§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his citizens charter includes measures taken by Government Departments prior to the publication of the document; and if he will make statement.
§ Mr. MaudeThe citizens charter builds on the earlier successes of the financial management initiative and, more recently, the Next Steps programme of management reform which has led to the creation of 56 agencies. It draws on the efforts of individual Departments and agencies to improve the services they offer to their customers. The charter aims to raise the quality of public services and make them more responsive to their users through increased choice, the extension of competition and accountability, and the provision of more information on the standards of service that they can expect to receive. The citizens charter contains a wide range of new proposals for this.