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169684

	registered interest
	date	11/12/2014
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what is the policy of the House of Lords on the disposal of unwanted food from catering outlets.
	tabling member printed	Lord Empey
	uin	HL3671
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2014 answer text <p>Catering and Retail Services seeks to reduce the amount of food waste generated through careful menu management and the use, where appropriate, of pre-prepared ingredients. Food waste is controlled in each outlet through reuse in other outlets. Approximately 50% of unsold prepared food products are either recycled through other outlets or reused (subject to food safety procedures). Typical examples of this include roast beef, chicken or baked ham being used for cold meat platters or as ingredients for other dishes, and vegetables being used as ingredients for soups.</p><p> </p><p>The estimated food waste generated by House of Lords outlets each month for the year 2013–14 is shown in the table below.</p><table><tbody><tr><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total cost of waste (£)</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 2013</p></td><td><p>2,183.99</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>May 2013</p></td><td><p>2,608.50</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>June 2013</p></td><td><p>3,933.41</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>July 2013</p></td><td><p>5,381.78</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>August/September 2013</p></td><td><p>1,775.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>October 2013</p></td><td><p>4,370.16</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>November 2013</p></td><td><p>4,507.32</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>December 2013</p></td><td><p>3,545.60</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>January 2014</p></td><td><p>5,416.39</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>February 2014</p></td><td><p>4,787.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>March 2014</p></td><td><p>6,359.75</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,868.95</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The above figures represent prepared unsold food at cost value that cannot be reused or recycled. To put this into perspective, total food waste for the period above is 4.5% of total food consumption. The highest proportion of food waste is from the cafeterias and self service outlets.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Unsold food waste is either bagged or passed through a commercial waste disposal unit which extracts most of the water content, resulting in a dry mass which is bagged. The food waste is collected daily by a waste contractor and sent to a local facility for anaerobic digestion. No food waste produced in the House of Lords is sent to landfill.</p> answering member printed Lord Sewel grouped question UIN HL3672 HL3673 question first answered 17/12/2014 17:42:38 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	4216 label Biography information for Lord Empey

169685

	registered interest
	date	11/12/2014
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the monetary value of surplus food disposed of by House of Lords catering outlets in the last year for which figures are available.
	tabling member printed	Lord Empey
	uin	HL3672
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2014 answer text <p>Catering and Retail Services seeks to reduce the amount of food waste generated through careful menu management and the use, where appropriate, of pre-prepared ingredients. Food waste is controlled in each outlet through reuse in other outlets. Approximately 50% of unsold prepared food products are either recycled through other outlets or reused (subject to food safety procedures). Typical examples of this include roast beef, chicken or baked ham being used for cold meat platters or as ingredients for other dishes, and vegetables being used as ingredients for soups.</p><p> </p><p>The estimated food waste generated by House of Lords outlets each month for the year 2013–14 is shown in the table below.</p><table><tbody><tr><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total cost of waste (£)</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 2013</p></td><td><p>2,183.99</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>May 2013</p></td><td><p>2,608.50</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>June 2013</p></td><td><p>3,933.41</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>July 2013</p></td><td><p>5,381.78</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>August/September 2013</p></td><td><p>1,775.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>October 2013</p></td><td><p>4,370.16</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>November 2013</p></td><td><p>4,507.32</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>December 2013</p></td><td><p>3,545.60</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>January 2014</p></td><td><p>5,416.39</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>February 2014</p></td><td><p>4,787.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>March 2014</p></td><td><p>6,359.75</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,868.95</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The above figures represent prepared unsold food at cost value that cannot be reused or recycled. To put this into perspective, total food waste for the period above is 4.5% of total food consumption. The highest proportion of food waste is from the cafeterias and self service outlets.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Unsold food waste is either bagged or passed through a commercial waste disposal unit which extracts most of the water content, resulting in a dry mass which is bagged. The food waste is collected daily by a waste contractor and sent to a local facility for anaerobic digestion. No food waste produced in the House of Lords is sent to landfill.</p> answering member printed Lord Sewel grouped question UIN HL3671 HL3673 question first answered 17/12/2014 17:42:38 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	4216 label Biography information for Lord Empey

