§ 10. Mr. Bill Rammell (Harlow)What consultations he has had with the general public on issues relating to the delivery of public services.[39799]
§ The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Dr. David Clark)As part of my better government programme, I am keen to look at government from the point of view of the ordinary citizen. Services should be structured to reflect the needs of citizens, not only to suit service providers. We are putting people first in our attempts to modernise and improve public services. We have carried out extensive consultation with the public and have set up a people's panel, the first in the world. The panel will ensure that, instead of trying to assess the judgment of providers, we know the feelings of ordinary users of public services.
§ Mr. RammellI thank my right hon. Friend for that response, and especially welcome the people's panel, which provides an opportunity to involve ordinary people in everyday decisions that affect the delivery of their Government services. How will the needs of older people be considered in the panel, given that circumstances and isolation often prevent their views from being taken into account?
§ Dr. ClarkOlder people are key users of public services. We have recognised the importance of providing joined-up services, which are more accessible and easier to use. Old people find it doubly difficult to queue and queue, and to fill in occasionally unnecessary forms. To simplify that, I have set up the better government for older people programme, which is running across 28 local councils, with the support of Age Concern and the Anchor Housing Trust. In June, I shall also launch "Passport 50 Plus", which is a sort of pensioners charter. It will cover the rights of older people in health care, pensions and benefit, housing, safety and leisure. It is part of the Government's programme to make sure that public services are in line with the needs of our citizens and convenient to them.
§ Mr. Robert Maclennan (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross)I acknowledge that the Chancellor of the Duchy has done a great deal to assist delivery of services through the steps to which he has referred, but has he, in his consultations, received representations about the importance of sustaining the network of post offices and sub-post offices in rural areas, which are the point of contact for service delivery for many people who cannot afford the high petrol prices in such areas and therefore cannot get to main population centres? Will he help to sustain that network?
§ Dr. ClarkI am happy to give the assurance that the Government will do all they can to ensure that we protect 710 post offices in both urban and rural areas. With that in mind, we have already installed in a post office in the south-west a kiosk that will allow individuals to conduct a much wider range of public services than those provided purely by a post office. When we publish our White Paper on better government, the right hon. Gentleman will see that we have imaginative proposals which will involve the Post Office in a banking capacity to help in the delivery of services and benefits.
§ Mr. Edward Garnier (Harborough)What characteristics of the panel entitle it to be called the people's panel?
§ Dr. ClarkThe people's panel will replicate demographically the nature of British society. It will allow us for the first time to assess what services the British people want from the Government. It will also allow us to provide the modern services that the British people expect from a modern Government.