in the Department contribute to taking the deregulation initiative forward.