169686

	registered interest
	date	11/12/2014
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what is the mechanism employed by the House of Lords to dispose of surplus food from House of Lords catering outlets.
	tabling member printed	Lord Empey
	uin	HL3673
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2014 answer text <p>Catering and Retail Services seeks to reduce the amount of food waste generated through careful menu management and the use, where appropriate, of pre-prepared ingredients. Food waste is controlled in each outlet through reuse in other outlets. Approximately 50% of unsold prepared food products are either recycled through other outlets or reused (subject to food safety procedures). Typical examples of this include roast beef, chicken or baked ham being used for cold meat platters or as ingredients for other dishes, and vegetables being used as ingredients for soups.</p><p> </p><p>The estimated food waste generated by House of Lords outlets each month for the year 2013–14 is shown in the table below.</p><table><tbody><tr><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total cost of waste (£)</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 2013</p></td><td><p>2,183.99</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>May 2013</p></td><td><p>2,608.50</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>June 2013</p></td><td><p>3,933.41</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>July 2013</p></td><td><p>5,381.78</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>August/September 2013</p></td><td><p>1,775.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>October 2013</p></td><td><p>4,370.16</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>November 2013</p></td><td><p>4,507.32</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>December 2013</p></td><td><p>3,545.60</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>January 2014</p></td><td><p>5,416.39</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>February 2014</p></td><td><p>4,787.02</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p>March 2014</p></td><td><p>6,359.75</p></td><td> </td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>44,868.95</strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The above figures represent prepared unsold food at cost value that cannot be reused or recycled. To put this into perspective, total food waste for the period above is 4.5% of total food consumption. The highest proportion of food waste is from the cafeterias and self service outlets.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Unsold food waste is either bagged or passed through a commercial waste disposal unit which extracts most of the water content, resulting in a dry mass which is bagged. The food waste is collected daily by a waste contractor and sent to a local facility for anaerobic digestion. No food waste produced in the House of Lords is sent to landfill.</p> answering member printed Lord Sewel grouped question UIN HL3671 HL3672 question first answered 17/12/2014 17:42:38 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	4216 label Biography information for Lord Empey

170930

	registered interest
	date	17/12/2014
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what has been (1) the expenditure, and (2) the profit or deficit, for the years 2012–13 and 2013–14 of each catering outlet in the House of Lords.
	tabling member printed	Lord Avebury
	uin	HL3837
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/01/2015 answer text <p>The turnover, expenditure and profit or loss of each Catering and Retail Service outlet in 2012-13 and 2013-14 are set out in the tables below.</p><p> </p><p><strong>2012-13</strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Outlet</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Turnover (£)</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Expenditure (£)</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Profit/loss (£)</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Peers' Dining Room</p></td><td><p>491,364</p></td><td><p>1,308,224</p></td><td><p>-816,860</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Barry Room</p></td><td><p>238,267</p></td><td><p>498,307</p></td><td><p>-260,040</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Home Room</p></td><td><p>44,838</p></td><td><p>182,122</p></td><td><p>-137,284</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>River Restaurant</p></td><td><p>257,041</p></td><td><p>689,116</p></td><td><p>-432,075</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bishops Bar</p></td><td><p>51,399</p></td><td><p>111,197</p></td><td><p>-59,798</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Peers Guest Room</p></td><td><p>59,952</p></td><td><p>56,524</p></td><td><p>3,428</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Lords Bar</p></td><td><p>99,612</p></td><td><p>130,914</p></td><td><p>-31,302</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Millbank House</p></td><td><p>90,139</p></td><td><p>205,036</p></td><td><p>-114,897</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><strong>2013-14</strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Outlet</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Turnover (£)</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Expenditure (£)</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Profit/loss (£)</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Peers' Dining Room</p></td><td><p>554,236</p></td><td><p>1,441,232</p></td><td><p>-886,996</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Barry Room</p></td><td><p>204,882</p></td><td><p>466,362</p></td><td><p>-261,480</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Home Room</p></td><td><p>29,503</p></td><td><p>163,502</p></td><td><p>-133,999</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>River Restaurant</p></td><td><p>258,457</p></td><td><p>703,978</p></td><td><p>-445,521</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bishops Bar</p></td><td><p>60,090</p></td><td><p>125,399</p></td><td><p>-65,310</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Peers Guest Room</p></td><td><p>60,045</p></td><td><p>75,335</p></td><td><p>-15,290</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Lords Bar</p></td><td><p>106,561</p></td><td><p>102,746</p></td><td><p>3,815</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Millbank House</p></td><td><p>91,430</p></td><td><p>240,236</p></td><td><p>-148,806</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Sewel question first answered 06/01/2015 14:28:32 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	1665 label Biography information for Lord Avebury

223873

	registered interest
	date	26/02/2015
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the gratuities paid for food and drink by Members of the House of Lords on debit and credit card are directly paid to the service staff; and if so, how.
	tabling member printed	Lord Storey
	uin	HL5250
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/03/2015 answer text <p>All Catering and Retail Services staff, with the exception of staff grade A and above, receive a share of gratuities and function service charges, including those paid on debit and credit cards. The formula for working out the share for each permanent member of staff is based on contracted hours. Gratuities are distributed three times a year through payroll after deductions for National Insurance and income tax. A proportion of gratuities and function service charges is paid to zero hour staff (none of whom has a contractual exclusivity clause) split on a pro-rata basis according to the number of hours they have worked.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Sewel question first answered 12/03/2015 16:05:46 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

