Wednesday Volume 607 9 March 2016 No. 129 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Wednesday 9 March 2016 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2016 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 257 9 MARCH 2016 258 all civil service recruiters are required to undertake House of Commons mandatory training to avoid unconscious bias before they embark on any recruitment exercise, and this includes Wednesday 9 March 2016 panel members involved in sift and interview for fast stream apprenticeship schemes and executive recruitment. The House met at half-past Eleven o’clock Kelvin Hopkins (Luton North) (Lab): I welcome what the Minister says, but does he agree it is important to PRAYERS recruit civil servants who will be lifelong servants of the state and the public and whose sole commitment is to [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] public service? Mr Wilson: Of course, and obviously we want to Oral Answers to Questions attract the best talent possible into the civil service. That is why we commissioned the Bridge Group report, which found that fast stream, in particular, was deeply CABINET OFFICE unrepresentative. We are taking considerable action to change that, however, including, as I just said, with name-blind recruitment, by publishing the pay ratio The Minister for the Cabinet Office was asked— between the median and highest-paid employees and by Civil Service: Progression creating over 200,000 apprenticeship opportunities in the public sector for young people. 1. Oliver Colvile (Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport) (Con): What steps the Government are taking to ensure Ms Margaret Ritchie (South Down) (SDLP): What that people from all social backgrounds can progress in efforts is the Cabinet Office making to deal with the the Civil Service. [903980] requirements of women who, unlike their male counterparts, might face difficulties because of the pressures of family 2. Rehman Chishti (Gillingham and Rainham) (Con): life? What steps the Government are taking to ensure that people from all social backgrounds can progress in the Mr Wilson: I thank the hon. Lady for her question, Civil Service. [903981] which follows International Women’s Day yesterday. More than half of civil servants are women and more The Minister for Civil Society (Mr Rob Wilson): We than a third of top civil servants in positions of leadership want to ensure that the civil service is fully representative are now women, which compares favourably with, for of the nation it serves and benefits from the widest pool example, FTSE 100 companies. However, there is much of talent in our communities and from every part of more to do to increase female representation in senior Britain. We have made considerable strides to increase leadership roles, and we have introduced a number of diversity already, and we will shortly publish our strategy initiatives, such as measures to increase gender diversity; for social mobility, in which we will set out how we will a better system of entitlement for shared parental leave; further increase social diversity in the civil service. more tailored support before and after maternity leave; and greater encouragement for job sharing. Oliver Colvile: As my hon. Friend knows, Plymouth is a low wage, low skills economy, but it is also the home Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con): I am pleased of the seventh-largest university in the UK. What that the excellent Minister says there is no bias in the opportunities are there in the civil service in Plymouth civil service—except, in terms of social background, if for people who do not have university degrees? someone happens to want to leave the EU. How does he Mr Wilson: My hon. Friend reminds us that there is square that with neutrality? big talent in Plymouth, and we want to make the most of it. Over this Parliament, as part of our broader Mr Wilson: My hon. Friend is ingenious in getting commitment to 200,000 apprentices across the public the EU into the question. Everybody in the civil service sector, we will invest in more than 30,000 new civil will, in the future, have an equal opportunity to get on service apprenticeships, which will offer a range of in life. rewarding opportunities for people without university degrees, including opportunities already available in Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab): One way of helping Devon and Cornwall. I am delighted to say that I have people from all social backgrounds to progress in the an apprentice in my private office. I hope that one of civil service is to move many more jobs, especially our apprentices will one day be Cabinet Secretary—and senior civil service jobs, out of London and into the if that person is from Plymouth, so much the better. regions, particularly areas such as the north-west. At the moment, someone has to come to London to progress Rehman Chishti: I welcome the news that the Government in the civil service. have recently introduced name-blind recruitment across the civil service. What are they doing to prevent unconscious Mr Wilson: The hon. Gentleman is right; there has bias at later stages of the process? been a London bias to some extent within the civil service. We are therefore opening regional hubs. We will Mr Wilson: Name-blind recruitment has been open one additional assessment centre in the north this implemented in 75% of the civil service. We are working year, with more regional assessment sites to follow. We with other major workforces across the public sector will ensure that the fast stream is as attractive to people further to embed name-blind recruitment. In addition, in all regions as it is to those in London. 259 Oral Answers9 MARCH 2016 Oral Answers 260 Gloria De Piero (Ashfield) (Lab): In 2014, 718 people not realise that the language choice is open to them, as from working-class backgrounds applied for the civil it is in so many Government documents now. Will the service fast stream: eight succeeded. Is the Minister Minister look at moving the language button to the top outraged by that, or is he wondering “How on earth did of the page and making it rather more prominent? eight working-class kids sneak in?”? Matthew Hancock: I am an enormous supporter of Mr Wilson: If the hon. Lady is saying that we have a the Welsh language, and we are working hard to make lot more work to do, I absolutely agree with her. Almost sure that Government documents are always, where one in three people in Britain today are in working-class needed, translated into Welsh. I shall certainly look at occupations, compared with a mere 4.4% of those who the location of the button on the page, but we do a lot receive offers to fast stream, making the civil service of user-friendly research to work out where the buttons significantly less socio-economically diverse than the ought to be. University of Oxford. We know there is a lot more to Trade Union Bill do, but we are taking the necessary action. Digital Government 4. Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (SNP): What assessment he has made of 3. Ben Howlett (Bath) (Con): What progress the the applicability of the provisions of the Trade Union Government has made on its plans for digital government. Bill to officials of the devolved Administrations. [903982] [903983] The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster The Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office (John General (Matthew Hancock): Good morning, Mr Speaker. Penrose): Our assessment is that since employment and Our plan is to make people’s lives easier by reforming industrial relations are reserved matters under the devolution digital technology across government. We have now settlement with Scotland, and are not conferred on published over 24,000 open datasets, and are transforming Wales, the laws that govern them are decided collectively more and more public services. here in Westminster for the whole of the UK. This means that they will apply to all employers in the UK, Ben Howlett: I thank the Minister for that response. including those in the devolved Administrations, as part Effective and secure data sharing is critical for 21st century of our country’s single market in goods and services, government. Charities and research bodies have struggled which has successfully enriched our intellectual, cultural for decades to access and evaluate data effectively, which and economic life for centuries. has often slowed down world leading research. Does the Minister agree that the consultation on better use of Drew Hendry: Restricting facility time is likely to data in government could lead to long-term complications limit the Scottish Government’s ability to work effectively around information governance in government being with trade unions on a range of issues, because they will resolved? not have the capacity to engage. The Scottish Government have already voiced concerns about the Bill. Will the Matthew Hancock: I do. The better use of data Minister now listen and restrict its applicability so that consultation is about maximising opportunities for it does not apply to public sector employees in Scotland? proportionate, secure and well-governed data sharing, including allowing world-leading research and statistics John Penrose: The Trade Union Bill includes primarily greater access to datasets as part of a wider programme an approach to try to make the facility time settlement to modernise and simplify the UK’s data landscape. transparent. It aims to publish data on facility time costs and expenses to allow politicians and voters to Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab): While our population understand what the costs are and to see whether they is rising, voter registration is going down.