§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many contracts her Department has with consultants; what level of professional indemnity insurance is standard in contracts with small consultants; whether she can make exceptions to the level of professional indemnity insurance; and what recent discussions she has had with other Government Departments about the level of professional indemnity insurance. [50827]
§ Mr. Ivan Lewis[holding answer 18 April 2002]: The information on the number of contracts my Department has with consultants could only be provided at disproportionate costs.
With regard to professional indemnity insurance, my Department's model contract for purchases asks for `unlimited liability'. As developed by HM Treasury my officials are, however, always prepared to negotiate with contractors and agree a limit of professional indemnity appropriate to the level of risk associated with each individual contract.
It is not the Government's practice to provide details of discussions which form part of the process of policy development and analysis, therefore I am unable to answer your final question.