§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in meeting targets for the proportion of people with disabilities in senior posts in the Department. [110520]
§ Ruth KellyThe proportion of people with disabilities in senior posts in the Treasury is 1.1 per cent. against the corporate Senior Civil Service (SCS) target on disabled staff of 3 per cent. by 2005.
We are taking steps to increase the recruitment of people with disabilities across the whole of the department, including staff in senior posts. Particular actions include:
advertising all senior posts and highlighting that we are an equal opportunities employer;guaranteeing an interview to people with disabilities who meet the minimum requirement for our recruitment programmes;participating in the Cabinet Office scheme for people with disabilities, offering two placements this summer; andcontinuing to support the department's active Disability Advisory Group, sponsored by the Permanent Secretary, to ensure the interests of people with disabilities are taken on board when developing management and personnel policies.We are planning to conduct a full disability survey later this year to ensure our records of disabled staff are accurate and up to date.