228004

	registered interest
	date	17/03/2015
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees, further to his Written Answer on 12 March (HL5250), whether the entire sum of gratuities paid by Members of the House of Lords on debit and credit cards is shared amongst members of catering staff; or whether any is kept by the House of Lords administration for organisational costs.
	tabling member printed	Lord Storey
	uin	HL5819
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/03/2015 answer text <p>My original reply set out national insurance and income tax deductions made from all gratuities. In addition, a 3% card commission deduction is made from table gratuities paid using credit and debit cards. This will be reviewed.</p> answering member printed Lord Sewel question first answered 26/03/2015 16:32:30 answering member 2124 label Biography information for Lord Sewel
	tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

418791

	registered interest
	date	15/09/2015
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what costs were incurred in the recruitment of the House of Lords Executive Chef.
	tabling member printed	Lord Palmer
	uin	HL2226
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2015 answer text <p>The recruitment exercise for an executive chef is ongoing. We have paid £346.61 to publicise the vacancy in relevant forums. Other anticipated costs include a £350 fee for an external recruitment panel member and the marginal cost of ingredients for a cooking test. Other costs are not envisaged, although we do reimburse reasonable candidate travel expenses.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 18/09/2015 13:19:10 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
	tabling member	3192 label Biography information for Lord Palmer

420484

	registered interest
	date	12/10/2015
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees what plans he has to end the subsidy for catering services in the House of Lords.
	tabling member printed	Lord Avebury
	uin	HL2459
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/10/2015 answer text <p>Catering and Retail Services seek to provide an appropriate level of service to support an active and busy parliamentary chamber, and to provide excellent value to the taxpayer. The catering subsidy has been reduced by 32% since 2007 and we are working hard to reduce it further through an ambitious Change Programme.</p><p>The unpredictable nature of parliamentary business – in terms of sitting days, recesses, the length of each sitting, and the level of attendance at the House for each sitting – means that staffing costs and wastage are higher than would be the case in purely commercial catering outlets. This makes an operating loss extremely difficult to avoid.</p><p>Furthermore, catering facilities are used by a wide range of people, not just Members. Venues such as the River Restaurant and Millbank House cafeteria are mainly intended to provide facilities for staff and other users such as the Metropolitan Police, contractors and others working on the Parliamentary Estate. It is good practice for large employers to provide cafeteria facilities for staff, particularly for organisations that operate outside normal office hours as is the case in the House of Lords. We pay all catering staff at least the London Living Wage and provide them with workplace pensions. We are proud to do so but it means our costs are higher than some commercial restaurants.</p><p>Given these factors, some element of tax-payer funding is appropriate, but the Administration is vigilant to ensure that public money is stewarded responsibly. Catering and Retail Services are also exploring novel ways to generate income in quieter times, such as opening the Peers’ Dining Room to the public in longer recesses. This helps to reduce the overall cost of the refreshment service to the tax payer, and so the subsidy.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 21/10/2015 15:32:12 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
	tabling member	1665 label Biography information for Lord Avebury

422798

	registered interest
	date	21/10/2015
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees, further to the Written Answer by the Chairman of Committees on 18 September (HL2226), what costs were incurred in recruiting the last House of Lords Executive Chef, and for how long that postholder was employed.
	tabling member printed	Lord Palmer
	uin	HL2845
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2015 answer text <p>The last Executive Chef was employed by the House for just over a year. We paid £360to publicise the permanent vacancy in relevant forums. Reasonable travel expenses of several candidates were reimbursed at £83.40. An external consultant already engaged by Catering and Retail Services assisted with the selection process - a reasonable estimate of the cost of his time is £278. There were also marginal costs for the refreshment for the panel and ingredients to support a work-based skills test. The successful candidate had previously been employed on a fixed-term contract for which we paid an agency fee of £3,600.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 29/10/2015 15:51:26 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
	tabling member	3192 label Biography information for Lord Palmer

448164

	registered interest
	date	27/01/2016
	answering body	The Lord Chairman of Committees
	answering dept id	200
	answering dept short name
	answering dept sort name	Chairman of Committees (HoL)
	hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask the Chairman of Committees which members of House of Lords' staff are entitled to free food or refreshments in the House's facilities.
	tabling member printed	Lord Palmer
	uin	HL5554
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/02/2016 answer text <p>Catering and Retail Services staff are provided with meals without charge during shifts, in accordance with arrangements made by the Head of Catering and Retail Services. This is standard practice in the hospitality industry.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 10/02/2016 16:25:25 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
	tabling member	3192 label Biography information for Lord Palmer