I am today publishing a report on Departments’ and agencies’ performance on handling Members’ and Peers’ correspondence during 2006. Details are set out in the attached table. Figures for 2005 were published on 30 March 2006, Official Report, column 75WS. Departmental figures are based on substantive replies unless otherwise indicated.
The footnotes to the table provide general background information on how the figures have been compiled.
2006 Department or Agency Target set for reply (working days) Number of letters received Percentage of replies within target Cabinet Office 15 2962 83 Department for Communities and Local Government3 15 11,168 442 Planning Inspectorate 10 228 77 Ordnance Survey 15 66 100 Department for Constitutional Affairs 20 3,524 84 HM Courts Service 15 54 96 Tribunals Service5 10 1,969 92 Land Registry 20 59 95 Public Guardianship Office 15 53 96 Crown Prosecution Service 15 569 97 Department for Culture, Media and Sport 20 4,199 76 Ministry of Defence 15 67,001 762 Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency 15 153 97 Defence Vetting Agency 7 24 100 Veterans Agency 15 881 99 Department for Education and Skills 15 17,240 873 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 15 12,475 953 Rural Development Service10 15 68 31 Rural Payments Agency 15 1,536 1122 Pesticide Safety Directorate 15 51 x47 State Veterinary Service 15 19 x26 Veterinary Medicines Directorate 20 26 x65 Food Standards Agency * Letters where Health Ministers have replied. 20 *410 1262 ** Letters where Chief Executive/Chairman has replied. 10 **51 92 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 20 11,970 89 UK Visas * Letters where UK Visa officials have replied. 15 *7,711 78 ** Letters where FCO Ministers have replied. 20 **953 80 Department of Health 20 23,053 89 * Letters received by the Chief Medical Officer and responded directly to MPs. 20 28 *75 ** Letters received by the NHS Chief Executive and responded directly to MPs. 20 44 **I89 Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency 20 212 84 *** Letters received by Agency Chief Executive and responded on behalf of DH Ministers. 20 30 ***87 NHS Purchasing and Supplies Agency 20 15 80 Home Office (non IND correspondence)13 15 9,583 93 Criminal Records Bureau 10 14378 93 Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) 20 41,534 78 HM Prison Service 20 1,004 97 Identity and Passport Service15 10 679 68 Department for International Development 15 5,094 76 Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Lord's Office 15 110 90 Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers 20 375 71 Northern Ireland Office 10 506 67 Compensation Agency 7 39 1685 Northern Ireland Prison Service 10 34 85 Office of the Leader of the House of Commons 15 418 96 HM Revenue and Customs 18 5,327 60 * Local Office and “delegated” figures (where local tax offices have replied directly to MPs) 18 *1,956 54 Scotland Office 15 39 77 Department of Trade and Industry 15 12,780 71 Companies House 10 54 100 Employment Tribunals Service17 12 12 100 Insolvency Service 10 559 98 Department for Transport 15 9,944 76 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency 7 1,274 79 Driving Standards Agency 15 71 83 Highways Agency 15 347 96 Maritime and Coastguard Agency 10 12 83 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency 15 25 100 HM Treasury 15 4,281 1885 National Savings and Investments 15 43 93 Office for National Statistics 15 105 85 10 19108 71 Valuation Office 18 13 84 Treasury Solicitor’s Department 10 26 100 Wales Office 15 148 86 Department for Work and Pensions 20 13,140 90 Appeals Service20 15 20 90 Child Support Agency 15 5,235 94 Debt Management 15 11 100 Disability and Carers Service 15 467 100 Health and Safety Executive 15 145 90 Jobcentre Plus 15 1,445 92 The Pension Service 15 767 96 1 Departments and Agencies which received 10 MPs/Peers letters or fewer are not shown in this table. Holding or interim replies are not included unless otherwise indicated. The report does not include correspondence considered as Freedom of Information requests. 2 Office of the Third Sector and the Social Exclusion Unit are included from May 2006. 3 DCLG was established in May 2006. 4 Drop in performance caused by several planning campaigns and a higher volume of correspondence. New arrangements have been introduced to improve performance. 5 The Tribunals Service was formed in April 2006 and incorporates the former Employment Tribunal Service. 6 Database is unable to differentiate between letters from MPs/Peers and other correspondence, including FOI requests. Figures are therefore for all letters which received a ministerial reply. The AFPAA and DVA do not include FOI requests. 7 Drop in performance caused by an increased volume of correspondence and the introduction of a new database in September 2006 to record and track correspondence. 8 Drop in performance caused by technical difficulties following the implementation of a new handling system. Since August 2006, performance has increased to 93 per cent. 9 There was a marked increase in correspondence in the first half of the year. In April 2006 a fully centralised system and changes in the correspondence handling system were introduced. 10 Only includes figures from January to October when the Rural Development Service merged with English Nature and the Countryside Agency to form Natural England. Natural England is an NDPB so will not be included in future lists. 11 New procedures have been implemented to tackle and improve performance from 2007. 12 From 1 February 2007 FSA correspondence has been processed though the DH Customer Service Centre, which it is hoped will lead to improved performance. 13 Active Communities Directorate included until May 2006, when it transferred to the Office of the Third Sector in the Cabinet Office. 14 These figures are from February 2006 when a new correspondence team was established. 15 The UK Passport Service became the Identity and Passport Service in April 2006. 16 Drop in performance caused by complex correspondence. 17 Figures are from 1 January to 2 April 2006, when the Employment Tribunals Service became part of the Tribunals Service. 18 Database can not differentiate between correspondence received from MP/Peers and others so figure includes all letters receiving a ministerial reply. 19 Figures are where the National Statistician replied on the Ministers’ behalf. Figures are for all correspondence not just that received from MPs and Peers. 20 Figures are from January to 2 April 2006, when the Appeals Service became part of The Tribunals Service.