Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to consult trade unions on the (a) award of public contracts and (b) appointment of strategic suppliers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is determined to ensure public money spent on public procurement delivers economic growth, supports small businesses, champions innovation, creates good jobs and skills opportunities across the country, and maximises social value.
Public sector procurement is subject to a legal framework set out by the Procurement Act, which encourages free and open competition and a focus on delivering value for money, in line with internationally and nationally agreed obligations and regulations. There is no specific legal requirement to consult trade unions on the award of public contracts or the selection of Strategic Suppliers. Individual Contracting Authorities are responsible for their own procurement and contract award decisions under the Act. Strategic Suppliers are selected based on the scale, scope and criticality of the services they provide, and are overseen centrally to observe their performance in the delivery of public services.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the National Procurement Policy Statement, published on 12 February 2025, when he plans to introduce a public interest test for contracting authorities to assess whether work should be outsourced.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Government is determined to deliver high quality public services and better value for money for the taxpayer. The Government is currently consulting on introducing a public interest test to assess whether expiring contracts could be better delivered, and drive better value for money, in-house. Contracting authorities are responsible for their own procurement decisions; introducing a public interest test will mean that authorities make evidenced-based decisions on the best way to deliver public services.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the National Audit Office's report entitled Managing conflicts of interest, HC 307, published on 22 November 2024.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
We are committed to restoring public confidence in government and ensuring that all those in public service are held to the highest standards.
We will consider carefully the National Audit Office’s recommendations in its recent report ‘Managing Conflicts of Interest’.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the terms of reference of the expert group to provide technical advice on compensation for the Government's response to the Infected Blood Inquiry will include the recommendations of the reports entitled (a) Compensation and redress for the victims of contaminated blood recommendations for a framework, published on 7 June 2022, and (b) Second interim report of the infected blood inquiry, published by the Infected Blood Inquiry on 5 April 2023.
Answered by John Glen
The Government is actively considering all recommendations of the Second Interim Report which reviews the recommendations of Sir Robert Francis’ Compensations Framework Study. The expert group is providing technical assistance in understanding how the Inquiry’s recommendations could work in practice. This will enable the Government to make an informed decision on responding to recommendations in a manner which considers the needs of the community and the far reaching impacts this scandal has had on their lives, alongside the associated costs to the public sector.
As the work of the expert group relates to the formulation and development of Government policy, their advice, evidence and methodologies as well as the terms of reference, minutes and agendas of their meetings has not been not be published at this time.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department has taken to (a) identify and (b) contact people in Liverpool, Walton constituency who were (i) infected and (ii) affected by the contaminated blood scandal, in the context of the Government's planned response to recommendations on compensation made by the Infected Blood Inquiry.
Answered by John Glen
Since October 2022, the Government has paid over £400 million in interim compensation payments to those infected or bereaved partners registered with the UK Infected Blood Support Schemes, totalling over 4000 individuals. The Statistical Expert Group, established by the Infected Blood Inquiry, has provided valuable insight into the numbers of infections from blood and blood products in the UK between 1970 and 1991 and subsequent survival rates. However, the requested information is not available by Parliamentary constituency. There is also considerable uncertainty over the number of people, especially those affected, who might be eligible under Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations. Therefore I am not able to provide a substantive response to the Honourable member’s questions on his constituency.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the number of people that would be eligible for compensation under the terms of the recommendations of the second interim report of Infected Blood Inquiry, published on 5 April 2023, in Liverpool, Walton constituency.
Answered by John Glen
Since October 2022, the Government has paid over £400 million in interim compensation payments to those infected or bereaved partners registered with the UK Infected Blood Support Schemes, totalling over 4000 individuals. The Statistical Expert Group, established by the Infected Blood Inquiry, has provided valuable insight into the numbers of infections from blood and blood products in the UK between 1970 and 1991 and subsequent survival rates. However, the requested information is not available by Parliamentary constituency. There is also considerable uncertainty over the number of people, especially those affected, who might be eligible under Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations. Therefore I am not able to provide a substantive response to the Honourable member’s questions on his constituency.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people have received interim compensation payments for (a) their and (b) their family member’s infection from contaminated blood or blood products in Liverpool, Walton constituency.
Answered by John Glen
Since October 2022, the Government has paid over £400 million in interim compensation payments to those infected or bereaved partners registered with the UK Infected Blood Support Schemes, totalling over 4000 individuals. The Statistical Expert Group, established by the Infected Blood Inquiry, has provided valuable insight into the numbers of infections from blood and blood products in the UK between 1970 and 1991 and subsequent survival rates. However, the requested information is not available by Parliamentary constituency. There is also considerable uncertainty over the number of people, especially those affected, who might be eligible under Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations. Therefore I am not able to provide a substantive response to the Honourable member’s questions on his constituency.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many of the contracts awarded to Fujitsu since 2010 were put out to tender.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
This historic information is not held centrally.
Details of central government contracts where the contract value is above £12,000 are published on Contracts Finder: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has had recent discussions with the Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry on the impact of the delay to the publication of its final report on people affected.
Answered by John Glen
The Government is committed to responding to the recommendations in the second interim report as quickly as possible following the publication of the final report. The timeline for the publication of the final report is a matter for the independent Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if his Department will take steps to implement all the recommendations of the Second Interim Report of the Infected Blood Inquiry, published 5 April 2023.
Answered by John Glen
The Government is committed to responding to the recommendations in the second interim report as quickly as possible following the publication of the final report. The timeline for the publication of the final report is a matter for the independent Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry.