§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if employment service staff issuing equipment for the blind are required to declare interests in companies providing this equipment. [R][115960]
§ Ms Jowell[holding answer 23 March 2000]: responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its Chief Executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Leigh Lewis to Mr. Mark Oaten, dated 27 March 2000:
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question regarding Employment Service staff declaring interests in companies 42W providing equipment for the blind. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.Exceptionally, Employment Service staff may, through the Access to Work programme, purchase equipment for disabled people to use in their job. In most cases, employers actually buy the equipment and claim the costs from the Employment Service. In these cases, Employment Service staff may advise the employer on likely sources of supply, especially where equipment is specialised or there are only a few suppliers.Employment Service staff who procure goods have to follow Treasury approved purchasing guidelines. These guidelines require that anyone with a personal interest in a purchase must report the fact to a senior manager. A decision is then made on whether the procurement should be passed to another member of staff who has no personal interest in the outcome.I hope this is helpful.