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Written Ministerial Statements
Thursday 30 March 2006
CABINET OFFICE
National School of Government
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office (Mr. Jim Murphy):
As part of a review being conducted by Sir Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet Secretary, into the role and functions of the Cabinet Office, I can announce our intention to establish the
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National School of Government as a separate non-ministerial Department. This change of status will support the National School of Government's strategy to become a more customer-led organisation that is providing a shared service across the civil service and the wider public sector. Further details will be published in a framework document later this year.
Correspondence
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office (Mr. Jim Murphy):
I am today publishing a report on Departments' and Agencies' performanceon handling Members' and Peers' correspondence for 2005. Details are set out in the attached table. 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.
Correspondence from MPs / Peers to Ministers and Agency Chief Executives(1)
| 2004 | 2005 | |
| Target set for reply (working days) | Number of letters received | Percentage of replies within target | Target set for reply (working days) | Number of letters received | % of replies within target
|
Department or Agency |
|
Cabinet Office | 15 | 637 | 88 | 15 | 537 | 97
|
Department for Constitutional Affairs | 20 | 3,416 | 64 | 20 | 3,179 | 92
|
Court Service | 15 | 429 | 95 | 15 | 359 | 99
|
HM Land Registry | 20 | 44 | 95 | 15 | 55 | 96
|
National Archives | 15 | 149 | 100 | 10 | 30 | 100
|
Northern Ireland Court Service(2) | 15 | 14 | 92 | | |
|
Official Solicitor and Public Trustee | 15 | 17 | 100 | 15 | 26 | 100
|
Public Guardianship Office | 15 | 134 | 93 | 15 | 112 | 99
|
Crown Prosecution Service | 15 | 520 | 98 | 15 | 476 | 98
|
HM Customs and Excise(3) | 18 | 1,321 | 51 | | |
|
Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 18 | 4,817 | 78 | 20 | 5,085 | 63
|
Ministry of Defence4 | 15 | 5,989 | 62 | 15 | 5,378 | 79
|
Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency | 15 | 126 | 99 | 15 | 207 | 99
|
Defence Estates(2) | 15 | 11 | 100 | | |
|
Veterans Agency | 15 | 287 | 99 | 15 | 138 | 99
|
Warship Support Agency(2) | 15 | 15 | 91 | | |
|
Department for Education and Skills | 15 | 15,313 | 93 | 15 | 18,547 | 86
|
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | 15 | 14,305 | 81 | 15 | 12,051 | 75
|
Food Standards Agency | 20 | 782* | 59 | 20 | 738* | 73
|
| 20 | 78** | 95 | 20 | 91** | 90
|
* Letters where Health Ministers have replied.
|
** Letters where Chief Executive/Chairman has replied.
|
Foreign and Commonwealth Office(5) | 20 | 26,942 | 83 | 20 | 9,588 | 80
|
|
|
UK Visas(6) | 15 | 12,849 | 45 | 15 | 9,189* | 45
|
| | | | 20 | 1,720** | 58
|
*Letters where UK Visa officials have replied. |
|
**Letters where FCO Ministers have replied.
|
Department of Health | 20 | 20,140 | 80 | 20 | 20,155 | 91
|
Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency | 10 | 284 | 81 | 10 | 340 | 92
|
NHS Estates(7) | 20 | 112 | 73 | 20 | 90 | 86
|
NHS Purchasing and Supplies Agency | 20 | 57 | 60 | 20 | 32 | 86
|
Home Office (non IND correspondence) | 15 | 9,445 | 76 | 15 | 8,899 | 79
|
Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND)(8) | 20 | 35,802 | 34 | 20 | 41,063 | 53
|
Criminal Records Bureau | 10 | 272 | 95 | 10 | 471 | 94
|
HM Prison Service | 20 | 1,154 | 73 | 20 | 868 | 80
|
UK Passport Service | 10 | 486 | 74 | 10 | 524 | 60
|
Department for International Development | 15 | 4,686 | 80 | 15 | 4,593 | 67
|
Inland Revenue(3) | 18 | 2,993 | 85 | | |
|
| 18 | 1,601* | 45 | | |
|
*Local tax office delegated figures (where local tax offices have replied direct to MPs) |
|
Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Lord's Office | 15 | 60 | 87 | 15 | 143 | 95
|
Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers | 20 | 404 | 63 | 20 | 335 | 68
|
Northern Ireland Office | 10 | 567 | 68 | 10 | 742 | 64
|
Compensation Agency | 7 | 125 | 67 | 7 | 62 | 100
