asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is Her Majesty's Customs and Excise annual budget for computerised data processing, including hardware, software, and out of house services; and how many of the staff of Her Majesty's Customs and Excise are employed in carrying out computerised data processing work.

[pursuant to his reply, 20 May 1985]; In 1985–86 about £9 million of the Customs and Excise cash limit is for work associated with computerised data processing excluding staff salaries. At present, some 880 staff are employed in the computer services division, which is principally involved in data processing in the Department. In addition, a few staff in other divisions have some involvement in data processing, but it is not possible to estimate these precisely except at disproportionate cost.