§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she expects to reply to the letter of 25 July from the hon. Member for Nottingham North regarding Nottingham S.M.E.E. Ltd. of Annon Court, Nottingham. [74741]
§ Ms HewittMy noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Lord Sainsbury replied on Friday 27 September 2002.
§ Mr. KaufmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 16 August from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. T. Walsh. [74570]
§ Mr. YeoTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how she determines whether a letter from(a) a member of the public and (b) an hon. Member receives a reply personally signed by (i) her, (ii) other ministers in her Department and (iii) her officials. [74592]
672W
§ Ms HewittI aim to reply personally to as many letters as I can but it is not possible to do this for all letters because of the large volume of correspondence addressed to me.
Hon. Members receive replies from me, or other Ministers in my Department if the subject matter is one in which they have been closely involved.
From time to time, when I am out of London, I will authorise my Private Office to sign letters on my behalf and other Ministers will do the same in their offices.
Letters from members of the public are frequently delegated to an official to answer, in order to ensure that replies can be sent quickly.