HC Deb 06 May 1988 vol 132 cc625-7W
Mr. Madden

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were employed in the nationality division of his Department to process nationality applications in each month since April 1987.

Mr. Renton

[holding answer 3 May 1988]: The numbers of staff employed in case-working groups processing nationality applications were:

Numbers
1987
April 151
May 148
June 152
July 146
August 144
September 151
Numbers
October 149
November 148
December 150
1988
January 148
February 149
March 149
April 147

These figures do not include staff processing inquiries about citizenship status, dealing with requests for application forms and maintaining the computer records which support the processing of cases.

Mr. Madden

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contingency plans were made by the nationality division of his Department in early 1987 to deal with the expected extra work caused by the nationality deadlines; and how those plans were amended in October 1987 when the extent of that extra demand became apparent.

Mr. Renton

[holding answer 3 May 1988]: An additional case-working group (17 staff) was created on 1 April 1987; and further provision was made to increase from 150 to 170 the number of staff wholly employed on considering applications with effect from 1 April 1988.

In August 1987, case-working resources were diverted to responding promptly to general inquiries about citizenship and supplying application forms and to recording the receipt of new applications. When it became apparent that these measures were insufficient to deal with the growing volume of new applications being received, overtime working began on 8 November and has been in operation ever since. The full extent of the demand did not become apparent until after December 1987, when 100,000 citizenship applications were submitted in one month. Further measures have been taken since then, including the ones I announced in the House on 16 February 1988 at column 683.

Because of the priority accorded to these matters, and recruitment difficulties in the Croydon area, it has not yet been possible to achieve the projected increase in case-working capacity provided for from 1 April 1988. That will be done as soon as possible. We hope also to announce shortly detailed plans for substantial additional case-working capacity at a new location, probably on Merseyside.