Oral Answers to Questions

Alun Cairns Excerpts

Wednesday 11th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Karl MᶜCartney (Lincoln) (Con)]

4. What steps he is taking to control the amount of trade unions facility time in the civil service.

[Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)]

10. What steps he is taking to control the amount of trade union facility time in the civil service.

[The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General (Mr Francis Maude)]

At the time of the last general election, there was no proper monitoring of trade union facility time in government. That has now changed, and paid time off for any trade union activities and full-time union officials now requires the specific consent of a senior Minister. We expect the cost to the taxpayer for paid time off for trade union duties to fall by 60% from the level we inherited.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Maude]

In May this year, 651 PCS reps had paid time off to attend the PCS conference—fewer than half the number of the previous year. Next year, paid time off to attend the conference will be entirely at the discretion of the Secretary of State or the Minister in charge of that civil servant’s Department.

[Alun Cairns]

This issue is a significant cost to the public purse. Will the Minister please advise the House how many taxpayer-funded trade union representatives there were in May 2010, and how many there are now?

[Mr Maude]

It has taken some time to establish the facts about that because there was no proper monitoring. We believe, however, that in May 2010 in the region of 250 civil servants were full-time officers of their trade union and doing no work on behalf of the taxpayer. Several of them had been promoted in post while doing no work as a civil servant—and one of them had been promoted twice, which seems remarkable.