To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the operation of the Bank of England Act 1998; what recent representations he has received about this Act; and what (a) statutory instruments, (b) departmental circulars and (c) other documents he (i) has issued since October 2008 and (ii) plans to issue in the next 12 months consequent on the provisions of the Act. (274018)

The Treasury reviews regularly the legislative framework for which it is responsible. It receives representations from a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such representations.

The Banking Act 2009, which received Royal Assent on 12 February this year, includes provisions to amend the Bank of England Act 1998 and enables secondary legislation in relation to the role of the Bank. All such legislation is available from the Office of Public Sector Information:

www.opsi.gov.uk

Information published by the Treasury in relation to Part II of the Bank of England Act 1998 (Monetary Policy) can be found on its website, as can Treasury press releases relating to Bank of England appointments made under the Act:

www.hm-treasury.gsi.gov.uk

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials in his Department at each pay band have responsibility for the (a) formulation and (b) implementation of policy on the Bank of England Act 1998; what other posts in his Department each such official has held; and if he will make a statement. (274019)

The Treasury has a broad range of policy interests related to the Bank of England Act 1998, and flexes the related resources as required. Overall, at 1 April 2008, the Treasury Group had 1,451 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff. Further information regarding Treasury staffing can be found in its latest annual report available at

www.hm-treasury.gsi.gov.uk.