§ Mr. William Powellasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what caused the delay in replying to the letter from the hon. Member for Corby, dated 23 November 1983, concerning Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Wilson; and when he expects to reply to the letter.
§ Mr. HurdIt was necessary to make inquiries of the prison in which Mr. Wilson had been and of others considering his future treatment. An interim reply to this effect was sent to my hon. Friend on 15 December 1983. A full reply will be sent shortly.
§ Mr. William Powellasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many letters from hon. Members, dated on or before 23 November 1983, remain unanswered.
§ Mr. BrittanAbout 900 letters received from hon. Members on or before 23 November 1983 had not received final replies on 19 January 1984, representing about 5 per cent. of the total number of letters received from hon. Members between 1 January 1983 and 23 November 1983. Replies to many of these letters were awaiting the results of inquiries from third parties.
§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time taken by his Department to reply to a letter from an hon. Member.
§ Mr. BrittanIt is not possible to calculate the average time without disproportionate cost, but every effort is made to ensure that there are no avoidable delays.