HC Deb 22 July 1996 vol 282 c98W
Mr. Sweeney

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what performance targets he has set for the Planning Inspectorate agency's work in Wales for the financial year 1996–97. [39334]

Mr. Gwilym Jones

The key objectives for the agency in 1996–97 continue to be to preserve the impartiality and quality of the inspectorate's work while seeking further to improve its efficiency. I have set the following key targets for the agency's work in Wales, in particular the timeliness target has been extended to include the three different methods of hearing appeals:

Timeliness

  1. (a) Eighty per cent. of all planning appeals decided by written representations to be determined within 17 weeks;
  2. (b) Eighty per cent. of all planning appeals decided by hearings to be determined within 22 weeks;
  3. (c) Eighty per cent. of all planning appeals decided by inquiries to be determined within 30 weeks;
  4. (d) To provide an inspector for local plan inquiries on request within 26 weeks of the end of the objection period and to deliver 90 per cent. of inspectors' reports to local authorities by the dates agreed in service agreements;
Financial
  1. (a) Unit costs of planning appeals decided by written representations not to exceed £690;
  2. (b) Recover 90 per cent. of receipts due within eight weeks of the invoice date;
 Efficiency Contribute to the generation of a three per cent. efficiency improvement in the agency's use of running costs compared with 1995–96; Quality To satisfy the Advisory Panel on Standards and thus the Secretary of State, annually and following rigorous monitoring, that the quality of the inspectorate's work is being maintained at a high standard with 99 per cent. of its casework free from error; Welsh Language To respond in Welsh to all inquiries, written or oral, received in Welsh within the same timescales as allowed for responding to inquiries generally.