Examination of witnesses (Questions 80-88)
TUESDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 1999
MRS ANNE
PARKER, CBE and MRS
ELSPETH COOPER
Mr Dismore
80. Can I just pick up the point that Edward
finished on about you not being able to interfere with the percentage
assessments. One of the things you have highlighted is the risk
of inconsistent use of discretion. Would you see yourself when
discretion is exercised (and it could go up or could go down)
having the power to intervene in those cases?
(Mrs Parker) I think the only way I could make comment
there would be if I saw inconsistencies in the operation of that
discretion so that perhaps one particular person was always exercising
it in one way and another was exercising it in a different way.
That might also relate to types of case, for example. I could
certainly comment on that and draw attention to it. One of the
other issues at present is where a discretion exists and the decision
is made not to exercise it then I can comment on that. I can also
draw to the attention of the officer who is entitled to exercise
discretion new information which may not have been available to
him when he made the original decision but that is stretching
my ability to influence the exercise of discretion as far as it
can go I think.
81. Is the risk you outlined under the new scheme
that you will have complaints made to you by people who feel that
the discretion should have been exercised but was not? Do you
see the risk of a large number of cases along those lines coming
to you which you are not able to sift out?
(Mrs Parker) I cannot guess, I am sorry, is the answer
to that.
Chairman
82. Do you have any up-to-date information about
the volume of complaints that come from Members of Parliaments'
own post bags? Is that on a plane or a trend up or a trend down?
(Mrs Parker) It is roughly the same proportion of
the complaints I get. It was just under a third last year and
this year and the number of complaints I am getting is going up
pro rata to the number of cases that are going to the Agency.
I am not getting more complaints pro rata to the customer base.
That is staying the same and the proportion of MPs' cases is broadly
the same.
83. There is a sense that the sting has gone
out of all this, people are no longer demonstrating in the streets
and it has become less of an issue. This may just be because news
editors are getting tired of the subject for all I know. Do you
have a view on that? Is your perspective that there is still a
real head of angry steam out there in the hands of those who believe
that they are not getting proper service?
(Mrs Parker) In terms of my post bag there is an amazing
number of people who have shown considerable forbearance. There
are high levels of frustration. I do not see the kind of vituperative
letters that I think one might have expected to see given what
one knew of the Agency some years ago when concerns were very
high. I have seen very few of those, a couple. This is rather
anecdotal, I do not think it is statistically valid what I am
going to say now so please feel free to disregard it. I have recently
seen one or two cases where I am pleased to say that people have
had higher expectations of the Agency than some of the people
who have complained to me in the past and they are telling them
what they are ought to be doing and coming to me quickly.
84. I have a final question and maybe Mrs Cooper
could come in on this as well. I am absolutely satisfied that
the two of you are equal to the task and the duties that have
been laid onto you but looking forward we are going through quite
a difficult transitional phase. Do you have the back-up and budget
and support you think you need to discharge your duties in the
coming years particularly as I already detect from my colleagues
that there is a concern about the transition period and the complaints
that might flow from that?
(Mrs Parker) Yes. In terms of the resources available
to us, we are regularly—and we are going through a second
phase—looking at how we can redeploy them to produce better
service, because our service has slowed down. It should not have
done, it is causing some delays, and I am sure another Select
Committee will be asking me questions about that. However, I have
not felt the need to ask for additional resources. I think we
can manage that better at this point. In terms of the volume of
complaints that might come to us during the transition period,
I would anticipate that a number of those—going back to
Mr Leigh's comments—will be about the fairness or unfairness
of the legislation, and I regret that I may be turning those back
to Parliamentarians or others. So it is quite difficult at this
point. In principle, the Agency is supposed to give me the resources
I need, and if I discover I need them I will ask for them.
85. We have your assurance on that?
(Mrs Parker) Yes. Elspeth, you have to manage them,
if you want to say anything.
(Mrs Cooper) I just agree with what Mrs Parker says.
We have recently recruited more staff. I am looking at the management—I
am new to the unit, I only arrived in June—and looking at
our processes, trying to maximise our efficiencies, but at the
moment I have the resources to deal with the work that I have
at present and for the backlog that I have. I am quite confident
that I will be given the resources that I need.
86. I was aware—and I do not want to impinge
on the territory of the Public Administration Select Committee—that
there was a slight increase in the delay in some of the responses.
(Mrs Parker) Yes, there is, indeed.
87. That is a matter more for them than us,
but I just wanted to be clear that you were both absolutely certain
that should a need for resources be identified you would not be
backward in coming forward, as they say.
(Mrs Parker) No.
88. Thank you. We are very grateful to you.
That has been extremely valuable. Thank you very much for your
attendance.
(Mrs Parker) Thank you.
Chairman: I suspend the public session temporarily.
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