Oral Answers to Questions

Karl McCartney Excerpts

Wednesday 11th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Dr Matthew Offord (Hendon) (Con)]

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

[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.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Maude]

So far, by reducing significantly the number of full-time union officials who are paid by the taxpayer as civil servants, we have saved more than £2.3 million just from that element of the reforms. Overall, we are on course to meet our benchmark of spending no more than 0.1% of the civil service pay bill on facility time.

[Karl MᶜCartney]

Further to the kind answers that my right hon. Friend has given, will he tell the House how many civil servants were given paid time off to attend the Public and Commercial Services Union conference this year and last year?

[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.