§ Mr. CousinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the numbers of actual and whole-time equivalent employees of(a) the Benefits Agency as at 1 April, (b) the headquarters functions of the Benefits Agency as at 1 April, (c) the Working Life Agency as at 1 July, (d) the headquarters functions of the Agency as at 1 July, (e) the Pensions Service Agency as at 1 July, (f) the headquarters functions of the Pensions Agency as at 1 July, (g) the Disability and Carers Directorate as at 1 July, (h) the headquarters functions of the Disability Directorate as at 1 July, (i) the Child Support Agency as at 1 July and (j) the headquarters function of the Child Support Agency as at 1 July. [3700]
§ Mr. Nicholas BrownSince 1 April 2000, the HQ functions of the Benefits Agency have been carried out by Department of Social Security (DSS) departmental directorates which support all business units in the Department. The reason for this was to ensure more resources were focused on front line delivery and to reduce duplication across the agencies. As a result, as at 1 February 2001 (the last published figures), 2,523 staff had moved from departmental support services and were not replaced. The resource was transferred to the Benefits Agency. The figures show the staffing levels for those directorates.
At 1 April 2001, the total staffing in Benefits Agency and DSS departmental directorates was as follows (a separate figure is not available for BA HQ for the reasons outlined above):
Benefits Agency and DSS departmental directorates staffing as at 1 April 2001 Actual staff Whole time equivalent staff Benefits Agency 70,330 64,683.4 DSS departmental directorates 7,112 6,852.6 At 1 July 2001, the Department for Work and Pensions continues to be structured as the Benefits Agency and the Employment Service. Formation of the working age organisation (to be known as JobCentre Plus) and the pensions organisation (to be known as the Pensions 687W Service) will not take place until April 2002. The information is therefore not available in the precise format requested.
The Department for Work and Pensions staffing at the latest available date is shown in the following table. During the period in question responsibility for the calculation and recovery of overpayments has been transferred to one of the departmental directorates, resulting in a reduction of staff numbers in the Benefits Agency and an increase in numbers in the directorates.
Department for Work and Pensions 1 June 2001 (latest information available) Actual staff Whole time equivalent staff Benefits Agency 68,908 63,470.0 Disability and Carers Directorate1 7,255 6,623.6 Employment Service 35,067 30,465.3 DSS Departmental Directorates 8,970 8,471.3 Child Support Agency 10,998 10,145.2 Child Support Agency HQ 1,101 1,056.1 1Also included in Benefits Agency figures.