Written question asked by Joan Walley (Labour) on Monday, 29 October 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 16 November 2001. It was answered by Malcolm Wicks (Labour) on Friday, 16 November 2001 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Dept for Work and Pensions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a statement on the service credit arising from SEMA's performance against targets up to 31st March.

Answer: Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the service credit arising from SEMA's performance against targets up to 31 March. [11906] Malcolm Wicks: SchlumbergerSema Medical Services' performance against service levels and quality targets is reviewed monthly. Service credits are applied when performance falls below target. The Department aims to apply service credits in a manner which acts as an incentive to improve performance, therefore the decision to apply service credits takes into account any mitigating factors, and the effectiveness of action being taken to improve performance. In the period to March 2001 the Department has claimed service credits from SchlumbergerSema on several occasions where there has been failure to deliver the required service or improvements. Details of the amount involved are not in the public domain, as commercially sensitive information.

Secondary information