|
Northern Ireland Prison Service | 10 | 48 | 85 | 10 | 39 | 92
|
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister | 15 | 10,135 | 81 | 15 | 8,937 | 79
|
Planning Inspectorate | 8 | 379 | 81 | 10 | 243 | 67
|
Office of the Leader of the House of Commons | 15 | 504 | 95 | 15 | 302 | 97
|
Scotland Office | 15 | 82 | 77 | 15 | 56 | 53
|
Department for Trade and Industry(9) | 15 | 11,807 | 72 | 15 | 10,821 | 50
|
Companies House | 10 | 56 | 98 | 10 | 38 | 100
|
Employment Tribunals Service | 10 | 61 | 93 | 10 | 91 | 95
|
Insolvency Service | 10 | 33 | 94 | 10 | 99 | 98
|
Patent Office | 10 | 297 | 84 | 10 | 496 | 94
|
Department for Transport | 15 | 8,593 | 86 | 15 | 7,849 | 80
|
Driving Standards Agency | 15 | 198 | 79 | 15 | 89 | 87
|
DVLA | 7 | 1,276 | 100 | 7 | 1,113 | 100
|
Government Car and Despatch Agency | | | | 7 | 16 | 100
|
Highways Agency | 15 | 285 | 95 | 15 | 287 | 99
|
Maritime and Coastguard Agency | 10 | 20 | 100 | 10 | 18 | 100
|
Vehicle and Operator Services Agency | 15 | 13 | 77 | 15 | 16 | 94
|
|
HM Treasury(1) 0 | 15 | 4,316 | 86 | 15 | 2,585 | 84
|
HM Revenue and Customs(3) | | | | 18 | 4,231 | 72
|
| | | | 18 | 1,601* | 45
|
National Savings and Investments | 15 | 74 | 92 | 15 | 21 | 95
|
National Statistics | 15 | 189 | 95 | 15 | 155 | 91
|
| 10 | 133 | 73 | 10 | 114** | 84
|
Valuation Office | 18 | 18 | 83 | 18 | 21 | 80
|
*Local Tax Office 'Delegated' figures (where local tax offices have replied directly to MPs). The marked increase in correspondence in quarters 3 and 4 of 2004 continued throughout 2005 unabated. Clearances during the year were affected by moving some complaint drafters to help to clear Disputed Overpayments. Currently restructuring how we deal with complaints and performance should improve.
|
**Letters where National Statistician replied on Ministers' behalf
|
Treasury Solicitor's Department | 10 | 49 | 98 | 10 | 28 | 100
|
Wales Office | 15 | 109 | 92 | 15 | 83 | 80
|
Department for Work and Pensions | 20 | 13,319 | 86 | 20 | 10,596 | 90
|
Appeals Service | 15 | 50 | 98 | 15 | 60 | 95
|
Child Support Agency | 15 | 5,390 | 88 | 15 | 5,367 | 99
|
Debt Management | 15 | 25 | 100 | 15 | 35 | 100
|
Disability and Carers Service | 15 | 451 | 100 | 15 | 425 | 100
|
Health and Safety Executive | 10 | 127 | 70 | 15 | 77 | 77
|
Jobcentre Plus | 15 | 1,136 | 90 | 15 | 1,062 | 90
|
The Pension Service | 15 | 1,340 | 89 | 15 | 1,042 | 98
|
(1) Departments and Agencies which received 10 MPs/Peers letters or fewer during 2005 are not shown in this table. Holding or interim replies are not included unless otherwise indicated. This report includes letters from prospective candidates prior to the general election. The report does not include correspondence considered as Freedom of Information requests.
(2) Received fewer than 10 letters in 2005.
(3) With effect from 1 April 2005, HM Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue merged to form HM Revenue and Customs.
(4) Includes a small number of letters from members of the public that received a ministerial reply. Figure also includes some FOI requests, though these represent less than 1 per cent of total reported.
(5) Reduced volume of correspondence compared to previous years reflects the setting up of a central correspondence system and the introduction of a more accurate method of monitoring letters received.
(6) Poor performance caused by backlog of cases and resource issues. Performance for December 2005 was 75 per cent, increased to 81 per cent in March 2006.
(7) Abolished in September 2005.
(8) IND saw an increase in volume of 15 per cent between 2004 and 2005 (6 per cent increase in ministerial, and 21 per cent in official replies). During 2005 all official replies were again signed off by IND senior executive group members which inevitably built delays into the system, but had the effect of significantly enhancing the quality of replies.
(9) Performance slipped last year due to internal reorganisation following a reduction in staff numbers. Launch of new centralised response unit will raise level of performance.
(10)Includes all ministerial correspondence.
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