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Written Question
Public Sector: Mutual Societies
Tuesday 3rd March 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of people who work in public sector mutuals.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

There are over 100 public service mutuals in operation across the country. Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/public-service-mutuals-new-approaches-to-finance.

Cabinet Office does not collect its own figures on the number employed by such mutuals. However the July 2013 Boston Consultancy Group report Soft Finance, Hard Choices estimated that public service mutuals employed 35,000 staff and delivered £1.5bn worth of public services.


Written Question
Civil Servants: Equality
Thursday 12th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 2.2 of the report The Performance of the Cabinet Office 2013-14, published by the National Audit Office in November 2014, when he expects the reports commissioned by his Department on examining the barriers faced by people (a) who declare disabilities, (b) from minority ethnic backgrounds and (c) who are LGBT in the civil service to be published.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

All three reports will be published in the coming weeks.


Written Question
Electronic Government
Tuesday 10th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 104 of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts 2013-14, on how many occasions the National Information Infrastructure has been accessed; and what assessment he has made of the economic and social effects of making datasets more widely available by means of that infrastructure.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

The National Information Infrastructure (NII) dataset has been viewed nearly 1,000 times.

This government has prioritised the release of open data for economic growth in the belief that people outside government are better placed to add value and build tools and services using this data. A report by Deloitte for the Department of Business Innovation and Skills from May 2013 calculated the value of public sector information to consumers, businesses and the public sector in 2011/12 was approximately £1.8 billion. However, the use and re-use of public sector information has much larger downstream impacts affecting all areas of society beyond the direct customer.

Adding this social value estimate to the calculated value of public sector information to consumers, businesses and the public sector, gives an aggregate estimate of between £6.2 billion and £7.2 billion in 2011/12 (2011 prices).

In 2012 we launched the Open Data Institute (ODI) to help incubate startup companies that use and/or produce open data. To date the ODI has worked with over 15 small businesses. Their first cohort of startups secured over £2m in contracts and investments.

We are currently working on a second iteration of the NII with a view to furthering its impact.


Written Question
Electronic Government
Tuesday 10th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 23 of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts 2013-14, what the 327 external applications using Government data published on data.gov.uk referred to in that report are.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

We publish a list of applications using open data on data.gov.uk but these are only those that developers choose to tell us about. We do not require people to do this so this is not an extensive list of all applications using government data.

There are currently 363 external applications using government data published on data.gov.uk. The list of applications can be viewed at http://data.gov.uk/apps


Written Question
Electronic Government
Tuesday 10th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the 10 (a) most frequently accessed and (b) least frequently accessed datasets published on data.gov.uk are.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

There are currently over 19,000 published datasets on DGU.

The site usage report on data.gov.uk lists the top twenty most frequently viewed datasets. The top 10 are:

  1. English Indices of Deprivation 2010

  2. Bona Vacantia Unclaimed Estates and Adverts

  3. Building Price and Cost Indices

  4. Lower Layer Super Output Area (LSOA) boundaries

  5. Road Safety Data

  6. Live traffic information from the Highways Agency

  7. Social Trends

  8. Statistics on Obesity, Physical Activity and Diet, England

  9. National Public Transport Access Nodes (NaPTAN)

  10. Health Survey for England

We do not report on the least viewed datasets.


Written Question
Government Departments: ICT
Monday 9th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of hours lost (a) in his Department and (b) across all government departments due to ICT failure.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

Cabinet Office is modernising its internal ICT systems to deliver better services more efficiently.

Each Government Department is responsible for its own ICT. Information about hours lost and helpline calls is not held centrally.


Written Question
Government Departments: ICT
Monday 9th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many telephone calls have been made by (a) officials and (b) ministerial offices to the ICT helpline in (i) his Department and (ii) across all government departments due to ICT problems.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

Cabinet Office is modernising its internal ICT systems to deliver better services more efficiently.

Each Government Department is responsible for its own ICT. Information about hours lost and helpline calls is not held centrally.


Written Question
Civil Servants: Recruitment
Monday 9th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which government departments' executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies are participating in the next generation Civil Service human resources programme; what the basis is for cost-sharing arrangements for set-up and running costs of that programme; and what human resources functions that programme undertakes.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

The Next Generation HR programme started in 2010 and has delivered significant savings - in 2010 annual spend on HR in the Civil Service was £524million, in 2014 annual spend was £257.5 million.

Services provided cover the range of human resources activity, including learning, employee policy, recruitment and organisational design and Departments share the full cost of the core services provided. Those services that are volume related (such as bulk recruitment) are paid for on the basis of usage. More information is available onhttps://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/civil-service-human-resources-profession/about

The list below details those organisations who take services from the shared expert services created as part of the Next Generation HR Programme.

Attorney General's departments

Attorney General's Office

Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate

Treasury Solicitor

Crown Prosecution Service

Serious Fraud Office

Business, Innovation and Skills

Companies House

Insolvency Service

Land Registry

Met Office

National Measurement Office

Ordnance Survey

Skills Funding Agency

UK Intellectual Property Office

UK Space Agency

Capital for Enterprise

Technology Strategy Board

UK Commission for Employment and Skills

Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service

Office of Gas and Electricity Market

Cabinet Office

Government Procurement Service

Government in Parliament

Charity Commission

Department for Communities and Local Government

Planning Inspectorate

Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre

Homes and Community Agency

Leasehold Advisory Service

West Northamptonshire Development Corporation

Competition & Markets Authority

Department for Culture Media and Sport

Royal Parks

National Portrait Gallery

Sports Grounds Safety Authority

Ministry of Defence

Defence Science and Technology Laboratory

Defence Support Group

UK Hydrographic Office

Department for Education

Education Funding Agency

National College for Teaching and Leadership

Standards & Testing Agency

Department of Energy and Climate Change

Committee on Climate Change

Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency

Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science

Food and Environment Research Agency

Rural Payments Agency

Veterinary Medicines Directorate

Consumer Council for Water

Joint Nature Conservation Committee

Marine Management Organisation

National Forest Company

Natural England

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Gangmasters Licensing Authority

