§ Mr. McDonnellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will publish the staffing structure of the units established to prepare for the establishment of the Greater London Authority. [118836]
§ Mr. HillThe Government announced on 31 March 1999 the appointment of a Head of Transition for the Greater London Authority (GLA) and on 27 July 1999, the issuing of a consultation paper—"The Shape of Things to Come"—on the initial organisation of the GLA. Following the consultation period, I announced, in response to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Poplar and Canning Town (Mr. Fitzpatrick) on 7 December 1999,Official Report, column 482W, the publication of a 445W response document to the consultation—"Shaping up for the Mayor and Assembly". This highlighted some minor changes to the organisational structure originally proposed. Copies of both documents were placed in the House Library.
Work has since proceeded to put in place an initial staffing structure, along the broad lines set out in the consultation paper. The future structure of the GLA, including permanent appointments for senior posts, will, of course, be a matter for the GLA itself, once it is established.
§ Mr. McDonnellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) if he will list the staff posts which have been created to prepare for the establishment of the Greater London Authority, indicating the salaries of those posts and the length of their contracts; [118837]
(2) how many staff have been (a) appointed and (b) seconded by the Government to prepare for the establishment of the Greater London Authority. [118838]
§ Mr. HillThe Government announced in response to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Eltham (Mr. Efford) on 31 March 1999,Official Report, column 76W, the setting up of a Transition Team to make the arrangements for the establishment of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and to enable the Mayor and Assembly to operate effectively from 8 May 2000. The Transition Team currently comprises 52 temporary staff, of whom 17 are on secondment from local government, the Civil Service and other organisations, 15 have been appointed on short-term contracts and 20 are agency staff.
To date, 55 new permanent GLA staff have been appointed. These comprise secretarial, administrative, receptionist, human resources, legal, financial and best value staff, on salaries ranging from £18,800 to £49,000. In addition, 135 staff from the former London Research Centre, London Ecology Committee and London Planning Advisory Committee are reporting to the Secretary of State from 1 April and will transfer to the GLA on 8 May 2000 (or, in the case of a small group of London Research Centre staff, to Transport for London on 8 July 2000).
As well as the Transition Team, some 50 civil servants in the Government Office for London are currently working on aspects of the establishment of the GLA and its functional bodies, including the drafting of secondary legislation and transfer orders and schemes, support to the Greater London Returning Officer, and arrangements for the payment of grant.
§ Mr. Geraint DaviesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidance he intends to issue to the Greater London Authority on ethical standards under section 66 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999. [119825]
§ Mr. HillI have today placed copies of the Secretary of State guidance to the Greater London Authority on ethical standards in the Library of the House.