§ Mr. Roweasked the Minister for the Civil Service what further progress has been made in implementing the recommendations in the "Review of the Government Statistical Services", Cmnd. 8236.
§ Mr. HayhoeStatisticians continue to provide a wide-ranging service of information, advice and analysis in every Government Department.
The target saving arising from the Review of Government Statistical Service (Cmnd. 8236) were £26½million. By April this year £25 million had already been implemented. It is expected that savings will rise to £28½ million a year by April 1984.
These savings will mean that staff and administrative costs in the Government statistical services have been reduced by a quarter since 1979. During that period the number of forms sent out to businesses has also been very substantially reduced. In 1982 one million fewer forms were sent out than in 1979—a reduction of one-third.
The credit for this substantial progress rests firmly with the members of the service. They will continue their efforts to realise further savings.
The system of departmental statistical budgets will be an important tool in managing statistical resources. It is being successful in generating greater awareness amongst statisticians and their customers of the costs of the service and in stimulating them to question existing methods and processes and to examine alternative ways of doing things. It will be made more effective by relating costs to clearly-stated objectives and measures of output.