The Sea fish Industry Authority

The Water Services Regulation Authority (OFWAT)

Office of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales (Estyn)

Export Credits Guarantee Department

Food Standards Agency

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

FCO Services

Locally Engaged staff

Overseas Territories

Wilton Park Executive Agency

Great Britain in China (GBCC)

Department of Health

Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency

Public Health England

Human Tissue Authority

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority

Health and Social Care Information Centre

HM Revenue and Customs

Valuation Office

HM Treasury

Office for Budget Responsibility

Chancellor's other departments

Debt Management Office

Government Actuary's Department

National Savings and Investments

Home Office

Identity & Passport Service

National Fraud Authority

Disclosure and Barring Service

Equality and Human Rights Commission

Office of Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC)

Department for International Development

Ministry of Justice

Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service

National Offender Management Service

Legal Aid Agency

The Office of the Public Guardian

Criminal Cases Review Commission

Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority

Family Justice Council

HM Inspectorate of Prisons

HM Inspectorate of Probation

Independent Advisory Council on Deaths in Custody

Independent Monitoring Boards

Judicial Appointments and Conduct Ombudsman

Commission for Judicial Appointments

Judicial Office of England and Wales

Lancashire Probation Trust

Law Commission

Legal Services Ombudsman

Legal Services Board

Legal Services Consumer Panel

Office for Judicial Complaints

Office for the Accountant General

Official Solicitor

Parole Board

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman

Youth Justice Board for England and Wales

The National Archive

Northern Ireland Office

Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED)

Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (OFQUAL)

Scotland Office (incl. Office of the Advocate General for Scotland)

Security Community

Department for Transport

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Driving Standards Agency

Highways Agency

Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Vehicle Certification Agency

Vehicle and Operator Services Agency

British Transport Police Authority

High Speed 2 Ltd

Northern Lighthouse Board

Passenger Focus (Rail Passengers' Council)

Office of Rail Regulation (ORR)

UK Statistics Authority

UK Supreme Court

Wales Office

Department for Work and Pensions

Independent Living Fund

National Employment Savings Trust Corporation

Office of the Pensions Ombudsman

The Pensions Advisory Service Ltd

The Pensions Regulator

Health and Safety Executive

Scottish Government

Accountant in Bankruptcy

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal

Disclosure Scotland

Education Scotland

Registers of Scotland

Scottish Housing Regulator

Student Awards Agency

Transport Scotland

Highlands and Islands Enterprise

Scottish Legal Complaints Commission

Scottish Public Pensions Agency

National Records of Scotland

Crofting Commission

Architecture and Design Scotland

The Scottish Funding Council for Further and Higher Education

Welsh Government

House of Lords Administration

Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority

National Assembly for Wales

National Audit Office




Written Question
Training
Monday 9th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) ministers and (b) civil servants in each Department, agency and NDPB have attended the Commissioning Academy in each year since it was established; and what assessment he has made of the effect of such attendance on commercial skills in the civil service.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

Through its programme of Civil Service Reform, the Government is taking urgent action to address long-standing skills gaps in the Civil Service. Our pioneering Commissioning Academy is building commercial capability across the public sector, and improving how public services are delivered.

To date 392 individuals have attended the central Commissioning Academy programmes, including 121 from central government. In the last year there was a 50% increase in demand for places on the programme, and it will be expanded to deliver 1,500 places by March 2016.

Feedback from participants has been consistently positive. Independent research by the Local Government Information Unit on the impact of the Academy found that 71.9% of survey respondents felt their involvement in the programme was already having a tangible impact and they were confident it would lead to a positive outcome for citizens.

A number of other programmes sit alongside the central programme under the Commissioning Academy umbrella: 78 have attended local programmes, 8 a streamlined programme for Local Authority elected members, plus 49 junior officials from Cabinet Office, HM Treasury and the Crown Commercial Service.

Central Government

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

Total

BIS

0

0

5

5

DCLG

0

9

0

9

DEFRA

0

0

4

4

DfE

0

0

4

4

DWP

3

12

13

28

FCO

0

3

2

5

Health

0

0

3

3

Home Office

0

2

4

6

MoD

0

2

8

10

Cabinet Office

3

0

8

11

Public Services Transformation Network

0

6

0

6

Home Office

0

3

4

7

Northern Ireland Prison Service

0

0

4

4

HMRC

0

0

4

4

NAO

0

0

6

6

Crown Prosecution Service

0

0

2

2

MoJ/NOMS

4

0

3

7

Local Authority

27

98

81

206

Fire & Rescue

0

2

3

5

Health

3

9

16

28

Justice

7

8

17

32

Total

47

154

191

392


Written Question
Data Protection
Monday 9th February 2015

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many breaches of protected personal data by his Department have been reported to the Information Commissioner; and how many people were involved in each such breach in each year since 2010-11.

Answered by Lord Maude of Horsham

Departments are obligated to publish such information in their Annual Report and Accounts. Copies of the Cabinet Office’s Annual Report and Accounts, up to and including 2013/2014, are available either from the Library or on-line.

The Cabinet Office takes any data losses very seriously and all such incidents are fully investigated.