§ Baroness Davidasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether there are any plans to change the Attorney-General's Department's departmental expenditure limit and administration costs limit for 2001–02. [HL2900]
§ The Attorney-General (Lord Goldsmith)Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimates, the Attorney-General's Department's DEL will be increased by £8,681,000, from £451,563,000 to £460,244,000, and the administration costs limits will be increased by £7,731,000, from £322,103,000 to £329,834,000. Within the DEL change, the impact on resources and capital is set out in the following table:
£15,745,000 to £15,640,000, and the administration costs limits will he decreased by £36,000, from £10,629,000 to £10,593,000. The decrease in the resource element of the DEL is the net effect of a transfer of £106,000 to clients whose work will become chargeable in the current financial year. The decreases in HM Procurator General and Treasury Solicitor's Department DEL will be affected by a £1.000 Token Supplementary Estimate.
The Serious Fraud Office's DEL will be increased by £500,000, from £20,925,000 to £21,425,000, and the administration costs limit will be increased by £500,000, from £14,415,000 to £14,915,000. The increase in the resource element of the DEL arises from development of the Docman information support system and funding of early retirements in support of restructuring of the Serious Fraud Office to enable it to contribute fully to criminal justice targets.
The increases will be entirely met by a transfer from the Criminal Justice System reserve, transfers from the 227WA Home Office and take up of captial end year flexibility entitlement.
The additional expenditure will not add to the planned total of public expenditure.