§ Baroness Howells of St Davidsasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the first stage of the quinquennial review of the Meteorological Office has been completed. [HL870]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Bach)The first stage of the quinquennial review (QQR) of the Met Office has been completed. This has focused primarily on the future status of the Met Office and on the arrangements for strategic oversight by its parent department, the Ministry of Defence.
The stage 1 report examined a number of alternative status options for the Met Office but concluded that the Met Office should remain a trading fund agency of the Ministry of Defence for the foreseeable future. It concluded also that there was a need for a substantial reform of the arrangements for oversight of the agency by its owner, the Secretary of State for Defence. The recommended reforms comprise the reshaping of the Defence Met Board into a UK Met Board, including in its membership representatives of the three principal civil stakeholder interests in the Met Office's product (environment, transport and civil contingencies) alongside the existing defence stakeholder interest; the adoption of a more proactive stance by the new board, with the focus on identifying in advance and resolving key strategic issues so as to provide a clear policy framework for Met Office management; and the provision of adequate administrative support to the new board.
We have today given our endorsement of these recommendations, and action is now in hand to give effect to them as soon as possible. It is planned that the UK Met Board should come into existence early in 149WA 2003. A copy of the QQR Stage 1 report has been placed in the Library of the House.