(2) what the average cost was of telephone calls made to benefits offices on 0845 numbers in the last 12 months; what the total cost was of such calls; and if he will make a statement;
(3) what the (a) average number of calls before connection and (b) average time taken to get connected, not including connections to automated responses, was for people telephoning benefits offices using 0845 numbers in the last 12 months;
(4) what his policy is on charging members of the public who telephone Jobcentre Plus or benefits offices who are connected to an automated answering device but not subsequently connected to a member of staff; and if he will make a statement.
The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 22 May 2007:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions about the use of 0845 numbers for calls to Benefit Delivery Centres and average telephone call costs. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
To date 54 sites have converted to 0845 numbers as part of the programme to centralise benefits, which is due for completion by March 2008. Uniform telephony data on numbers of calls, average length of calls and calls terminated after the automated answering service will not be available until this modernisation programme is complete. When this process is complete the new telephony system will provide more comprehensive management information and this will enable us to more effectively manage the telephone service to our customers.
We do not have data on the length of calls to telephony teams. If the benefit enquiry becomes complicated then the telephony team would make arrangements for a benefit specialist to call the customer back. The cost (set by BT) which begins once the customer has pressed the number on the automated response is between 1p and 3p per minute (from a landline) depending on the time of day. Call charges from mobile telephones vary depending on the service provider.
I hope this is helpful.