Departmental Expenditure Limit (Hansard, 8 February 2000)

§ Mr. Patrick Hall
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proposals she has to change the 1999–2000 Departmental Expenditure Limit of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Health Service Commissioners; and for what reasons. [109356]

§ Mr. Stringer
The total Departmental Expenditure Limited for the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Health Service Commissioners on Class XVIII, Vote 4 will be reduced by £570,000, falling from £14,971,000 to £14,401,000.
The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Health Service Commissioners is currently meeting the cost of complaints in respect of services which, following devolution, now fall within the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly. The cost of these services will in future be moved to a repayment basis. The proposed reduction in the Departmental Expenditure Limit will allow for this. Of the reduction £300,000 will be transferred to the Welsh Assembly Ombudsman and Welsh Health Service Commissioner and £270,000 will be transferred to the Scottish Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and Scottish Health Service Commissioner.
These changes will not add to the planned total of public expenditure.

§ Mr. Goggins
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proposals she has to change the 1999–2000 Departmental Expenditure Limit or running costs limit for the Cabinet Office. [109355]

§ Mr. Stringer
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary EstimatesThe Departmental Expenditure Limit for Cabinet Office will be decreased by £4,163,000 from £318,701,000 and the running costs limit will be decreased by £156,000 from £115,018,000 to £114,862,000.
128W
This is mainly to take account of the following changes:
Transfer payments in A transfer towards the project review of Better Government for Older People from Department of Social Security (Class XII, Vote 3) (£20,000).
Transfer payments out A transfer in respect of staff transferring from Security Facilities Division to Police Scientific Development Branch to the Home Office (Class XVIII, Vote 3) (£25,000). A transfer payment to the Privy Council Office (Class XVIII, Vote 3) (£89,000) and to the Countryside Agency (Class III, Vote 1) (£64,000) to provide for accommodation costs. Provision for ownership of St. Christopher House has transferred from the Property Advisers to the Civil Estate to the Ministry of Defence (Class VI, Vote 1) (£1,075,000). Provision for ownership of 83 Piccadilly has been transferred to Department for Education and Employment (Class I, Vote 1) (£2,000).
Civil Superannuation The scheme for the central funding of early departures as announced in the White Paper: The Civil Service: Continuity and Change (Cm 2627) ended on 31 March 1997. The amount of central funding required has decreased by £2,900,000.