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1013199

registered interest
date	23/11/2018
answering body	The Senior Deputy Speaker
answering dept id	204
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Senior Deputy Speaker (HoL)
hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker whether House of Lords catering services are subject to food hygiene inspections by Westminster Health Authority; and if so, (1) what Food Hygiene Rating each Lords catering outlet achieved at their most recent inspection, and (2) whether outlets are required to display a Food Hygiene Rating Sticker.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL11759
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2018 answer text <p>The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chairman of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.</p><p>As registered food premises, the House of Lords catering facilities are subject to inspections from Westminster City Council (WCC). At the last inspection in November 2017, the Environmental Health Officer from WCC Food Safety Team awarded the highest rating of 5 for all House of Lords catering outlets in the Palace of Westminster; Millbank House facilities were inspected in November 2016 and also received a 5 rating. It is a recommendation but not a legal requirement to display the food hygiene rating sticker. The House of Lords rating stickers are currently displayed in the River Restaurant and Millbank House Cafeteria.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 29/11/2018 11:48:49 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

757298

registered interest
date	05/09/2017
answering body	The Senior Deputy Speaker
answering dept id	204
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name	Senior Deputy Speaker (HoL)
hansard heading	House of Lords: Catering
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to the Written Answer by the Senior Deputy Speaker on 31 July (HL1160), what steps he is taking to increase the number of British products on sale in all outlets in the House of Lords, including British wine.
tabling member printed	Lord Kennedy of Southwark
uin	HL1283
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2017 answer text <p>The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chairman of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.</p><p>The vast majority of fresh products purchased by House of Lords Catering and Retail Services (CRS) are British, and CRS has an ongoing policy to continue to increase its use of British products, taking account of procurement and value for money tests. British produce is always preferred when in season, and menus are designed to incorporate British sustainable products and showcase British seasonal produce where possible. The majority of the main ingredients in CRS dishes, such as meat, poultry, fish and dairy produce, are British.</p><p>In House of Lords bars, CRS aims to supply a range of beverages including British options; CRS has recently changed supplier to increase its offering of British craft ales and lagers.</p><p>CRS aims to increase the selection of British wines available in House of Lords restaurants and bars. Additional British wines will appear on the wine lists after the conference recess.</p><p>For the House of Lords retail shop, CRS aims to increase its ranges of British products; work is underway to develop with its suppliers products that would enhance the British selection on offer.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 18/09/2017 15:08:35 answering member 2079 label Biography information for Lord Laming
tabling member	4153 label Biography information for Lord Kennedy of Southwark

452292

registered interest
date	11/02/2016
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, further to his Written Answer on 10 February (HL5554), whether partners and spouses of Catering and Retail Services staff are also entitled to receive meals without charge.
tabling member printed	Lord Palmer
uin	HL6193
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2016 answer text <p>Partners and spouses are not entitled to receive meals without charge.</p> answering member printed Lord Laming question first answered 23/02/2016 17:46:17 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

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

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

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

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

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

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